Today:  FCC Commissioners on Means-Testing for High-Cost Support, FCC Wireless Broadband Infrastructure, FTC Judgment Against Robocaller

FCC Commissioners on Means-Testing for High-Cost Support

In a joint blog, FCC Commissioners Clyburn and O’Rielly are seeking input on whether, and if so how, to implement means-testing within the high-cost universal service program.  Currently, high-cost USF support is based on costs of providing service, not an individual consumers’ ability to afford the full cost of his or her service.  Thus, the high-cost program winds up subsidizing ”very rich people who happen to live in the more rural portions of our nation.”  The blog is intended to “spark a conversation on how best to institute means-testing within USF’s high-cost program.  Given the importance of this issue, we seek public input on whether this proposal asks the right questions to enable the Commission to fully consider this issue, including the consequences of moving to a fully means-tested program and ways to minimize the administrative burdens for consumers, communications providers, and the Commission.  In any event, we hope to bring this issue before the full Commission in the very near future so as to properly engage the entire American public.”

The Commissioners note that many federal programs uses means-testing, including the federal Lifeline program.  They seek comment on issues such as:

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of using means-testing? 
• Would it make the program more efficient?
• Given the limited budget, would it enable the Commission and/or providers to retarget funding to areas or consumers in greater need of support? 
• How can it be implemented without disruption to the current programs?
• How should the Commission set income eligibility criteria and implement means-testing? 

FCC Wireless Broadband Infrastructure Proceeding

The FCC extended the time for filing comments and reply comments in its proceeding seeking to accelerate the deployment of next-generation wireless broadband by removing or reducing regulatory impediments to such deployment.  Comments are now due June 15, 2017, and reply comments are due July 17, 2017.  They had been due June 9, 2017, and July 10, 2017, respectively.  TMI Briefing Service subscribers see Briefing dated 5/31/17.

FTC Obtains Judgment Against Robocaller

The Federal Trade Commission announced it obtained a default judgment against individuals and companies that it charged with running an operation that blasted consumers with billions of illegal telemarketing robocalls.  According to the complaint, between at least March 2009 and May 2016, the defendants made or helped to make billions of these illegal robocalls, many of which pitched extended auto warranties, search engine optimization services, and home security systems, or generated leads for companies selling such goods and services.  The FTC estimates that the defendants called numbers listed on the Do Not Call (DNC) Registry at a rate of more than 100 million per year.  The court orders permanently ban the defendants from all telemarketing activities, including initiating robocalls, calling numbers on the DNC Registry, and selling data lists containing consumers’ phone numbers and other information.  The order against one of the defendants imposes a $2.7 million penalty against him, payable to the FTC. 

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The Regulatory Mix, TMI’s daily blog of telecom related regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of a TMI Briefing.