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.
FCC
The FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau announced the offers of model-based Connect America support to rate-of-return carriers to fund the deployment of voice and broadband-capable networks in their service territories. Carriers have until November 1, 2016 (90 days) to indicate, on a state-by-state basis, whether they elect to receive model-based support. The information released today includes four reports. Report 7.1 shows the state-level offer of model-based support for each carrier that is eligible to elect model-based support, including the amount of annual support that would be provided over the 10-year term and the total number of funded locations in census blocks that are eligible for support. Report 7.2 shows the specific broadband obligations for each individual carrier, and its calculated density based on its submitted study area boundaries, land area, and Census housing unit data. Report 7.3 shows, based on FCC Form 477 data submitted through March 30, 2016, carriers that have deployed 10/1 Mbps broadband to less than 90 percent of their eligible locations, with those carriers flagged as eligible for the offer of model-based support with a “yes.” Report 7.4 shows the state, carrier, study area, and study area code for each rate-of-return carrier. The reports are available here.
Federal Trade Commission
The FTC and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice released the 38th Annual Hart-Scott-Rodino Report. The report presents fiscal year 2015 data on the HSR Premerger Notification Program, which is key to alerting the agencies to transactions that may substantially lessen competition in violation of federal law. The report notes that 1,801 transactions were reported to antitrust agencies during fiscal year 2015, an 8.3% increase from the 1,663 transactions reported in fiscal year 2014. The report summarizes the agencies’ merger enforcement activities, highlighting the 42 merger enforcement actions taken to preserve competition in diverse and important sectors of the economy, including consumer goods and services, pharmaceuticals, hospitals, high tech and industrial goods, and energy.
California
By PUC Resolution, funding in the amount of $1,491,078 from the California Advanced Service Fund (CASF) was awarded for the grant application of Inyo Networks, Inc. (Inyo). The funds will be used for the construction of a Fiber-to-the-Premises last-mile network in the underserved Nicasio area of western Marin County, California. The project will cover eight square miles and will be capable of delivering one gigabit (GB) symmetrical data along with voice and high definition video to 216 underserved households. It will also provide broadband services to three anchor institutions and safety benefits in the area with a robust broadband service in the event of severe weather, natural disasters, as well as improved access to e-health services. Click here for full Resolution.
Colorado
The PUC has proposed rules to implement legislation concerning telecommunications relay services for telephone users with disabilities. TMI Briefing Service subscribers see Briefing dated 5/20/16. There will be a hearing to discuss the proposed rules and related issues on August 15, 2016. Interested persons may submit written comments on the rules and present these orally at hearing, unless Commissioner Koncilja deems oral presentations unnecessary. TMI Briefing Service subscribers see Briefings dated 7/5/16.
Florida
On 7/29/16, the PSC released its annual Report on the Status of Competition in the Telecommunications Industry. The Report, which compiled data from Florida telecommunications companies for a 12-month period ending 12/31/15, shows that CenturyLink was Florida’s largest wireline residential provider in 2015. The Report confirmed that Florida consumers continue to shift from wireline service to wireless and VoIP services. Carriers reported approximately 3.3 million total wireline access lines, an estimated 19.9 million wireless handsets, and an additional 3.7 million VoIP subscribers in Florida for 2015. It was determined that over 67% of Florida households have a broadband connection with download speeds of at least 3 megabits per second. Click here for the full News Release and a link to the PSC’s full Report.
Idaho
The PUC announced that its staff will be conducting workshops throughout Idaho to assist telephone customers’ transition to a second area code (986) and 10-digit dialing. The purpose of the workshops is to explain the necessity for a second area code and inform customers of the deadlines to implement the second area code and begin 10-digit dialing. Voluntary 10-digit dialing (area code, plus prefix, plus four-digit number) begins this November and mandatory 10-digit dialing in August 2017. TMI Briefing Service subscribers see Briefings dated 11/3/15 and 12/28/15. The workshops will be held in August, September, and October. Click here for more details.
