The FCC should be in no rush to push through changes to the separations regime for price-cap carriers, NTCA replied in docket 80-286. The FCC recently extended a freeze on jurisdictional separations rules for 18 months while a federal-state joint board attempts to develop new proposals (see 1705150064). The record doesn't "support comprehensive separations reform” now, NTCA said. “Current separations rules may ultimately need modification, if not complete overhaul, to reflect the evolution of the communications marketplace towards IP-enabled services that are interstate in nature. However, existing separations rules should be retained while reforms to Universal Service Fund and intercarrier compensation mechanisms that specifically sit atop the existing rules still take root.” The Moss Adams accounting and consulting firm agreed. In initial comments, associations representing carriers “each indicate in their own ways that now is not the time for the FCC to undertake significant reform of the Part 36 jurisdictional separations rules,” the firm said. “For the most part, Moss Adams concurs.” Moss Adams replied that NTCA is right, the FCC should allow USF and intercarrier compensation measures to play out for a while first, even if change ultimately is desirable. The two filed the only replies by our deadline Friday.
High-quality broadband, satellite communications and various devices play roles in e-health, early replies in FCC docket 16-46 showed Thursday. Comments were due later that day. "Reliable, secure, high-speed, high-bandwidth, low-latency broadband access is critical to enabling access to care and modern healthcare technologies," said Baxter. "As healthcare organizations transition from wired to wireless, and as data moves from within an organization’s private network to the broadband network, the cybersecurity, privacy, legal, and other risks grow. ... Guidance, tools, and policies" can help, it said: "Broadband-enabled services are used in all healthcare settings." Initial comments show such solutions "always depend upon a reliable and secure broadband connection of sufficient speed and capacity," wrote the Satellite Industry Association. SIA touted satellite broadband as a telehealth solution. Nokia said medical research shows health "benefits of self-monitoring in the areas of activity, weight and blood pressure and sleep." Initial comments on a public notice urged the FCC to hike rural healthcare funding; the USF healthcare connect fund has $400 million yearly (see 1705250035).
The FCC fined Advanced Tel $975,000 for failing to file required data and contributions to federal programs including USF and the telecom relay service fund for several years, said a Thursday forfeiture order. In its initial notice of apparent liability for forfeiture, the FCC sought a fine of about $1.59 million, but the company said it can’t pay that much and argued it should be reduced due to the statute of limitations. It didn’t dispute the alleged violations, the FCC said.
The FCC modified language in a notice of apparent liability approved under ex-Chairman Tom Wheeler against Network Services Solutions and its CEO for wire fraud and overbilling the USF Rural Health Care program, but otherwise is largely sticking with the fine, increasing it slightly from almost $21.7 million to just over $22.5 million. The company and CEO Scott Madison allegedly used forged and false documents to seek funding from the program, a violation of the federal wire fraud statute and the program’s competitive bidding rules (see 1611070045). The order was approved Monday, over a partial dissent from Commissioner Mike O’Rielly, and released Wednesday. “An erroneous or illegal payment from the Fund must be recouped,” the NAL said. “We have a duty to recover those misspent funds, and if payment is not received by the Commission as demanded, we have an inherent right to collect by exercising available legal procedures.” The company didn’t comment.
The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission will appeal a federal district court opinion that Charter VoIP is an information service that may not be regulated. The commission informed U.S. District Court in St. Paul of its appeal to the St. Louis-based 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a Wednesday notice (in Pacer). With the FCC never ruling definitively on how to classify interconnected VoIP, observers see the case as having big implications for whether states also may regulate internet-based voice communications.
The USF contribution is now projected to drop in Q3 from 17.4 percent to 17.1 percent of carriers' U.S. interstate and international (long-distance) telecom end-user revenue, said industry consultant Billy Jack Gregg. Universal Service Administrative Co. projected Q3 industry revenue would be $13.11 billion, about $505 million less than Q2, which, combined with previously revised estimated USF demand (see 1705240058), would raise the contribution factor to 18.2 percent, Gregg emailed Friday. But in a Saturday email update, Gregg said USAC filed another revised demand projection based on rural health care fund (RHC) changes, including a determination that collections for funding year 2016 RHC programs would exceed demand by $63.8 million. USAC revised the Q3 RHC demand downward to $35.3 million. USAC also "found that $34.6 million reserved for FY2016 Healthcare Connect Fund obligations would no longer be needed, and used this $34.6 million to further reduce" Q3 RHC demand, he emailed. "After prior period adjustments and projected interest earnings, the final adjusted demand for the RHC will be negative $1.2 million, an overall reduction of $100.9 million from the RHC demand originally projected. The revision to the RHC reduces overall USF demand" for Q3 $1.896 billion, he wrote. "Because of the drop in RHC demand, the USF contribution factor for the third quarter will go down from its current level, in spite of the continued erosion of the USF contribution base."
Key House Commerce Committee lawmakers continue to examine issues that likely will factor into an expected broadband deployment section in President Donald Trump's long-promised infrastructure package, telecom aides said Friday during a Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition event. Democrats released three infrastructure proposals this year that include broadband language in a bid to influence debate ahead of the White House's plan. Administration's infrastructure principles released last month focus on targeted investments and efforts to encourage “self-help” (see 1705240050).
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai remains committed to doing “everything we can to fix” the E-rate program process, amid concerns about Universal Service Administrative Co. oversight of the USF school and library discount program, said senior Pai adviser Nick Degani during a Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition event Thursday. Pai criticized USAC in April for E-rate oversight and said the program has “serious flaws” despite previous remedy efforts (see 1704190026). USAC CEO Chris Henderson resigned in early May (see 1705040055) and House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., expressed renewed oversight interest in E-rate (see 1705040064 and 1705230042).
FCC Commissioners Michael O'Rielly and Mignon Clyburn backed means-testing USF support for broadband/telecom service in high-cost areas. It's "time to fix a fundamental structural defect" in the program, which is the subsidization of communications access for people "who don't need or deserve governmental assistance," they said in a rare joint blog post Wednesday. They sought comment on various questions and hope to bring the issue before the commission "in the very near future." O'Rielly recently said he and Clyburn were working on a draft item (see 1705180061). Representatives of Chairman Ajit Pai, USTelecom and NTCA declined comment.
Chairman Ajit Pai urged state and local officials to work with the FCC on speeding up siting of new telecom facilities. Pai said he has made no decision on net neutrality rules other than they should be market-based and stable. He also backed revisions to the Sunshine Act. Pai spoke Wednesday at a Free State Foundation conference, interviewed by FSF President Randolph May. (For other FSF coverage, see 1705310027 and 1705310057).