Industry lawyers are watching a pledge by FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly to develop rules to prevent new E-rate-subsidized fiber networks from overbuilding existing USF-funded broadband providers and "stealing" their prime customers, such as schools. Kelley Drye said in a Thursday email blast that "one of the most significant things to watch may be Commissioner O'Rielly's questioning of USAC [Universal Service Administrative Co.] over possible use of USF money to overbuild existing broadband networks." Joel Miller, O'Rielly's chief of staff, emailed us that "Commissioner O'Rielly has made fixing the problem of overbuilding a high priority." Several Texas telcos this week offered suggestions for an FCC rulemaking to oversee the matter (see 1905230005). O'Rielly also calls for legislative fixes to prevent duplicative spending on broadband across federal agencies, and if other agencies and departments become involved, to ensure proper coordination.
The FCC should increase its Rural Health Care program budget, Alaska Communications representatives said last week when they met with Wireline Bureau staff, recounted a filing posted Tuesday in docket 17-130. Late last year, the company asked the FCC to increase the budget to $1 billion for 2019, up from $581 million in 2018 (see 1812190057). Now, Alaska Communications released a report evaluating increased demand for rural telehealth. Rural telcos need more money to support telehealth services, it said, because of inflation, demand for higher-speed broadband capacity, the need for more sophisticated services, new regulatory requirements for healthcare providers and evolving telehealth technologies. The company asked the agency to direct the USF administrator to extend the funding year filing deadline for the RHC program by 30 days to all applicants, not just those affected by a change to a multiyear funding rule (see 1905200050).
Geoffrey Starks, in his maiden industry speech as an FCC commissioner, Wednesday took on Chairman Ajit Pai on USF and other issues. Starks spoke during a Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide event. “Lifeline is a program that I deeply believe in,” Starks said. “It’s called Lifeline for a reason.” Users need the program for a job or to connect with loved ones, he said.
The House Commerce Committee moved forward with a Wednesday hearing on the Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s (Lift) America Act (HR-2741) despite the simultaneous torpedoing of talks between President Donald Trump and top Capitol Hill Democrats on a plan to pay for additional spending on broadband and other infrastructure projects. HR-2741 would allocate $40 billion for broadband projects, offer $12 billion in grants for implementing next generation-911 technologies and $5 billion for federal funding of a loan and credit program for broadband projects. Democrats first filed the bill in 2017 (see 1706020056).
Facing a state USF balance surplus, the Missouri Public Service Commission will consider increasing state USF support for the Lifeline and Disabled Programs and to suspend USF assessment, it said Monday. The commission opened docket TO-2019-0346 after staff recommended increasing the discount for Lifeline and Disabled subscribers to $24 monthly for subscribers to the disabled program and $14.75 for Lifeline subscribers from $15.75 and $6.50, respectively. “A significant decline in the number of subscribers supported by the Missouri USF is creating a growing fund balance surplus,” staff said in its recommendation. “Suspending the assessment and increasing the amount of per subscriber Missouri USF support is a reasonable way to reduce the fund balance over several years.” Comments are due June 4.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit granted an FCC motion by dismissing (in Pacer) an appeal by Sandwich Isles Communications in a dispute over the amount of improper USF payments that the telco must return to the agency (see 1903280036). SIC missed its filing deadline by one day, the D.C. Circuit said, so the court lacks jurisdiction over an appeal. Early this year, the FCC issued a public notice that the government shutdown wouldn't impact any effective dates for actions related to the agency, the one-page court order noted. "The notice also explicitly stated that it did not affect the effective date of the Commission’s actions or dates for filing with entities other than the Commission." The carrier didn't comment.
S&P changed its outlook to “negative” for GCI Liberty following a weaker than expected Q1. Last fall, the FCC told GCI it would reduce its Rural Health Care payments from the USF for the 2017 funding year by 26 percent. The carrier has appealed (see 1811130040). If the agency's decision stands, the same cost methodology will apply to the RHC funding in subsequent years, the telco said in a May 9 earnings report. S&P Wednesday downgraded to ‘B-‘ GCI’s issuer credit rating. The cable and telco provider didn't comment Thursday.
The National Tribal Telecommunications Association has "significant concerns with the broadband testing protocols" in July's order on measuring speed and latency at recipients of high-cost USF support for fixed locations, NTTA wrote the FCC on Tuesday. The group backed some NTCA and rural broadband advocate WTA fears on broadband performance testing. Testing protocols aren't "ready and will not be ready in time for testing to begin" in Q3, NTTA wrote, in a letter posted Wednesday in docket 10-90. "NTTA shares NTCA’s and WTA’s concerns about the requirement for carriers to test outside their networks, speeds and tiers to be tested, incompatible CPE [customer premises equipment], and the starting date." NTTA didn't immediately answer our questions. Other telecom groups have USF speed/latency worries (see 1905140019). The commission will "be addressing the issue in the near future," emailed a spokesperson.
A Connecticut bill to resolve a long-standing fight about municipal broadband is headed to the Senate floor. SB-846 got wide support from the Joint Finance Committee, which voted 42-6 Tuesday. It clarifies local governments may use a reserved space on poles called the “municipal gain” for municipal broadband. Frontier Communications claims the bill would stunt broadband growth.
House Communications Subcommittee Democrats criticized FCC Chairman Ajit Pai on a range of actions during a Tuesday hearing. That fulfilled expectations House Commerce Committee's oversight of the majority-GOP commission would be more critical since Democrats gained a majority in the chamber (see 1905140060). Lawmakers' ire was tempered by other communications policy interests. Top House Communications members used the hearing as a venue to float legislative proposals on broadband infrastructure, C-band spectrum reallocation and 911 fee diversion.