States: FCC Should Take Care not To Pre-empt Authority When Streamlining ETC Designation Process

There's no reason to reduce the number of state regulatory “cops” on the beat or further limit their enforcement/oversight authority, said a filing from NARUC. The organization also said it makes no sense for the FCC to limit or remove the state authority in the ETC designation process, because states have led the way in limiting fraud and abuse in the Lifeline program through audits, duplicate and verification databases, and efficient use of the designation process. Brad Ramsay, NARUC general counsel, said the FCC under this chairman and the prior chairmen, continued extensive state outreach, which isn't surprising given the array of state matching programs, states’ efforts with compliance databases, other states’ actions that have unquestionably reduced fraud and abuse in the program, and NARUC’s general endorsement of the expansion of the program to cover broadband services. “With this [Further] NPRM, the FCC again has, on several occasions, specifically urged NARUC’s member commissions to file comments,” he said. “Given this backdrop, the FCC is more than likely to carefully consider state comments/proposals.”

The states that have developed a process to examine Lifeline subscribers’ eligibility should be allowed to continue eligibility screening on their own, said the Nebraska Public Service Commission (NPSC). The Nebraska commission expressed concerns about its ability to enforce violations of ETC requirements and consumer protections if the FCC pre-empts state commission rules by creating a national designation process. The NPSC also has concerns about the potential effect a national designation process would have in limiting its ability to independently determine who should receive state support. NPSC Commissioner Crystal Rhoades said no matter what regulators say throughout this process, it’s important to remember that real people’s lives are being affected. “This is a service that is absolutely vital and we need to remember that whatever policy decisions are made,” she said.

The NPRM framework is a good first step, said the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates. The updated program should immediately allow wireline carriers to provide broadband Lifeline to Lifeline customers at a minimum of 4 Mbps down/1 Mbps up, with a $9.25 discount off the service/bundle of the customer’s choice, the filing said. Lifeline customers should have the option to choose to which broadband service they wish to apply the discount, and whether the service is prepaid or provided for a monthly rate. Also, the updated program should immediately allow wireless carriers to provide broadband Lifeline to Lifeline customers at a minimum service standard of 4 Mbps down/1 Mbps up with unlimited talk and text and no data caps for service at speeds below the median wireless broadband offering.

A budget or cap for Lifeline would help curb any excessive growth of the program as broadband is introduced into it, said the Florida Public Service Commission. If necessary the budget could be tied to the increase or decrease in the number of federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participants, Florida said. Before any pre-emption of authority of states to designate ETCs takes place, the FCC should refer the matter to the Federal-State Universal Service Joint Board for consideration and input, Florida said.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission opposes the FCC exercising federal pre-emption based on some need to coordinate the state ETC designation process with the federal process as the states have been given primary authority over ETC designations. The FCC should encourage states to review and streamline their ETC designation processes with the goal of removing unnecessary barriers for prospective Lifeline providers, but the FCC should not mandate a one-size-fits-all ETC designation process, said the filing from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. Michigan Public Service Commission supports efforts to simplify and streamline processes, as well. The commission expressed concerns about streamlining the ETC designation process at the state level, though. Each state is different, which could lead to complications when attempting to consolidate the various state processes into one uniform, streamlined process, it said.

The Public Utility Division of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission regulates a large number of tribal lands and supports efforts to extract the most value from the subsidy for the benefit of the consumer, it said in its comments. The division is taking steps to work with ETCs and consumers in the state to implement the new definition of “former reservations in Oklahoma.” It also said FCC proposals to move the eligibility determination to a third party and to consider leveraging existing programs have great merit and would further improve the program's credibility.

California Emerging Technology Fund (ETF) said the FCC should require stand-alone broadband for an affordable rate of $10 per household paid by the user and a $9.25 Lifeline program reimbursement provided to the ISP. Another fund would be needed to cover the broadband connection charge and a modem that includes a Wi-Fi router to address multiple users in a family unit, ETF said. The FCC also should establish eligibility by enrollment in one of a large variety of existing federal and state programs designed to assist low-income persons, the comments said. The FCC also could determine need by someone whose income level is at 200 percent of the federal poverty level, the filing said.