The Arizona Corporation Commission has unanimously approved a settlement the Arizona Attorney General’s Office secured with Frontier Communications Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. to address years of unreliable phone service in northern Arizona generally and in Navajo and Apache counties specifically.
Verizon, which is in the process of acquiring Frontier, will be required to identify and fix the root causes of public safety and 911 outages in the region, conduct a full network audit, make investments necessary to ensure adequate and reliable service for customers, and implement enhanced maintenance practices. Frontier customers will also see no rate increases until 2027, and low-income service plans will be offered. The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) will have party status to enforce Verizon’s obligations through the ACC.
In a related agreement, Frontier and Verizon will invest $8 million to expand and enhance rural broadband in Navajo and Apache counties. This includes over $2 million to improve fiber network reliability between Holbrook, Snowflake, and Show Low, and over $2 million to bolster connections between St. Johns, Concho, Springerville, Vernon, and Show Low. Approximately $4 million will go toward connecting homes, businesses, and public institutions directly to high-speed fiber. These commitments are enforceable through a consent judgment with the AGO.
These agreements, secured through the AGO at ACC as well as a civil consent judgment, include enforceable commitments to invest in rural broadband infrastructure, fix public safety-related service outages, and protect ratepayers from unfair costs.
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