Welcome to

People with landline telephones may be paying more if legislation to deregulate telephone companies gets final approval. The bill received unanimous approval from a key Senate Committee this morning. As Whitney Ray tells us, AARP fears it would increase costs but the president of AT&T Florida says deregulation would bring rates down.

No one knows for sure if rates will go up, or if eventually they would drop as many supports of the bill claim, but opponents were able to kill a similar bill last year by claiming rates would go up as much as 20 percent.

As the world cuts the cord and goes wireless… some older Floridians are finding it harder to make the switch.

There are more than 165-thousand landlines still in use in Florida, but the communications industry says strict regulations are making it hard for them to operate.

While cell phones and other wireless devices are thriving with little government interference, landline companies claim they’re getting tangled up in state regulations.

Marshall Criser, the President of AT&T Florida, made his case to state lawmakers Monday. AT&T supports a bill that would allow companies to set rates without state approval.

“When customers have choices they’re going to be able to make decisions about what they want to pay, what kind of features they want. They control the market,” said Criser.

But AARP disagrees. The group conducted a study, claiming four out of every 10 Florida seniors struggle to pay their bills. They say deregulation would spell financial doom for some of their members.

“The telecommunication companies can raise the rates as much as they like, as often as they like, whenever they like,” said Jack McRay, an AARP Lobbyist.

AARP also fears, the bill would allow landline companies to stop the service… forcing some seniors with arthritis and memory loss to use smaller, easy to lose cell phones.