Chairman Pai's Response to Members of Congress Regarding Affordable Internet Access to High-Cost Rural Areas

On Oct 31, 2017, several members of Congress wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to urge the FCC to take action to ensure the High-Cost Universal Service Fund (USF) program provides sufficient and predictable support to help deliver affordable, high-quality broadband to rural consumers. 

On Dec 6, Chairman Pai responded by stating that the FCC's 2016 Rate-of-Return Order has not had its intended effect, and has "complicated our rate-of-return system and in many ways made it harder, not easier, for small providers to serve rural, America." "For those carriers that continue to receive support from the legacy rate-of-return system, I am committed to exploring in the near term how this situation can be changed and to determine the appropriate budget levels. The Commission should address the uncertainty caused by the current budget control mechanism-such as guaranteeing at least some minimum level of support to ease the unpredictability and allow reasonable capital planning-while being mindful of mitigating incentives to operate inefficiently."