Ohio Phone, a Regulated Company, Sends a Flyer to Customers

Multiple Choice

Ohio Phone, a regulated company, sends a flyer to customers with their monthly bill. One flyer tells customers that the Ohio Phone Comm. does not let the company charge fair prices and that the quality of phone service will fall. The Commission orders the company to stop sending mailings that discuss these issues, since the customers are forced to pay for the mailings as a part of their service. The Supreme Court is likely to say that such mailings:

A) are constitutional under the First Amendment
B) are constitutional under the commerce clause⎯the states may not ban such mailings
C) may be prohibited under the Constitution because the First Amendment does not protect political speech by regulated companies
D) may be prohibited under the commerce clause because state regulation of utility monopolies is nearly unlimited
E) could not be addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court; it is a matter for Ohio law