NARUC’s board approved a batch of policy resolutions at the conclusion...

emphasized the critical role assigned to states by Congress, including in part through the mechanism of the Joint Board. If an industry-supported “settlement” proposal is filed in the USF/ICC rulemaking notice and subsequently released by the FCC for public comment, that agency is urged to jointly offer the state members’ plan for comment simultaneously and include a request to contrast the two plans, the board said. A Lifeline/Link-Up resolution urges the commission and states to work within the existing USF program budget to improve broadband adoption in urban and rural areas and for native nations communities on tribal lands through coordinated Lifeline and Link-up Broadband Service Pilot Program projects, among other issues. The FCC should say the pilot program participants are not required to change local phone service providers, purchase bundled broadband and voice services or otherwise be penalized in order to obtain Lifeline and Link-Up broadband services and enabling access devices, the resolution said. It urged the FCC and states jointly create at least one pilot program in each of the five NARUC-affiliated regulatory conference regions that will include digital literacy and outreach components and that will defray a meaningful amount of the program participants’ average cost for the installation and activation and monthly charges for broadband and acquisition of devices enabling access. A call termination resolution encourages the FCC to reaffirm “that no carriers, including interexchange carriers, may block, choke, reduce or restrict traffic in any way” and recommends the FCC and states take all appropriate actions to protect consumers by immediately addressing call terminating problems.