CPUC User Fee

The Commission determines annually the appropriate CPUC User Fee to be paid by telephone corporations. This fee is based on the telephone corporation's gross intrastate revenue excluding inter-carrier sales, equipment sales and directory advertising. The purpose of this fee is to finance the Commission's annual operating budget.

Telephone corporations with annual gross intrastate revenues in excess of $750,000 are required to remit this fee on a quarterly basis by the 15th of April, July, October and January. Telephone corporations with annual gross intrastate revenues of $750,000 or less shall remit the fee on an annual basis on or before January 15 (See table below). Questions about this fee should be directed to CPUC's Budget Office at 415-703-2470.

 
Use of TUFFS to pay User Fee

Telephone corporations must report and pay their user fees via the online Telecommunications and User Fee Filing System (TUFFS).

NEW TUFFS for User Fee reporting periods beginning April 2023.

  • TUFFS Login [NOTICE: A new TUFFS account has been created for each telephone corporation. To login into the new TUFFS, you must first set up your password through a link. The link was sent to the primary regulatory contact on May 2, 2023 with the subject line "Welcome to the new Telecommunications & User Fee Filing System." If you are the primary contact and have not received the welcome e-mail, please contact us at telcosurcharge@cpuc.ca.gov.]

Legacy TUFFS for User Fee reporting periods prior to April 2023.

Remitting User Fee Payments, UnionBank (EFT) Banking Instructions

Late Payment Penalty

The TUFFS system will systematically enforce the late payment penalty of 25% of user fees due on delinquent payments.  The late payment penalty is set forth in Public Utilities Code Section 405.

User fees are due on the 15th of the month following the end of the user fee period.  The User Fee period is either quarterly or annually, depending on the telephone corporation's annual gross intrastate revenues (see above). User Fee payments not received (or delinquent) for more than 30 days are subject to a late payment penalty of 25% of User Fee amounts due.  This will be automatically calculated by the TUFFS system. 

New Standard User Fee Rate

Effective January 1, 2024, the standard user fee rate for all telecommunications corporations is 1.2% of intrastate revenues, as adopted by Resolution M-4870.

Effective January 1, 2023, the standard user fee rate for all telecommunications corporations is 0.75% of intrastate revenues, as adopted by Resolution M-4866.

For historical user fee rates, see User Fee Rates.

For general user fee questions or concerns regarding this notice, please contact userfees@cpuc.ca.gov.

Reporting of Prepaid Wireless Revenues

Effective January 1, 2019, the User Fee for both prepaid and postpaid wireless is subject to the same rate, as adopted in Resolution M-4832.

From January 1, 2016 through December 31, 2018, prepaid wireless revenues, from both direct and indirect sales, and the resulting user fees were required to be reported and remitted separately from all other intrastate wireless revenues. The Mobile Telephony Service Surcharge (MTS) combined the six surcharges with the user fee to create one rate to be paid by prepaid wireless carriers.