The Regulatory Mix, TMI’s daily blog of regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of a TMI Briefing.
TELECOM
FCC
SADC (aka Business Data Services Data Collection)
The FCC released another list of additional parties that have signed an acknowledgement of confidentiality (AOC) and that seek to review the data gathered through the FCC’s special access data collection (SADC). The list includes persons that signed an AOC since the FCC’s last Public Notices. Companies that submitted confidential or highly confidential information in response to the SADC have until February 24, 2016, to object to the disclosure of their data and information to any of the parties on the list.
Connect America Cost Model
The FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau released additional illustrative results for the Alternative Connect America Cost Model (A-CAM) v2.1, utilizing input values reflecting a 9.75% cost of money for two coverage options. (The previously released illustrative results used an 8.50% cost of money.) The results released today illustrate how different assumptions used in calculating support impact the potential support for a particular study area. Raising the cost of money increases the costs for all study areas. Report 5.1 utilizes a funding threshold of $52.50 and a $160.79 funding cap per location for rate-of-return carriers. Report 5.2 utilizes a funding threshold of $52.50 and a $200 funding cap per location for rate-of-return carriers. The results are available here.
Lifeline Rules
The FCC announced that the June 2015 revisions to its Lifeline rules became effective on February 17, 2016. In January 2016, the FCC announced that the Office of Management and Budget had approved the new rules and said it would announce an effective date through publication in the Federal Register. That publication was expected to occur on or after February 4, 2016. The announcement was actually published on February 17, 2016. See the Regulatory Mix dated 1/19/16; TMI Briefing Service subscribers see Briefings dated 2/17/16, 7/20/15 and 7/1/15.
California
The California PUC issued a decision regarding the applicability of Right-of-Way rules to commercial mobile radio services (CMRS) carriers. The amended rules provide CMRS carriers with non-discriminatory access to public utility infrastructure. The PUC believes that such access will facilitate investment in wireless infrastructure, encourage widespread deployment of broadband wireless services, foster the provision of wireless service in previously unserved areas, and improve access to 911. The Decision does not alter the existing charges and fees established by the ROW Rules for CLEC and cable television (CATV) wireline attachments. TMI Briefing Service subscribers see Briefing dated 2/18/16.
