Joint Statement of NTCA, CCA, USTelecom on Supreme Court Agreeing to Review Challenge to the Federal Universal Service Fund Contribution Mechanism

We are grateful that the Supreme Court has granted certiorari and will review the Fifth Circuit’s finding that the universal service contribution mechanism is unconstitutional as currently structured. The Fifth Circuit’s decision is contrary to Supreme Court precedent and the decision of several other circuit courts of appeals, and it threatens to undermine universal service programs that, for many decades, have served to promote the availability and affordability of critical communications services for millions of rural and low-income consumers, rural health care facilities, and schools and libraries across the nation. We look forward to presenting arguments in defense of the USF contribution mechanism as the case moves forward, and ultimately to dispelling the uncertainty that these challenges have created in furthering our nation’s mission of universal service.