Protecting Americans From Hidden FCC Tax Hikes

The Federal Communications Commission is poised to raise taxes through its Universal Service Fund—a regressive, hidden tax on consumers' phone bills that funds a series of unaccountable, bloated internet subsidy programs. Rather than giving the FCC carte blanche to expand its balance sheet, Congress must reform the USF's structural problems, reevaluate its component programs, and get the FCC's spending under control. Here is my plan to do that. 

• To get spending under control, Congress—not the FCC—must take charge of defining universal service and deciding where USF funds may go. Moving some or all USP programs into direct congressional appropriations would help restore political accountability over the FCC's spending decisions. 
• Stop subsidizing networks that face unsubsidized competition.
• Do not subsidize Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act-funded networks' ongoing operational costs.
• Lifeline and the Affordable Connectivity Program are duplicative and should, at the very least, be combined. If low-income broadband subsidies are to continue, limit enrollment and develop clear performance metrics.
• The E-rate program should be evaluated so policymakers can make sure it is truly benefiting pedagogical objectives; these subsidies should serve children, not the interests of tech and telecommunications lobbyists.