Communications Industry Responds to FCC on Lifeline Rules

On February 15th, a diverse groups of communications associations and companies, including WTA, sent a letter to the FCC’s Wireline Bureau in response to the Bureau’s attempt to create new Lifeline rules without the benefit of a public rulemaking process.  The letter states, in part, “While we fully recognize the Commission’s desire to implement a solution to the duplicate Lifeline problem, it is a problem with broad ramifications and thus it can only be addressed in a rulemaking proceeding. The Bureau, which lacks authority to promulgate substantive Lifeline rules, developed these rules without public input. At a minimum, implementation of the new Bureau rules must be suspended pending a rulemaking.”

The industry letter can be found here.  The Bureau’s letter giving USAC guidance can be found here.