Today:  Kentucky TRS Charge, Delaware Report Shows 100% School Connectivity, Florida PSC Cancels Meetings Due to Hurricane Michael 

Kentucky TRS Charge

The Kentucky PSC is seeking comment on whether it the Telecommunications Relay Service Surcharge should be adjusted.  Comments are due October 29, 2018.  Earlier this year, the PSC said it would conduct an annual review of the surcharge to determine whether any adjustment was necessary.  ILECs, CLECs, and wireless providers (regardless of whether the customer is prepaid or postpaid) are required to collect the surcharge from their retail customers on a monthly basis.  Remittances are due monthly or quarterly, depending on the number of subscribers served. 

Delaware Report Shows 100% School Connectivity

The Governor of Delaware issued a press release touting that the state has exceeded broadband speeds for students in schools across the state.  According to a 2018 State of the States report, released this week by Education Superhighway. The State of Delaware is recognized for 100 percent school connectivity. The report also highlights that the First State exceeds the 100 kbps per student goal. Over the past three years, connectivity speeds in Delaware schools have increased nearly eight times from 82 to 638 kbps. 

“My most important job as Governor is to make sure that Delaware has a strong, growing, and competitive economy. In order to achieve that, we must do everything we can to prepare our students for success,” said Governor John Carney.  “That includes helping provide students and educators with reliable access to high-speed broadband service.  The availability of high-speed broadband to leverage digital learning is an absolute must and the need for reliable access will only grow.”

Florida PSC Cancels Meetings Due to Hurricane Michael

The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) announced that all meetings scheduled for the week of October 8-12, 2018, have been canceled due to Hurricane Michael’s expected landfall in the Big Bend area on October 10, 2018.  Items scheduled for consideration at the PSC’s October 11 Commission Conference will be considered at the Tuesday, October 30, 2018 Commission Conference, beginning at 9:30 a.m. 

Also, the PSC is urging residents to be prepared for hurricane Michael.   The PSC is monitoring the state’s investor-owned electric utilities as they prepare their customers for the impact of Hurricane Michael and also urges all Florida consumers, under any current storm watches or warnings, to be prepared.

Florida Governor Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency for 26 counties as Hurricane Michael is forecast to make landfall on October 10, 2018, in Florida’s panhandle or Big Bend. The PSC urges families to have a “Hurricane Plan” and be ready to activate it.

Storm preparation assistance is available on the PSC’s website, including information on Hurricane Preparedness and Portable Generator Safety.  The PSC’s Hurricane House—an online guide in English and Spanish —includes 19 tips to help prepare your family and your home for severe weather, from installing carbon monoxide detectors to creating a disaster supplies kit and dealing with downed power lines.

The PSC also recommends that you monitor potential Hurricane Michael impacts to your area, as well as evacuation routes, shelter locations, road closures, and storm resources at www.floridadisaster.org.   Look for information on the path of the hurricane here.

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 The Regulatory Mix, Inteserra’s 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 an Inteserra Briefing.