The FCC should “take all necessary regulatory and policy measures”...
The FCC should “take all necessary regulatory and policy measures” to “bring parity of broadband technology and service to Native communities,” the National Tribal Telecommunications Association (NTTA) said in comments responding to a rulemaking notice on Universal Service Fund high-cost…
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loop support. NTTA said tribal communities “have high unemployment, high poverty, and large numbers of low income customers.” Among its members, 86 percent of the Gila River Tribe’s subscribers are Low Income Program customers, as are 72 percent of Hopi subscribers and 60 percent of San Carlos Apache’s subscribers, the group said (http://xrl.us/bmo5xq). NTTA understands the growing pressures on the USF, but native areas present problems the FCC must address, the filing said. “Native peoples reside in the worst connected communities in America for both broadband and for basic voice dial tone,” it said. “The Commission needs to honor both its Communications Act and its trust responsibility to provide parity of technology and service to Native communities."