FCC Chairwoman Rosenworcel's Response to Members of Congress Regarding the Alternative Connect America

In May 2023, about three dozen Members of the House of Representatives wrote to the Federal Communications Commission urging the FCC to complete work on updating  Alternative Connect America Cost Model (ACAM) and Connect America Fund-Broadband Loop Support (CAF-BLS), two universal service mechanisms that have been and remain critical to delivery of broadband in rural America. On June 20, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel replied to the letter noting that she had circulated a Report and Order for her colleagues’ consideration that would create the Enhanced A-CAM program. If adopted, the Report and Order would provide a voluntary pathway where current A-CAM carriers could elect to serve all locations in their service areas at 100/20 Mbps or greater in return for an extension of the A-CAM program and an incremental increase in support for expensive-to-serve areas. The Report and Order would also provide a path for carriers currently receiving Connect America Fund Broadband Loop Support (CAF BLS) legacy support to transition to Enhanced A-CAM model-based support. In addition, the Enhanced A-CAM program would include requirements to complement existing federal, state, and local funding programs, including the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program authorized by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. By providing carriers who elect to participate in the Enhanced A-CAM program the opportunity to establish an enforceable commitment to locations they serve, broadband funding can be used efficiently to maximize the deployment of high-quality broadband service across the US. In addition, if adopted, Chairwoman Rosenworcel would seek comment on how to address the immediate needs of legacy rate-of return support mechanisms, including the budget control mechanism and deployment obligations, while balancing our objectives of maintaining our commitment to supporting broadband at evolving levels of service and also avoiding unnecessary duplication of support in light of other available funding programs.