FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler hailed a "bipartisan" draft rural USF order aimed at modernizing high-cost support mechanisms for rate-of-return carriers by shifting to a broadband focus. Wheeler said in a Friday blog post that he and Commissioners Mike O’Rielly and Mignon Clyburn agreed on principles for reforming the subsidy program and boosting broadband deployment to unserved rural Americans
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said he’s “working hard” on Lifeline USF modernization with Commissioner Mignon Clyburn and hopes to bring an order forward quickly, but he declined to discuss any details at his press conference after the commission meeting Thursday. Wheeler has said he and Clyburn agree Lifeline support rules should be overhauled to cover broadband and further combat abuse and fraud, goals that fellow Democratic Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel endorsed (see 1602050066). Clyburn has said the FCC plans to act on Lifeline this quarter and informed sources say the agency might vote on an item at its March 31 meeting. The FCC Thursday released a Lifeline recommendation unanimously approved Feb. 5 by its Consumer Advisory Committee. The panel recommended: Lifeline not be subjected to a “spending cap or restrictive budget” that curtails service to eligible low-income consumers; eligibility verification be handled by “third party administrator(s)”; the FCC “promote competition and ensure robust consumer choice,” including for persons with disabilities; and the commission “improve Lifeline enrollment and outreach through collaboration with community based organizations and anchor institutions and coordination with the federal anti-poverty programs including establishment of automated enrollment procedures, with priority attention paid to the programs conferring Lifeline eligibility.” Free Press and New America’s Open Technology Institute also urged FCC officials not to impose a spending cap or a budget and supported implementing minimum service standards, said a Free Press filing posted Wednesday in docket 11-42. Noting calls to expand the scope of Lifeline providers beyond eligible telecom carriers, the groups also suggested the FCC could make the ETC definition more inclusive rather than depart from the ETC process. The Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council backed eliminating or streamlining the ETC process for Lifeline to increase market competition in the program, said a filing by the group summarizing meetings at the agency. In a letter, the National Tribal Telecommunications Association urged the FCC to keep and increase the enhanced tribal Lifeline credit. The Federal Register published an FCC notice saying the Office of Management and Budget approved for three years the information-collection requirements in a June order making some Lifeline administrative changes (see 1506180029).
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said he’s “working hard” on Lifeline USF modernization with Commissioner Mignon Clyburn and hopes to bring an order forward quickly, but he declined to discuss any details at his press conference after the commission meeting Thursday. Wheeler has said he and Clyburn agree Lifeline support rules should be overhauled to cover broadband and further combat abuse and fraud, goals that fellow Democratic Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel endorsed (see 1602050066). Clyburn has said the FCC plans to act on Lifeline this quarter and informed sources say the agency might vote on an item at its March 31 meeting. The FCC Thursday released a Lifeline recommendation unanimously approved Feb. 5 by its Consumer Advisory Committee. The panel recommended: Lifeline not be subjected to a “spending cap or restrictive budget” that curtails service to eligible low-income consumers; eligibility verification be handled by “third party administrator(s)”; the FCC “promote competition and ensure robust consumer choice,” including for persons with disabilities; and the commission “improve Lifeline enrollment and outreach through collaboration with community based organizations and anchor institutions and coordination with the federal anti-poverty programs including establishment of automated enrollment procedures, with priority attention paid to the programs conferring Lifeline eligibility.” Free Press and New America’s Open Technology Institute also urged FCC officials not to impose a spending cap or a budget and supported implementing minimum service standards, said a Free Press filing posted Wednesday in docket 11-42. Noting calls to expand the scope of Lifeline providers beyond eligible telecom carriers, the groups also suggested the FCC could make the ETC definition more inclusive rather than depart from the ETC process. The Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council backed eliminating or streamlining the ETC process for Lifeline to increase market competition in the program, said a filing by the group summarizing meetings at the agency. In a letter, the National Tribal Telecommunications Association urged the FCC to keep and increase the enhanced tribal Lifeline credit. The Federal Register published an FCC notice saying the Office of Management and Budget approved for three years the information-collection requirements in a June order making some Lifeline administrative changes (see 1506180029).
FCC talks with rural telcos over potential USF restructuring have intensified, industry filings this week indicate. USTelecom and NTCA executives have had a number of recent meetings with senior FCC officials, including Chairman Tom Wheeler, to discuss proposals to update rate-of-return USF mechanisms and related concerns, said filings for the groups in docket 10-90. Wheeler appears interested in circulating a draft order soon, informed sources told us Thursday. An FCC spokesman had no comment.
FCC talks with rural telcos over potential USF restructuring have intensified, industry filings this week indicate. USTelecom and NTCA executives have had a number of recent meetings with senior FCC officials, including Chairman Tom Wheeler, to discuss proposals to update rate-of-return USF mechanisms and related concerns, said filings for the groups in docket 10-90. Wheeler appears interested in circulating a draft order soon, informed sources told us Thursday. An FCC spokesman had no comment.
A group seeking changes to rural healthcare USF received more opposition than support for its FCC petition to open a new rulemaking, in reply comments posted Friday and Monday in docket 02-60. Alaska Communications, CenturyLink and NTCA expressed resistance to the rulemaking petition filed by the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition. Although the SHLB filed a reply supporting its petition, and the Salvation Army’s Alaska Division and Utah Education Network sought certain changes, the latter two didn't voice clear-cut support for the petition. Initial comments were divided (see 1601150060).
A group seeking changes to rural healthcare USF received more opposition than support for its FCC petition to open a new rulemaking, in reply comments posted Friday and Monday in docket 02-60. Alaska Communications, CenturyLink and NTCA expressed resistance to the rulemaking petition filed by the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition. Although the SHLB filed a reply supporting its petition, and the Salvation Army’s Alaska Division and Utah Education Network sought certain changes, the latter two didn't voice clear-cut support for the petition. Initial comments were divided (see 1601150060).
The FCC approved a report saying broadband isn't being rolled out broadly enough or quickly enough to meet a statutory deployment mandate. The commission action at its Thursday meeting wasn't a surprise after Chairman Tom Wheeler circulated a draft report with a negative finding (see 1601070059). Democratic colleagues supported the report and its conclusion, with one backing an even higher broadband standard, but one Republican dissented and the other concurred while faulting the FCC for failing to bring about more broadband deployment. Key House Republicans and major wireline and wireless telco groups were among those criticizing the report, with USTelecom calling it “not believable.”
The FCC approved a report saying broadband isn't being rolled out broadly enough or quickly enough to meet a statutory deployment mandate. The commission action at its Thursday meeting wasn't a surprise after Chairman Tom Wheeler circulated a draft report with a negative finding (see 1601070059). Democratic colleagues supported the report and its conclusion, with one backing an even higher broadband standard, but one Republican dissented and the other concurred while faulting the FCC for failing to bring about more broadband deployment. Key House Republicans and major wireline and wireless telco groups were among those criticizing the report, with USTelecom calling it “not believable.”
NTCA said many rural carriers can't estimate their company-specific impact of the FCC’s “potential bifurcated approach” to updating rate-of-return USF mechanisms for broadband coverage. Reform details remain unsettled, the RLEC group said, and “average schedule” carriers have access only to “industrywide aggregate ‘price-outs’ that” are unlikely to reflect their particular results, and to their own spreadsheets consisting of “hundreds, if not thousands, of inputs,” which also remain works in progress. “We encouraged the Commission to remain open to simpler, more straightforward ways of achieving the same goals of reform via 'modules' (e.g., new limits or policy changes) that could be applied to any distributional mechanism rather than creating substantial new complexity by remaking the underlying distribution calculations,” NTCA said in a filing on an FCC meeting it had that was posted Monday in docket 10-90. It backed “sensible transitions” to how the costs of prior investments would be treated -- such as operating expense limits -- under an overhaul, including the proposed bifurcated approach, which would generally treat old investments under old rules and new investments under new rules. It's unclear how new limits or caps on prior investments, most of all sunk costs, would be consistent with the bifurcated approach, the group said, but if they're instituted, carriers would need time to adjust.