California Must Approve Charter Merger To Ensure Affordability
California’s leaders are right to focus on affordability. Prices for most goods and services have gone up in recent years, but not when it comes to broadband. A recent report by the Phoenix Center, using data from the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) urban rate survey, found that broadband prices declined 7% to 9% in the two years between 2024 and 2025. That’s a good trajectory and welcome savings for low- and middle-income families in California trying to make ends meet.
Now Californians have a chance to continue this positive trend in the broadband marketplace as Charter (Spectrum) plans to combine its business with Cox. Through this transaction, Charter will extend its lower pricing and higher value products and services in Southern California and along the Central Coast where Cox currently operates, allowing the state to make even more headway in addressing the affordability crisis. The Golden State has a golden opportunity to give working families a boost. By immediately approving this transaction the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) will ensure affordable internet, mobile, and video services for years to come.
The process at the CPUC is designed to be deliberate, but now ten months after the announcement, the combination has secured every other required regulatory approval — only California’s proceeding is preventing families from reaping these rewards. The FCC has approved it; the United States Department of Justice has concluded its review; and all sixteen other states and at least 100 other local communities that needed to review the transaction have also completed their work.
It has been ten months since Charter and Cox announced the deal and eight months since Charter filed its petition at the CPUC requesting approval. Through a series of proceedings that have included extensive questions directed at Charter and Cox by intervening parties, and several rounds of publicly filed testimony, it has all pointed in the same direction. This transaction is good for Californians. It will enhance, not diminish competition and provide a myriad of public benefits, including better pricing and products for consumers.
Countless community organizations and members of the public have overwhelmingly reached the same conclusion. During the course of four CPUC-sponsored public hearings, sentiment was overwhelmingly supportive; more than 130 members of the public turned out to urge the CPUC to approve the transaction, while only a handful expressed opposition.
The reason so many support it?
Charter has a proven record of offering affordable products and bundling those products in a way that gives consumers even greater value, stretching their dollars further. Last month, Charter unveiled an offer that guarantees new customers $1,000 in savings their first year if they switch their mobile service and transfer their internet from one of the big three wireless companies. That is real money for most Californians. And, for a family of four that takes mobile service from Charter, the company has a plan that provides free internet service for life.
Based on advertised pricing, Charter is $30/month less for its 1 Gbps tier, and even lower for its 500 Mbps offering, resulting in potential savings of $35/month. For unlimited mobile plans, Charter offers lower prices and higher premium data allowances at $30 per line for 30 GB of premium data, while Cox offers $45 per line for only 20 GB of data. Charter’s plans have no contracts — so other than wanting to maintain the savings, customers can switch at any time.
We appreciate the process and the role the CPUC plays on behalf of consumers. We are not opposed to regulatory oversight and the state undertaking a comprehensive review to make sure the public interest is met. But at this stage, the record is clear, and it is time to move forward. Californians, especially those living in the Cox service areas today, deserve quick action so that they can begin to see how these savings will make a difference for their families. A dollar saved is a dollar earned. Let’s give the state’s residents a better chance at an affordable future by approving this transaction now.
About Javier Palomarez
Javier Palomarez is the President & CEO of the United States Hispanic Business Council (USHBC), a leading voice for small businesses in national media, whose opinions have been sought after by the world’s top media outlets including CNN, MSNBC, NBC, FOX Network, and the BBC. He is an acclaimed spokesperson for small business and entrepreneurship, as well as a nationally recognized leader in the Hispanic community, being recognized as one of America’s most influential Hispanics for over a decade. The son of Mexican immigrants, Mr. Palomarez was raised in South Texas.
About Julian Cañete
Julian Cañete is President and Chief Executive Officer of the California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce and its Foundation, which advocates for emerging small businesses across California. Representing more than 135 Hispanic and diverse chambers and business associations, the CHCC supports 1.8 million small businesses and drives economic growth statewide. He previously led public policy and strategic partnerships at the California Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce and has served multiple terms as CHCC President and CEO, returning to the role in 2017. Cañete also serves on several boards and advisory councils supporting small business, economic development, and diversity initiatives across California.