Without giving much support to an SBC IP’s petition for waiver of the FCC’s rules regarding access to numbering resources, telecom carriers and states generally agreed in comments the Commission should focus on its IP-Enabled Services proceeding, which addresses issues raised by SBC IP.

The FCC asked for comments on the eligible services list for universal service mechanisms for schools and libraries. The Commission last year formalized the process for updating the eligible services list, beginning FY2005. The new rule requires that USAC submit annually a draft of its updated eligible services list for the following funding year, and that the Commission seek comment on the list. “We emphasize to commenters that this proceeding is limited to determining what specific services are eligible under the Commission’s current rules,” the FCC said: “It is not intended to be a vehicle for changing any eligibility rules.” Comments are due Aug. 23, replies Aug. 30 -- (02-6).

The Rural Cellular Assn. (RCA) and the Alliance of Rural CMRS Carriers (ARC) told the FCC many aspects of the Recommended Decision by the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service “give us reason to urge caution in adopting or changing the ETC [eligible telecom carrier] rules.” For example, they said the Board’s recommendation that states be encouraged to conduct “rigorous” proceedings was “certainly salutary,” but “unnecessary to ensure that only seriously qualified carriers become ETCs.” The groups said another Board recommendation -- that states be encouraged to consider the impact of a competitive ETC designation on the high-cost fund -- “ignores the fact that the impact of support to competitors is minuscule compared to the $600 million per year in increased funding received by [ILECs].” They urged the Commission to “continue to avoid regulating competitive ETCs in a way that violates the fundamental principles of competitive neutrality” when considering the Joint Board’s latest recommendations. The groups also urged the Commission to: (1) Reject the “notion that states have broad discretion to impose additional ETC requirements such as unlimited local usage, financial qualifications, or ILEC-style service quality standards.” (2) Reject the Board’s “unlawful and unworkable” primary line restriction. (3) Decline to follow the Joint Board’s recommendations regarding “creamskimming” and service area redefinition. They said the FCC should look at “the sensible steps” taken by the Wash. Utilities & Transportation Commission. (4) Stop treating individual ETC designations as rulemakings subject to the “permit but disclose” ex parte rules, but rather adopt “adjudicatory rules that govern the process.

Rural carriers urged the FCC to deny AT&T’s prepaid calling card petition,(CD Aug. 4 p4) saying their customers would be affected because the petition would decrease access charge revenue and the Universal Service Fund (USF). The letter to FCC Chmn. Powell was sent Mon. by the Independent Telephone & Telecom Alliance, NTCA, OPASTCO and Western Telecom Alliance. AT&T is seeking a ruling that its card is an information service, so its revenue shouldn’t be subject to access charges or USF. Noting AT&T hasn’t been paying the fees for several years, the letter said: “AT&T’s unauthorized self-deregulation disproportionately harms rural carriers and their consumers. Rural carriers rely on access revenues and universal service support to provide consumers in their regions with high quality, affordable telecommunications services… Additionally, AT&T’s claim that adding a recorded message transforms a traditional voice call into an enhanced service is illogical.” The group asked the FCC to act quickly and require AT&T to make retroactive payments: “Based on AT&T’s May 2004 10-Q filing, we calculate every month that goes by, AT&T is avoiding as much as $10 million in access charges and $2.3 million in universal service contributions. The FCC should not allow AT&T to chart its own course while it continues to deliberate these important issues.” The FCC reportedly has put the item on hold until after the election.

Rural ILEC, CLEC and wireless industry groups filed an interim universal service plan with the FCC, marking the first time they've agreed on the subject. The filing -- by OPASTCO, Rural Independent Competitive Alliance (RICA) and the Rural Telecom Group (ROUTING) -- came in response to the Commission’s proceeding on the Universal Service Joint Board’s Recommended Decision on high-cost support portability. The groups proposed minimum standardized criteria for competitive eligible telecom carrier (CETC) applicants in rural service areas. They said the plan would “provide sufficient support to both wireless and wireline ETCs and would enable the FCC to better control the future growth of the Universal Service Fund (USF), while it considers more long-term reform for all ETCs serving rural service areas.”

On the eve of a critical filing deadline on USF distribution issues, Western Wireless Chmn. John Stanton said that if the fund is expanded to pay for rural broadband rollout, wireless carriers will be in line for funds. The remarks came as NTCA and OPASTCO released a report heavily critical of the carrier’s pursuit of USF funding.

One of the few surprises at Wed.’s FCC mostly well scripted meeting was a strong statement from Comr. Copps warning that the FCC is still falling short on homeland security. Shortly after the session’s start, Copps -- responding to an FCC report on post-Sept. 11 communications changes that led off a meeting largely focused on homeland security -- addressed at length Commission shortcomings. Sources involved with emergency communications said Thurs. that issues remain, echoing in part Copps’ statements. Copps, sources said, delivered what he viewed as a moderate speech.

The Vt. Public Service Board opened a docket to determine penalties for carriers delinquent on universal service fund contributions, with an Aug. 18 procedural conference. The proceeding (Case 6971) was opened in response to a request by the board’s universal service fund administrative agent, NECA Services, that proposed fines of up to $1,000 for carriers who fall too far behind in their fund contributions. The board also will look at whether it should revoke certificates of delinquent carriers that don’t respond to dunning notices for unpaid contributions.

A federal appeals court said lawsuits challenging the amounts of billed federal universal service surcharges belong in the federal courts, not state. The 4th U.S. Appeals Court, Richmond, was ruling on a N.C. class-action lawsuit challenging the 53-cent monthly universal service surcharge BellSouth billed to its N.C. customers. The suit (Case 03- 1316) claimed BellSouth violated state fair-trade laws by failing to disclose how it calculated its universal service surcharge and was charging customers an amount well above what it actually had to contribute to the fund. A lower federal court ruled that the suit should be heard in the N.C. state courts. BellSouth appealed, and the 4th Circuit agreed the remand to the state court was incorrect because the universal service charge is imposed under federal law, so actions seeking to change the charge present a federal case. The court went on to dismiss the lawsuit against BellSouth, saying the plaintiffs want the court to determine a reasonable rate for the universal service charge, something barred by the filed-rate doctrine. That doctrine says courts can’t substitute for regulators and prescribe rates.

Sprint told the FCC it opposed AT&T’s prepaid calling card petition and was “dismayed” by reports that the agency may delay action on it. In an ex parte letter Mon., Sprint said “it strains credulity to argue, as AT&T does, that a prepaid calling card, marketed and sold for the sole purpose of making telephone calls, can be turned into an ‘information’ or ‘enhanced’ service by injecting a commercial message during call set-up.” This message is one that “consumers don’t ask to hear and that only services the purpose of delaying connections to the parties they are calling,” Sprint said. The letter signed by Sprint Vp Richard Juhnke said AT&T’s decision not to pay into the universal service fund (USF) and access charges because it deemed the prepaid calls an information service resulted in customers of other carriers having to make up the USF contributions and LECs being denied the access charges “to which they are lawfully entitled.” If other carriers followed the same logic, the USF would suffer even further, Sprint said. For example, the letter said, Sprint transmits time-of-day information for wireless customers and could program its wireline switches “to interject some irrelevant piece of information [such as] the temperature in downtown Djakarta.” Using AT&T’s argument, “Sprint could legitimately cease all future USF contributions on both wireless and [with the switching change] direct-dialed voice services” and could seek refunds of all prior wireless-related contributions as well.”