FCC Delays Use of Oklahoma Map That Limits Scope of Extra Tribal Lifeline Support
The FCC gave Lifeline providers 120 more days to transition to an Oklahoma map that limits the scope of enhanced tribal support in the state under the low-income USF program. The Wireline Bureau moved the implementation date to June 8 to address concerns a Feb. 9 deadline would preclude eligible telecom carriers from giving consumers adequate advance notice of the change, said an order in docket 11-42 released Tuesday and listed in Wednesday's Daily Digest. Lifeline providers usually receive $9.25 per low-income subscriber in monthly support, but they receive $34.25 per low-income subscriber under the enhanced tribal monthly support.
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With almost all of Oklahoma previously considered a tribal region, the proceeding has been closely watched by state regulators and cable and wireless companies. The new map will save $30 million-$40 million annually of the $93 million Oklahoma received in enhanced tribal support in 2014, an FCC spokesman told us. Even though the order was issued by bureau Chief Matt DelNero, one commissioner found the delay objectionable.
Tribal regions include “former reservations in Oklahoma” and covered 99.89 percent of the state, according to Commissioner Ajit Pai, who said the state receives six times the national average of Lifeline support. “Last June, the Commission recognized the absurdity of this situation and declared that those living in much of Oklahoma -- including Oklahoma City -- would no longer be eligible for tribal subsidies starting February 9,” Pai said in a statement blasting the extension. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission recently asked for a 90-day extension, and was backed by Cox Communications and Assist Wireless, which asked for up to 180 extra days. Assist Wireless and others then withdrew a related legal challenge to the Oklahoma mapping decision (see 1601290066).
“We conclude that a 120-day extension will give affected parties sufficient notice without causing undue delay,” said the bureau's Tuesday order, which noted the Cherokee Nation still has boundary concerns about the map. The bureau had already shared a digital map file with tribal nations, but it also released a "digital shapefile" to give all parties more certainty about former reservation boundaries.
The delay extended the “scandal” of the “bloated taxpayer subsidy in Oklahoma,” Pai said. “What’s the supposed reason? A disagreement over the maps covering a different part of Oklahoma. In other words, for four additional months the Lifeline program will keep distributing enormous subsidies at taxpayer expense to serve many areas, including Oklahoma City, that everyone agrees aren’t eligible for tribal support. What a waste.”