A Progress & Freedom Foundation proposal for reforming universal ...
A Progress & Freedom Foundation proposal for reforming universal service (CD Dec 9 p3) uses “fundamentally flawed key concepts that would harm consumers and reduce rural network investment,” the Coalition to Keep America Connected said Fri. Coalition members include…
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the Independent Telephone & Telecom Alliance, the National Telecom Co-op Assn., OPASTCO and the Western Telecom Alliance. By not earmarking universal service funding for broadband development, PFF shows a “theoretical misunderstanding of rural economics” and rural areas’ need for broadband to create jobs and enhance growth, the group said. PFF also errs by suggesting universal service fund support be based on individual network connections via vouchers and means- testing, the coalition said. “This ignores the fact that telecommunications networks are not built one connection at a time,” the group said. “It would be very costly for consumers if providers were forced to build and maintain networks that are not scalable,” it said. The PFF plan has an “inside the Beltway” mentality, said the coalition.