The Colorado Public Utilities Commission must do all it can to close the rural broadband gap, a member said Thursday at a livestreamed information meeting on the state’s USF high-cost support mechanism. State broadband officials said limited funding makes it tough to spread broadband. Supporting municipal broadband efforts and phasing out high-cost support for traditional phone service could be ways forward, consumer advocates said. PUC staff pointed to continued decline in USF contributions due to changing technology.
The National Hispanic Media Coalition and other public interest groups urged the FCC to do more to address the communications meltdown in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (see 1710040046). Chairman Ajit Pai, meanwhile, said he appointed a staff task force on hurricane recovery. Addressed to Pai, the letter also was signed by the Center for Media Justice, the Color of Change, Free Press and Public Knowledge.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai acted on Puerto Rico in light of the near meltdown in communications because of Hurricane Maria, but some say there’s more the agency can do. Commissioners took about a day to approve an order (see 1710030057) making up to $76.9 million immediately available for the restoration of communications networks in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. “The FCC’s actions are intended to enable carriers to restore essential communications services as quickly as possible,” said a news release.
SAN DIEGO -- As states seek broadband-for-USF and funding tweaks, an FCC member was said to visit the city where state regulators are meeting, NARUC attendees told us. Commissioner Mike O’Rielly was expected to have been in San Diego on Tuesday for closed-door meetings of the federal-state joint boards on Universal Service and Jurisdictional Separations. His office didn't comment. Also at the meeting, states and electric utilities joined local governments protesting balance on FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC).
SAN DIEGO -- As states seek broadband-for-USF and funding tweaks, an FCC member was said to visit the city where state regulators are meeting, NARUC attendees told us. Commissioner Mike O’Rielly was expected to have been in San Diego on Tuesday for closed-door meetings of the federal-state joint boards on Universal Service and Jurisdictional Separations. His office didn't comment. Also at the meeting, states and electric utilities joined local governments protesting balance on FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC).
The latest iteration of net neutrality rules formally kicked off with a 3-2 party-line vote by FCC members in front of a standing-room-only crowd on Feb. 26, 2015. After many twists and turns in a lengthy process with millions of comments submitted, that included a significant course correction by FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, the final order was released in March 2015. It reclassified broadband as a Title II telecom service subject to some common-carrier regulation under the Communications Act.
Rural telco groups said the FCC should be careful in changing rate-of-return rules for carrier cost recovery and related practices. Regulatory changes should apply prospectively only and should be targeted to provide increased clarity about allowable expenditures where helpful, said various RLEC groups in comments Thursday in docket 10-90, responding to a recent Further NPRM included in an item that overhauled rate-of-return USF mechanisms (see 1603300065 and 1603310039). Some voiced concern the FCC could make sweeping changes to throw out rules -- which they said had worked reasonably well -- based on "anecdotal" accounts of isolated problems.
States may sue the FCC over the commission’s Lifeline order, pending a review of the text of the final order, NARUC President Travis Kavulla said in an interview on Friday. At its Thursday meeting, the FCC approved by a 3-2 vote an order that would extend USF low-income subsidies to broadband (see 1603310056). While states support a broadband expansion, they have disagreed with the FCC’s decision to shift potential responsibility for verifying Lifeline broadband provider eligibility from the states to a national third party, sharply condemning the proposal in a March 17 letter ultimately signed by 96 state commissioners (see 1603180052). Before the FCC vote, the National Governors Association and NASUCA voiced concerns about where the order leaves states. Capitol Hill Democrats were revealed to be heavily involved in lobbying the agency hours before the vote. After the vote, rural telco/RLEC groups NTCA and WTA also voiced concerns about the Lifeline order.
States may sue the FCC over the commission’s Lifeline order, pending a review of the text of the final order, NARUC President Travis Kavulla said in an interview on Friday. At its Thursday meeting, the FCC approved by a 3-2 vote an order that would extend USF low-income subsidies to broadband (see 1603310056). While states support a broadband expansion, they have disagreed with the FCC’s decision to shift potential responsibility for verifying Lifeline broadband provider eligibility from the states to a national third party, sharply condemning the proposal in a March 17 letter ultimately signed by 96 state commissioners (see 1603180052). Before the FCC vote, the National Governors Association and NASUCA voiced concerns about where the order leaves states. Capitol Hill Democrats were revealed to be heavily involved in lobbying the agency hours before the vote. After the vote, rural telco/RLEC groups NTCA and WTA also voiced concerns about the Lifeline order.
The regulatory fee battle raged as the American Cable Association and ITTA urged the FCC to shift some fees from wireline to wireless companies, while CTIA opposed that. CTIA also opposed NAB’s proposal to reapportion regulatory fees to the wireless sector because of the planned incentive auction, which will allow wireless providers to bid for broadcast TV spectrum. ACA and CTIA filed reply comments (here and here), while ITTA made an ex parte filing this week in docket 15-121 on a recent meeting with FCC officials. NAB met with officials last week to discuss its proposal (see 1512030061).