Rural Utilities Service Administrator Jonathan Adelstein defended the pace of broadband stimulus projects and the failure of Open Range Communications, at a budget hearing Thursday of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture. The White House’s FY 2013 budget proposal provides “adequate” broadband funding for rural areas, Adelstein said. RUS is studying the impact of the recent Universal Service Fund and intercarrier compensation overhaul, he said.
FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell still hopes to see commission action early this year on Universal Service Fund contribution reform. The FCC approved an order in October addressing the distribution side of USF and an order on the USF’s Lifeline program in January. Followup work on both is expected to consume much of the Wireline Bureau’s attention this year.
The Rural Cellular Association and the Rural Telecommunications Group both warned the FCC the Mobility Fund created by the Connect America Fund order is too small to meet the needs of rural America. Replies were due last week on the dedicated wireless fund created by the FCC’s October Universal Service Fund reform order (CD Oct 28 p1).
Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Calif., said she'll propose legislation to establish a seat on the USF joint-board for a representative of Indian tribes. According to her proposed bill, the tribal representative would be nominated by the FCC’s Office of Native Affairs and Policy.
CenturyLink Q4 profit declined 16 percent to $867 million from a year ago, the company said. With the implementation of the FCC’s Universal Service Fund and intercarrier compensation order, the company’s access revenue will decline over the next few years, Chief Financial Officer Stewart Ewing said during a conference call. But the company’s hopeful of some broadband-related USF revenues, he said. Broadband subscriptions are a bright spot: Subscribers rose 4.5 percent to 5.55 million. The company is on track with its integration of Qwest and Savvis this year, Ewing said. Helped by growth in wireless backhaul and wholesale Ethernet, the wholesale unit reported $564 million in strategic revenue, up 5.4 percent. The company expects operating revenue between $18.2 billion and $18.4 billion for 2012.
Universal Service Fund contribution reform is on the way, but likely at a slower pace than expected last year, after the commission wrapped up distribution reform. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski told the House Communications Subcommittee Thursday he expects work to start within six months.
Rural telecom companies protested the FCC’s Universal Service Fund and intercarrier compensation revamp efforts, in testimony at a hearing Wednesday of the House Small Business Subcommittee on Healthcare. Witnesses also complained about high administrative costs to apply for federal grants and loans. Subcommittee leaders urged accelerated broadband buildout, particularly in rural areas. Chairman Renee Ellmers, R-N.C., urged passage of her bill (HR-2128) to stop the federal government from imposing penalties on health care providers who can’t make electronic prescriptions.
AT&T’s proposed buy of T-Mobile “clearly” crossed a line and posed a risk to competition, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said Monday at a Silicon Flatirons conference on “The Digital Broadband Migration.” Genachowski also indicated the FCC may reopen its receiver standards inquiry.
Correction: The FCC was on firm ground bringing all traffic under the 1996 Act but the agency didn’t justify bill-and-keep in its USF Order, said Joseph Gillan, consultant with Gillan Associates (CD Feb 8 p4).
Implementing the Universal Service Fund and intercarrier compensation order, tackling consumer issues like bill shock and cramming, and developing a framework for Next Generation 911 are priorities for FCC this year, bureau chiefs said during NARUC’s telecom committee meeting Tuesday.