WTA Welcomes FCC Action on ACAM Proposal

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 19, 2022) – WTA – Advocates for Rural Broadband is pleased to see the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approve a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that seeks comment on a proposal to extend and expand the reach and impact of the current Alternative Connect America Model (ACAM).

“WTA has supported the FCC releasing this proposal for public comment,” said Derrick Owens, Senior Vice President of Government & Industry Affairs. “We’ll continue to discuss the ideas outlined in the NPRM with our members and will provide feedback to the FCC. We’ll also continue working with our industry partners to develop plans that ensure the USF High Cost Program (HCP) provides sufficient and predictable support to all HCP recipients.”

The ACAM Broadband Coalition, which includes some of the WTA’s member companies, submitted its proposal to the FCC in October 2020. It envisions additional ACAM support in exchange for increased broadband deployment obligations to additional locations and at higher speeds (100/20 Mbps, as opposed to 25/3 Mbps). According to the Coalition, companies that choose to participate in the plan would receive six years of additional support and the budgetary impact would be to increase ACAM support by $389.5 million per year from approximately $1.1 billion per year to nearly $1.5 billion per year.