States and municipalities are expressing concern that legislation designed to prevent taxes on access to Internet service eventually could restrict local govt. regulation of telephony and cable service. NARUC, the National Governors Assn. (NGA), National Assn. of Telecom Officers & Advisors (NATOA) and the TeleCommUninty Alliance (TCUA) are among the local interests expressing concern about S-150, the proposed Internet Tax Non-Discrimination Act.
FCC legal advisers said Wed. they were aware of concerns by rural ILECs that universal service money was shrinking while requests for it were growing with the arrival of competitive carriers in rural areas. But they also told members of the National Telecom Co-op Assn. (NTCA) that those were very difficult problems to solve because the Telecom Act encouraged competition as well as universal service. The advisers told NTCA that numerous universal service issues were teed up at the Commission, including what services should be funded and how the support money should be raised, and they wouldn’t be easy to solve. NTCA members were in town for their annual Legislative & Policy Conference.
State regulators are eyeing wireless best practices as a potential way to avert the need for service quality regulation, at the same time as industry is drafting voluntary guidelines, officials said. Neb. PSC Comr. Anne Boyle told us she had circulated proposed best practices at last month’s National Assn. of Regulatory Utility Comrs. (NARUC) winter meeting for review. Boyle said the issue was teed up for an upcoming NARUC meeting in Denver, with hopes that industry, FCC and the National Assn. of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA) would participate, she said. Meanwhile, the Mo. attorney general is in negotiations with Sprint PCS and Nextel on a lawsuit filed in Dec. over billing practices.
Verizon agreed to pay $5.7 million to U.S. Treasury to settle FCC investigation into violations of Telecom Act ban on Bell companies’ providing long distance service before receiving authority from FCC. Commission announced it had entered into consent decree with Verizon in which company admitted it had marketed long distance in its local service region on 5 occasions in Jan.-July 2002 through cable TV ads, bill inserts and direct mail solicitations. FCC Chmn. Powell said action demonstrated agency’s “commitment to deterring companies from entering the market prematurely.”
OPASTCO said Tues. it was upset with way many state PUCs were allowing competitive carriers to receive Universal Service Fund (USF). Group said it would start pushing message to Congress that states were straying from congressional intent of Telecom Act of 1996 and that FCC needed more oversight of PUCs. With OPASTCO members in Washington for annual legislative and regulatory conference, many were planning to meet with members of Congress this week in attempt to put more focus on USF issues, particularly designations of eligible telecom carrier (ETC) by state PUCs.
FCC is expected to act by mid-Dec. on interim changes aimed at improving way carriers make contributions to Universal Service Fund (USF). Sources said Commission had planned to act by end of Nov. but decided to delay action until Comr.-Designate Jonathan Adelstein was sworn in.
ISPs could benefit from industry proposal to revise way it collects contributions from telecom carriers for universal service fund (USF), Information Technology Assn. of America (ITAA) told FCC in comments filed late Mon. Commission had asked for comments on proposal to move to connection-based methodology, meaning carriers’ contributions would be based on end-user connections -- generally wires to homes and offices or wireless phone numbers -- rather than based on interstate revenue. While proposal involves rather technical adjustments, it has elicited strong feelings because it would require wireless and local exchange carriers to contribute more and long distance carriers less. Under current system, long distance carriers are main contributors. In both scenarios, customers ultimately pay because carriers pass costs on to them in form of fees on bills.
FCC approved proposal Tues. to explore whether and how to reform way agency assesses carrier contributions to Universal Service Fund (USF) and how carriers can recover such costs from customers. Notice of proposed rulemaking unanimously approved by Commission solicits feedback on continuing to require carriers to contribute to USF based on percentage of collected revenue or whether agency should move toward flat-fee alternative, such as per-line charge. Companies that have recovered universal service contributions from customers haven’t historically been held by FCC to particular cost recovery method, with agency instead generally requiring contributors not to shift more than “equitable” amount of contributions to any customer or group of customers. FCC said changes under examination are response to industry trends, including new entrants such as RBOCs into long distance market because contributions now are based on historical, not current, interstate revenue.