Universal Service Fund

Charter Communications updated investors during its first quarter 2022 earnings call and offered some insight on the impact of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) program on the operator. Charter was the largest RDOF auction winner,  measured by the number of locations. The cable company won $1.22 billion to bring service to over one million locations in 24 states.

Representatives from Ad Hoc Telecom Users Committee, INCOMPAS,  NTCA – The Rural Broadband Association, Public Knowledge, the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (“SHLB”) Coalition, and the Voice on the Net Coalition met with State members of the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service to discuss the findings in the USForward Report.

In comments filed with the Federal Communications Commission, the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition encouraged the FCC not to move forward with its proposed changes to the competitive bidding process for the E-rate program.

For the first time in its history, the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) expanded beyond administering the four universal service programs: E-Rate, High Cost (Connect America Fund), Lifeline, and Rural Health Care. In 2021, USAC rose to the challenge and successfully administered four Federal Communications Commission initiatives, collectively known as the Congressional Response Programs.

All of the big broadband providers brag to the public about how much they spend on their networks. Even at the local level, it’s rare to ask a big broadband provider to a local government meeting where they don’t open the conversation by reminding local politicians how much money they have spent in a given town or county. The story is often just the opposite when problems with networks are pointed out, and communities ask the broadband providers to beef up networks and improve service.

The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau seeks comment on the Petition for Declaratory Ruling filed on April 7, 2022 by T-Mobile USA. In its Petition, T-Mobile seeks clarification that the Bringing Puerto Rico Together Fund and the Connect USVI Fund permit it to use Stage 2 mobile support for the deployment of distributed antenna systems, which T-Mobile states would further the FCC’s goal to make networks more resilient to future disasters.

Comment Due Date: May 2, 2022 Reply Comment Due Date: May 9, 2022 (WC Docket No. 18-143)

Unlike roads, bridges, ports, water systems, and transit, broadband was the only infrastructure Congress funded in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that had not been subject to multiple prior bipartisan spending efforts. One can dismiss this difference on the grounds that the physical nature of broadband is similar enough to projects in prior infrastructure legislation that including it was not a great leap. Still, unlike transportation and water systems, broadband is primarily funded by private capital.

The Federal Communications Commission authorized Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (Auction 904) support for 1,345 winning bids in its eighth round of awards. The RDOF program is designed to provide funding to companies to cover some of the costs of making broadband available to rural areas currently lacking high-speed service. Winning bidders were determined through a reverse auction that awarded funding for an area to the company that committed to deploying service for the lowest level of support, with a weighting system favoring bids for higher-speed, lower-latency service.

Florida-based Tri-County Electric Cooperative teamed with Conexon Connect to deploy a 2,400-mile fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network, aiming to deliver high-speed broadband to all of its members within the next few years. The $65 million project is the first FTTH initiative undertaken by an electric co-op in the state. Conexon Partner Jonathan Chambers said the company will be responsible for the design, construction and operation of the network, though Tri-County will own the actual infrastructure. It plans to use fiber and will offer 100 Mbps, 1-gigabit and 2-gigabit service plans.

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Rosenworcel sent letters to seven senators on April 8, 2022 in response to their letter regarding the review process for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction.