Welcome to UCAN.org! Whether you are a long-time member, or first-time visitor, we hope you will find our website useful. The guide below is designed to help users of all experience levels find what they are looking for. Remember, we are a non-profit organization and the resources provided on this site are made possible by member donations. Join or renew your UCAN membership here. Thanks for your support!

Start at the top: There are two critical things at the top of every page on our website. First the UCAN logo , which always takes you back to the home page. And second, the red menu that extends across the top of the page. The menu can get you to 99% of the content on our site, so it's always a good place to start. Also, our content is primarily organized by topic. So if you are looking for something on SDG&E, or electricity, you can find it by clicking "Energy" on the big red menu.

The "meat 'n potatoes": With a four column webpage, there is a lot of stuff going on at the right and left hand sides of the site. Just remember, most of the actual content (such as articles, consumer resources, and legal documents) will appear in the middle of the page. Here are some things to look for:

The "Latest News" icon is where you will find all of our news postings on energy, telecom, etc. You can also view all news stories on the site, or for a particular topic, by using the View All News, Blogs, and Podcasts links. On the front page, there isn't an icon, but the news appears in the middle left part of page and contains the most important stories from all of the issues UCAN covers. Remember, if you are looking for an older story, simply navigate to the bottom of the news column and use the red numbers to page through our archives.

Keep an eye out for this icon on the front page. "Featured Items" are just that: featured. Usually they consist of our newest and most relevant consumer resources. We also use the section to draw attention to new features available on the site and blogs posted by guest contributors.

"Issue Centers" are the heart of UCAN.org. You will find Issue Centers in the Energy, Telecom, and Water sections of the website, along with a few of the featured Issue Centers on the front page. Issue Centers are like one-stop-shops for information concerning UCAN's consumer advocacy and litigation activities. Issue Centers consist of legal and regulatory filings and documents, news articles, and the occasional user forum or podcast. An Issue Center allows any interested party to trace the development of major consumer issues over the course of many years. For example, the Cingular Customer Service Case Issue Center has filings and testimony that cover a 5 year legal battle that recently resulted in a $50 million settlement for Cingular customers in California. The SDG&E Rate Increase and Sunrise Powerlink Issue Centers are two other examples.

If Issue Centers are the heart of UCAN.org, then "Consumer Tools" are the lungs that give it life. Whether you are looking to cancel your cell phone contract, sue a telemarketer, or save on gas, you will find it in Consumer Tools. There are two ways to access consumer resources via Consumer Tools: One is to find the Consumer Tools section of each topic (energy, telecom, etc.) on its respective page. The other is to view all the consumer resources on the site displayed on one page...the Consumer Tools page. The Consumer Tools page also gives you access to the Ultimate Consumer Resource Guide, which contains all of the consumer resources available on the site, but organized into a different (more book-like) format.

You will find this icon in the energy and telecom sections. It is useful if you are looking for just one type of information such as: policy papers, legal/regulatory filings, or forum topics. The information will not be organized by issue (Sunrise, energy efficiency etc.).

This is where you willl find UCAN's blog. UCAN uses blogs to post commentary on consumer news and developments in a slightly less formal venue. Blogs are different from standard news because they contain analysis that puts the news into context. In our case, it means commenting on how a given event impacts consumers. Other blogs contain consumer tips and scam alerts. One example is AT&T's rollout of TV services in San Diego. A blog would report the event, but also discuss its relevency to consumers (in this instance, the potential to use AT&T competition as leverage in negotiating a better deal with your current TV provider--read the AT&T post here).

UCAN.org is a highly interactive website. In fact, we would not have much of a website were it not for user participation. So we encourage you to let us, and the world, know what you think. Almost every piece of content on the website is open to comments. Just look for the little red "add comment" link below the story. We also encourage you to visit our Forums and post your thoughts there as well.

File a complaint! The UCAN Fraud Squad gives individual attention to California consumers regarding cell phone, landline phone, TV, Internet, and electricity disputes.

RSS Feeds make it possible to keep up with UCAN.org in an automated manner that's easier than checking manually. Basically, you get whatever you want from our website sent to you automatically, without having to constantly go to a web page looking for updates. Go to our RSS page to learn more.

If you have questions about the website, or any suggestions as to how it can be improved, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Employment/Internship Opportunities! Check here to see if UCAN is currently hiring or looking for volunteers.