Gross Cost of FCC Reauthorization Act $705 Million for 2017-21, CBO Says
Implementing the FCC Reauthorization Act (S-2644) “would have a gross cost of $705 million over the 2017-2021 period,” offset by collected fees, the Congressional Budget Office said in a report Thursday. “Assuming that future appropriation acts allow the FCC to…
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continue to collect such fees, CBO estimates that net discretionary spending under S. 2644 would be reduced by $23 million over the 2017-2021 period.” The extended Antideficiency Act exemption for USF in the measure “would allow the program to obligate and spend funds faster than it would without the exemption,” CBO said. The Senate Commerce Committee cleared the bipartisan legislation in April and Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., told us in mid-May the hotline filing for unanimous consent consideration of the measure awaited CBO scoring (see 1605130057). But a hotline is likely to face Democratic holds due to an unrelated policy fight over the reconfirmation of FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel (see 1607010047 and 1607120075). CBO also scored the Senate version of the Securing Access to Networks in Disasters Act (S-2997), cleared by Commerce last month. It would increase FCC costs by less than $500,000, said CBO.