PUC Approves GTE-Bell Atlantic Merger

The California Public Utilities Commission voted in favor of the merger between GTE Corp. and Bell Atlantic Corp., sending the deal to create the nation’s largest local phone company to the Federal Communications Commission for final approval. The PUC voted 3 to 2, with conditions, to approve the $64-billion merger, the last of 27 state commissions to do so. The PUC found that the merger will have pro-competitive effects, giving the new company “more resources to rival other large merged competitors.” The Justice Department already has cleared the deal, as have shareholders of Bell Atlantic and GTE. It is unclear when the FCC will consider the matter.