Kill the high-cost universal service fund identical support rule ...
Kill the high-cost universal service fund identical support rule because it’s no longer sound policy, Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., said Wednesday in a letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin. It no longer makes sense for USF rules to tie…
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competitive eligible telecommunications carriers’ support to what incumbent local exchange carriers receive, rather than ETCs’ own costs, the letter said. Nor is the reverse auction model the solution, the letter said. “Reverse auctions leave too many unanswered questions about stranded investment and the lack of incentive for a carrier to improve and expand their network, let alone maintain their current systems,” Dorgan said. “With winning bidders receiving the least amount of universal service support, this would in all likelihood leave Americans living in rural and high-cost areas without adequate, affordable communications services.”