Burns USF Bill to Focus on Contributions and Fund Spending
Sen. Burns (R-Mont.) is drafting a bill to revamp the universal service fund (USF), expanding the contribution base and redistributing funding, Senate sources said. Sens. Rockefeller (D-W. Va.) and Snowe (R-Me.) are working with Burns on the bill, expected to be introduced early in Sept., Senate sources said. It’s likely to differ from the Smith-Dorgan bill (CD Aug 2 p1), which would apply USF contributions to all 2-way voice services and establish a separate fund for broadband deployment in rural areas.
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“It will address the issue of contribution methodology, and the issue of schools and libraries,” said a Senate source, referring to the E-rate program. The E- rate program got a year’s reprieve under a bill passed last year (CD Dec 10/04 p1) exempting it from Anti- Deficiency Act (ADA) requirements that funds to be in hand before govt. agencies make funding commitments. The 12- month exemption ends Dec. 31, 2005. In Feb., Snowe introduced a bill to make the exemption permanent. It was co-sponsored by Stevens, Senate Commerce Committee Co- Chmn. Inouye (D-Hawaii) and Rockefeller, but there has been no action on that bill.
Senate Commerce Committee Chmn. Stevens (R-Alaska) plans to introduce a USF bill, a committee spokesperson said, but no timeline has been set. Right now that panel is engrossed in DTV legislation, which it plans to take up after the Aug. recess. Some lobbyists think Stevens will gauge reaction to the Senate USF bills and perhaps “pick and choose” among drafts in readying his version, an industry source said. The Burns bill will reflect concerns of rural states, which rely on the $6.5 billion program in part for getting service to remote areas. One change most agree will be on the table is to extend USF charges to VoIP providers -- a telephony service now contributing little to the funding base.
“We know they (Burns’ staff) are working on the bill,” said National Telecom Coop Assn. (NTCA) Govt. Relations Dir. Tom Wacker, adding that he met with the staff to outline his members wishes for the bill. Besides favoring an expanded contribution base, NTCA wants to change the rules governing support given carriers. New competitors in the market are receiving the same type of support as small rural ILECs get in the nation’s highest- cost markets, but are not as committed to those markets, NTCA said in a position paper. “The result is an expanding program that fails to provide a corresponding level of consumer value,” the paper said.
Raising an alarm, NTCA said if new providers are allowed to use ILEC networks “without adequate compensation, as required by law,” rural telecom providers may no longer be able to provider affordable service: “In the absence of rural ILECs, rural consumers will likely face a future without voice service and all other Internet-related service that ride the rural ILEC broadband network.”
OPASTCO, which has similar concerns, said it welcomes the Burns bill. “It’s a good bipartisan effort,” said Randy Tyree, OPASTCO dir.-legislative affairs. “We're pleased he’s working with Stevens and we're looking toward a good bill.” Tyree said the Burns bill likely would build on ideas in the Smith-Dorgan bill but result in a “more comprehensive” and focused approach.