This paper looks at nine states--California, Florida, Illinois, New York, Nebraska, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington--in an effort to find common themes in the processes and outcomes of post-divestiture state telecommunications policies. The possible consequences of current state policies are then discussed, and it is suggested that changes in these policies, which have traditionally favored competition, may lead to two classes of telecommunications infrastructure for the country: (1) an advanced infrastructure available primarily to those who can pay for access, such as large business users; and (2) a less advanced infrastructure, available to and intended for small users such as residential customers and small businesses. It is argued that state policy has often been designed to encourage competition so as to minimize the flight of large users for the local network. Concluding that the encouragement of competition is both sound and inevitable, the paper advocates the use of competition as the point of departure for telecommunications policy, not as an end in itself. (26-item bibliography) (EW)