The Senate Commerce Committee Fri. released its witness list for a Tues. hearing on the Joint Board’s Recommendations on the Universal Service Fund: FCC Comr. Tate; U.S. Cellular Pres. John Rooney; OPASTCO Chmn. Roger Nishi; Chinook Wireless Pres. Jonathan Foxman; AT&T Vp-Regulatory Planning & Policy Joel Lubin; and Everett Flannery, chief deputy-Kennebec County (Me.) Sheriff’s Office.

A revived net neutrality debate could block passage of telecom bills gaining momentum this Congress, Rep. Boucher (D-Va.) told the Broadband Policy Summit Thurs. In the “hiatus” on major legislative activity, network operators and content providers should be talking, he said. Citing discussions with both sides, Boucher said he thinks there’s “potential common ground” and that the issue should be resolved.

A revived net neutrality debate could block passage of telecom bills gaining momentum this Congress, Rep. Boucher (D-Va.) told Pike and Fischer’s Broadband Policy Summit Thurs. In the “hiatus” on major legislative activity, network operators and content providers should be talking, he said. Citing discussions with both sides, Boucher said he thinks there’s “potential common ground” and that the issue should be resolved.

Wireline and wireless carriers lined up on opposite sides as comments accumulated Wed. at the FCC on capping USF subsidies to competitive rural carriers. The cap was recommended by the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service as an interim measure to slow the rampant growth of the Universal Service Fund. But the recommendation to apply it only to competitive eligible telecom carriers (CETCs), generally wireless carriers, has created a sharp division among rural carriers.

Three rural ILECs asked the FCC to revoke Sprint Nextel’s eligible telecom carrier (ETC) designation in Va. ETC status qualifies carriers for universal service money. Rural companies TDS Telecom, FairPoint and Burke’s Garden Telephone said Sprint operates in only a fraction of Va. study areas it is designated in. Sprint told the FCC “it would use federal funding to aggressively build out and expand coverage in rural and unserved markets” when it got ETC status in 2004, the rural LECs told the FCC. Instead, “several of Sprint/Nextel’s designated study areas (particularly its rural study areas) remain wholly outside its coverage area… Sprint/Nextel has targeted its coverage in Virginia to densely-populated areas and interstate highways.” An attorney representing the 3 companies said this seems to be the first time a party has challenged a carrier’s ETC status for not living up to promises.

Three Ia. telecom companies offered the FCC a proposal to ease the dispute with AT&T and other large carriers over high access fees charged by some Ia. telcos. The high charges occur when rural telcos gain high-traffic customers that offer free calling. The more traffic, the more access charges must be paid. Farmers’ Telephone, Interstate 35 Telephone and Superior Telephone urged the FCC to issue a declaratory ruling clarifying 2 rules that appear to be at the crux of the dispute: (1) 61.38, which lets rural carriers drop out of NECA’s high-cost, universal service fund and raise access charges to replace what was lost in the pullout. (2) 61.39, which lets carriers use “historic” traffic volume data for the past 2 years to set the level of those access charges. If the volume was low over the past 2 years, as it would be with a small rural LEC, the access charges are automatically set high using rule 61.39. But since their volume may rise dramatically in the future from people dialing the free-calling companies, the overall access bill can be very high for large carriers bringing traffic into the rural LEC’s territory. The letter said the FCC could solve this problem by requiring carriers to base access charges on “projected” volume “if a carrier anticipates that actual call volumes during the period when the new rates will be in effect will significantly exceed historic volumes.” This would reduce access charges, the letter said. It proposed setting a threshold to reflect rising traffic volume: “If actual volumes during the 2 year period covered by the tariff exceed the historic 2-year average by more than 150%, the carrier should… use projected volumes.”

A House Science Committee hearing on technology solutions to file-sharing turned into a gripefest about the unattractiveness of legal download services targeting universities, with Herndon, Va.-based Ruckus Network singled out. Committee members and witnesses sparred on the similarity of antivirus and spam filters to copyright filters by companies like Audible Magic, whose president testified. And members who also serve on House Judiciary warned university officials that their committee would be far less flexible than Science in assessing universities’ antipiracy efforts.

The Senate Commerce Committee plans 2 hearings next week, on the Universal Service Fund (USF) and the 700 MHz auction, the committee said Mon. The June 12 USF hearing will consider a Joint Board recommendation to cap distributions of funds to wireless programs. June 14, the committee will examine public safety and competition issues related to the 700 MHz auction. In coming weeks, the committee may hold hearings on media ownership and violence, but nothing is set, Hill sources said.

A federal court Fri. vacated part of an FCC order under which VoIP providers must contribute to the Universal Service Fund (USF). A 3-judge panel of the U.S. Appeals Court, D.C., said it found “the Commission’s explanation wanting as to the pre-approval of traffic studies and the suspension of the carrier’s carrier rule.” Judges Harry Edwards, David Tatel and Merrick Garland heard the case brought by Vonage and CCIA (CD Feb 12 p1), with Tatel writing the opinion.

The FCC should create a pilot program that pays for broadband deployment in rural areas with “a specified amount of funding, such as $1 billion per year,” AT&T recommended Thurs. in comments on Universal Service Fund (USF) reform. A 2nd program could provide money for mobile wireless service in those areas, the company said. “Rather than attempting to use the current federal high cost [USF] mechanism to achieve its broadband deployment objectives, the Commission must approach the problem head-on,” AT&T wrote.