4/25. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications and Technology (SCT) held a hearing on the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) lifeline universal service tax and subsidy program.

The Lifeline program, which is described by the FCC as subsidization of service for poor people, is growing rapidly, in significant part because it now covers wireless phone service, and much of the subsidization is wasted on people who are not poor.

Other FCC universal service programs, including the e-rate subsidies for schools and libraries, and the high cost program, have also long been plagued by waste, fraud and abuse. And, there have been numerous Congressional hearings, mostly in HCC subcommittees, since shortly after passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, on waste, fraud and abuse of FCC subsidy programs.

Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), the Chairman of the SCT, stated that "there is near unanimity among the FCC, both parties of Congress, and almost anyone familiar with the program that the Lifeline fund has been fraught with waste, fraud, and abuse and that the money has not been spent as wisely as it should have been."

"Last year, the FCC spent $2.2 billion of other people's money on the Lifeline program", Rep Walden wrote in his opening statement. "Carriers provide discounted service and collect the difference from the program. Some give away phones to gain the subscribers and the recurring revenue."

"The fund has increased 266 percent since 2008 and grown almost six-fold since 1998, all while the cost of phone service has gone down. Despite the limit of one subsidized subscriber per household, published reports suggest some subscribers have eight or more phones with subsidized service".

He continued that "it's not clear the money is even really helping low-income families. According to some reports, as many as 41 percent of those receiving Lifeline support either could not demonstrate eligibility for the subsidy or refused to respond to requests for certification."

Rep. Walden said that "staying on the present course seems out of the question". He posed many rhetorical questions. "Should the program be eliminated? If not, should a freeze be put in place until reforms are complete? Should the program be placed under a cap or budget?"

Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA) stated that "We need to reform and modernize Lifeline, not eliminate it", and "it must account for the Internet economy. Nearly 100 million Americans still have not adopted broadband, which is only more concerning given more than 80 percent of available jobs in this country now require online applications."

Moreover, prior to the hearing, Rep. Matsui introduced a bill that would expand the Lifeline program to include subsidized broadband internet access service. See, HR 1685 [LOC | WW | PDF] the "Broadband Adoption Act of 2013". See also, related story in this issue titled "Rep. Matsui Introduces Bill to Expand Lifeline Program to Include Broadband Service Subsidies".

The FCC created the Lifeline program in 1985 as a cross subsidy program to provide access by low income persons to basic telephone service. At the time service was landline, there was generally one service provider, and the program subsidized part but not all of a person's monthly phone bill.

The Congress codified FCC universal service tax and subsidy programs in the Telecommunications Act of 1996. See, 47 U.S.C. § 254.

The FCC later expanded the program to cover wireless service, and in 2005, non-facilities based wireless service providers. See, Report and Order [68 pages in PDF], also known at the "Eligible Telecommunications Carrier Order" or "ETC Order", adopted on February 25, 2005, and released on March 17, 2005. It is FCC 05-46 in CC Docket No. 96-45. See also, the FCC Order [13 pages in PDF], also known as the "TracFone Forbearance Order", adopted on September 6, 2005, and released on September 8, 2005. It is FCC 05-165 in CC Docket No. 96-45.

Such service providers proliferated. Also, until recently, the FCC's rules allowed people to receive Lifeline subsidies without any showing of eligibility.

The FCC's Julie Veach (at right) testified at the hearing that "consumers in most states did not have to prove that they were eligible for Lifeline. Rather, most subscribers only had to self-certify their eligibility. Based on verification data collected by the states and the Commission, it was apparent that ineligible consumers were receiving Lifeline supported service." See, prepared testimony.

In response, the FCC adopted a Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) [299 pages in PDF] last year that pertains to both its Lifeline and Link Up universal service tax and subsidy programs. The FCC adopted that item on January 31, 2012 and released the text on February 6, 2012. It is FCC 12-11 in WC Docket Nos. 11-42, 03-109, and 12-23, and CC Docket No. 96-45.

The R&O portion of that item pertaining to FCC Lifeline subsidies purports to establish both eligibility criteria and certification requirements. Veach said that it is resulting in "savings".

Veach, who is Chief of the FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau (WTB), testified at the hearing that "The FCC takes seriously its responsibility to ensure its rules are followed and to identify and deter any future program abuse. Indeed, the FCC has adopted new requirements to increase oversight of Lifeline providers and enhance the auditing program."

However, she also pointed out that in most states key aspects of the Lifeline program are run by state government agencies, including the designation of eligible telecommunications carriers (ETCs) for the Lifeline program.

Geoff Feiss of the Montana Telecommunications Association (MTA) wrote in his prepared testimony that the Lifeline program has grown because of "an influx of prepaid wireless providers" receiving subsidies. He said also that while the FCC 2012 order achieved savings, "there is reason to believe that the savings may bottom out in the near future, and the Lifeline Program may return to a pattern of continued growth".

Feiss offered this recommendation. "The Lifeline Program is the only universal service program that has not been put on a budget. It's time to put the program on a budget."

Phillip Jones, head of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), wrote in his prepared testimony that the current problems of program growth and ineligible recipients began with the FCC's 2005 decision to permit "non-facilities based, wireless providers to enter the Lifeline market. They developed business plans not only providing low-income consumers with free cell phones and an allotment of free minutes each month, but also generated healthy profits."

Similarly, the FCC's 2012 R&O (at paragraph 23) stated that "Since 2005, a number of pre-paid wireless providers have become Lifeline-only ETCs, competing for low-income subscribers by marketing telephone service that provides a specified number of minutes at no charge to the consumer. This development has expanded choices in many states for low-income consumers, who now have greater access to mobile services than a decade ago, but it has also led to significant growth in the Fund in the last several years". (Footnotes omitted.)

Jones elaborated that "the move to wireless meant the physical connection to the carrier and the customer to a specific geographic location was severed. This undermined the first line of defense against duplicative services and ineligible recipients. The creation of ``free´´ plans also eliminated any financial incentive for customers not to seek duplicate services and further weakened the connection the consumer has with providers associated with paying a monthly bill. Before the most recent recertification requirement was enacted, a Lifeline recipient could enroll and obtain a free wireless device from a third party agent on the street, receive their allotted minutes each month and never interact directly with the service provider. The elimination of these service characteristics opened up opportunities for fraud and abuse that didn’t exist before."

Christopher McCabe of the CTIA recommended in his prepared testimony that the first step to be taken is for the "FCC's 2012 reforms to be fully implemented", and especially with "the creation of the national duplicate database" to prevent Lifeline "double dip" consumers. He also recommended the "development of a national eligibility database".

He did not address the privacy implications of creating national databases of personally identifiable information that would be accessible by any of hundreds of carriers.

He opposed limiting the size of the program. He opposed limiting wireless carrier eligibility to facilities-based wireless providers. He also opposed imposing a co-payment obligation.

Jessica Gonzalez of the National Hispanic Media Coalition wrote in her prepared testimony that the Lifeline "program is working precisely as intended".  See also, prepared testimony of Billy Jack Gregg.

See also, story titled "House Commerce Committee Republicans Write FCC Regarding Growth, Waste and Abuse in Lifeline Subsidy Program" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,542, March 27, 2013.

4/23. Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA) and other House Democrats introduced HR 1685 [LOC | WW | PDF] the "Broadband Adoption Act of 2013", a bill to expand the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Lifeline program to also subsidize broadband internet access service (BIAS).

Rep. Matsui (at right) stated in a release that "The Internet is increasingly the economic engine for growth and innovation. The Lifeline program provides a tangible service to lower-income Americans and it is imperative that the Lifeline program be reformed and modernized to account for broadband services. We must ensure lower-income Americans have a greater opportunity to participate in the digital economy, whether it be for workforce training, education, finding a job or creating the next big idea."

The original cosponsors of the bill are Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Rep. Dianne Degette (D-CO), Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA), Rep. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), and Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-NC).

This bill was referred to the House Commerce Committee (HCC).

Christopher Lewis of the Public Knowledge (PK) praised this bill in a release.

Legislative History. This bill is based upon, but not identical to, bills introduced by Rep. Matsui in the 111th and 112th Congresses.

Rep. Matsui introduced HR 3646 [LOC | WW], the "Broadband Affordability Act of 2009", in the 111th Congress on September 24, 2009. See also, story titled "Rep. Matsui Introduces Bill to Expand FCC Lifeline Universal Service Subsidies to Cover Broadband" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,993, September 30, 2009.

She introduced HR 2163 [LOC | WW], the "Broadband Affordability Act of 2011", in the 112th Congress on June 14, 2011.

Neither of these bills was reported by any committee or subcommittee. Both were cosponsored by Democrats only.

Summary and Explanation of Bill. The Lifeline program is described by the FCC as a universal service program that subsidizes service for poor people.

The 104th Congress codified FCC universal service tax and subsidy programs for the first time in the Telecommunications Act of 1996. See, 47 U.S.C. § 254. Under this statute, universal service subsidies are limited to "telecommunications services", and only the customers of a "telecommunications carrier that provides interstate telecommunications services" are taxed to support universal service programs.

The FCC has not classified broadband internet access service (BIAS) as "telecommunications". Nevertheless, the FCC has exceeded its statutory authority (but not without support from key members of Congress) by providing universal service subsidies for BIAS, including in its Lifeline program, through something the FCC titles the "Low-Income Broadband Pilot Program".

The FCC created this pilot program last year as just one element of its huge Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) [299 pages in PDF] that pertains to both its Lifeline and Link Up universal service tax and subsidy programs. The FCC adopted that item on January 31, 2012 and released the text on February 6, 2012. It is FCC 12-11 in WC Docket Nos. 11-42, 03-109, and 12-23, and CC Docket No. 96-45.

See also, the FCC's Order [30 pages in PDF] selecting 14 projects to participate in this pilot program. The FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) adopted and released that order on December 19, 2012. It is DA 12-2045 in WC Docket No. 11-42.

The statute currently refers to the Lifeline program in subsection 254(j). This subsection merely states that "Nothing in this section shall affect the collection, distribution, or administration of the Lifeline Assistance Program provided for by the Commission under regulations set forth in section 69.117 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, and other related sections of such title."

Rep. Matsui's bill would rewrite this subsection. It would add to the existing FCC Lifeline program a "Broadband Lifeline Assistance Program".

It would require the FCC to write rules within 270 days "establishing Lifeline program support for broadband that enables qualifying low-income customers residing in urban and rural areas to purchase broadband service at reduced charges by reimbursing providers who elect to participate in the program for each such customer served."

The bill adds that the FCC "shall consider the results" of its current pilot program.

The bill also states that "Such program shall be similar in structure to the Lifeline program for basic telephone service under subpart E of part 54 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations. Qualifying individuals may elect to apply support from the Lifeline program to basic telephone service, voice telephony service, or broadband service, whether each service is purchased stand-alone or in a bundle."

The bill does not specify the subsidy to be provided to qualifying customers. It merely states that the FCC "shall routinely study the prevailing market price for broadband service".

The bill requires technology neutrality for both existing and broadband Lifeline subsidies.

This bill also provides that a BIAS provider need not be an eligible telecommunications carrier (ETC) to qualify for broadband Lifeline subsidies.

See, the FCC's Report and Order [68 pages in PDF], also known at the "Eligible Telecommunications Carrier Order" or "ETC Order", adopted on February 25, 2005, and released on March 17, 2005. It is FCC 05-46 in CC Docket No. 96-45.

Specifically, the bill states that "A participating broadband service provider need not be an eligible telecommunications carrier to receive support under such program, but such provider shall obtain authorization from the Commission in order to participate in the program."

Bloat, Waste, Fraud and Abuse. This is a bill drafted with the purpose of creating a huge subsidy program, without consideration of either the costs, the likely size of the program, or the waste, fraud and abuse that it would invite.

This bill does not establish any limit on either the subsidy per customer, or the total size of the program.

This bill does not define "low income". That would be left to the FCC.

The bill is almost devoid of provisions related to limiting waste, fraud or abuse of the program. It contains no requirements that applicants for subsidized service prove that they are "low income".

It contains little that pertains to double dipping and resale by recipients of subsidized service. It only states that the FCC "shall consider any appropriate measures to prevent any waste, fraud, or abuse of this program" and that the FCC shall create a "national database" of consumers eligible for subsidized service.

FCC Support. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski stated in a release that "I commend Congresswoman Matsui for her continued leadership on ensuring that low-income Americans have access to broadband by addressing one of the key barriers to adoption -- cost. As with our other USF reforms, transitioning Lifeline support to 21st century communications is vital: today, broadband is essential for finding jobs, allowing children to do their homework, communicating in times of emergency, and accessing vital health information."

He continued that "In overhauling the Lifeline program last year and setting the program on a path to save over $2 billion by the end of next year, our bipartisan, unanimous reforms also made greater broadband adoption an express goal for Lifeline and established a pilot program to look at alternative models for supporting it. Our work will complement the legislation introduced today, ensuring that low income Americans are connected while protecting this critical program from waste, fraud, or abuse."

FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn stated in a release that "this legislation is welcome guidance".

The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. The House will resume consideration of HR 527 [LOC | WW], the "Responsible Helium Administration and Stewardship Act". See, Rep. Cantor's schedule.

The Senate will meet at 11:30 AM in pro forma session. It will return from a one week recess on May 6.

Supreme Court conference day. See, Supreme Court calendar.

8:30 - 11:00 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "Bandwidth for the Buck: The State of Broadband Access and Competition in the US". The speakers will be Robert Atkinson (ITIF), Robert Atkinson (Columbia Institute for Tele-Information), Jeffrey Eisenach (Navigant), and Jodie Griffin (Public Knowledge). See, notice. Location: ITIF/ITIC, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Consumer Advisory Committee will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 67, April 8, 2013, at Pages 20918-20919. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast and teleconferenced panel discussion titled "IP and the Comic Book Superhero". The speakers will be James Daily (Stanford University Hoover Project on Commercializing Innovation), Brad Desnoyer (DC Comics), Janet Fries (Drinker Biddle & Reath), Martha Voelz (S. H. Jacobs & Associates), and David Postolski (Day Pitney). Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.

The House will not meet the week of April 29 through May 3. See, House calendar for the 113th Congress, 1st Session.

2:00 - 4:15 PM. The Brookings Institution (BI) and Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) will host a pair of panel discussions titled "Taiwan's Response to an Evolving Security Environment". The speakers will be Richard Bush (BI), Bonnie Glaser (CSIS), Andrew Yang (Taiwan's Vice Minister of National Defense for Policy), Chia-Sheng Chen (Taiwan Ministry of National Defense), and Phillip Saunders (National Defense University). See, CSIS notice and BI registration page. There will be no live webcast. The BI will publish an archived audio recording later in the day, and a transcript within a couple of days. Location: BI, 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "FirstNet: Views from the Inside and Outside". Prices vary. CLE credits. Registrations and cancellations are due by 12:00 NOON on Friday, April 26. See, notice. Location: Squire Sanders, 1200 19th St., NW.

EXTENDED TO JUNE 21. Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding elevating the allocation status of Earth Stations Aboard Aircraft (ESAA) in the 14.0-14.5 GHz band from secondary to primary and whether giving ESAA licensees primary status in the 14.0-14.5 GHz band would require a change to the technical rules. The FCC adopted this NPRM on December 20, 2012, and released it on December 28, 2012. It is FCC 12-161 in IB Docket No. 12-376. See also, original notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 46, March 8, 2013, at Pages 14952-14957. See, second notice in the FR, Vol. 78, No. 61, March 29, 2013, at Page 19172.

Deadline to submit comments to the Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding the cyber security regulatory regime initiated by Executive Order of February 13, 2013. See, notice in the Federal Register Vol. 78, No. 60, March 28, 2013, at Pages 18954-18955. See also, stories titled "Obama Signs Cyber Security Order and Policy Directive" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,525, February 19, 2013, and "NIST Issues Cyber Security NOI" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,542, March 27, 2013.

Deadlines to submit nominations to the Department of Commerce (DOC) for membership on its Federal Economic Statistics Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 61, March 29, 2013, at Pages 19191-19192.

TIME? The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee's (ITAC) ITAC-D ad hoc will meet to discuss preparation for the ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC 2014). See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 57, March 25, 2013, at Pages 17992-17993. Location: Fourth floor West Tower, 1300 I St., NW.

1:00 - 5:00 PM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will hold another in its series of meetings regarding mobile application transparency. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 62, April 1, 2013, at Pages 19461-19462. Location: American Institute of Architects, 1735 New York Ave., NW.

6:00 PM. Deadline to submit applications to participate in Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Auction 95. This auction of licenses in the lower and upper paging bands  is scheduled to begin on July 16, 2013. This is AU Docket No. 13-12. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 80, April 25, 2013, Pages 24404-24420.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Media Bureau (MB) in response to its Public Notice, DA 13-281 in MB Docket No. 13-50, released on February 26, 2013, regarding the August 31, 2012 letter from the Coalition for Broadcast Investment regarding FCC restrictions on foreign ownership and voting interests. See also, notice in the Federal Register Vol. 78, No. 55, March 21, 2013, at Pages 17395-17403.

Extended deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) regarding whether there should be a small claims process for patent enforcement. See, original notice in the Federal Register (FR), Vol. 77, No. 243, December 18, 2012, at Pages 74830-74831, and extension notice in the FR, Vol. 78, No. 44, March 6, 2013, at Pages 14515-14516. See also, story titled "USPTO Seeks Comments on Creation of Patent Small Claims Process" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,494, December 19, 2012.

9:30 AM. The Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies will meet. See, notice. Location: SEC, Multi-Purpose Room LL-006, 100 F St., NE.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Engineering and Technical Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Wireline Broadband Technology Advances -- Getting a Gigabit to the Home". Location: T-Mobile, North Building, Suite 800, 601 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

1:00 PM. The US Telecom will host a webcast seminar titled "IP and Optical Evolution". The speaker will be Greg Nehib (Cisco). Free. Open to the public. See, notice.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The New America Foundation (NAF) will host an event at which Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen will discuss their book titled "The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business". See, notice. Location: McDermott Building, 500 North Capitol St., NW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "An Update on the Open Internet Order and Its Impact". Prices vary. CLE credits. Registrations and cancellations due by 12:00 NOON on Wednesday, May 1. See, notice. Location: Dow Lohnes, 1200 New Hampshire Ave., NW.

8:30 AM. The Department of Labor's (DOL) Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is scheduled to release its April 2013 unemployment data.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host an event titled "workshop" in its incentive auctions rulemaking proceeding, GN Docket No. 12-268. See, FCC Public Notice (DA 13-614). See also, FCC's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), and story titled "FCC Announces Workshop on Incentive Auction's 600 MHz Band Plan" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,546, April 4, 2013. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, TW-C305, 445 12th St., SW.

4/22. Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK) and Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) introduced S 774 [LOC | WW], a bill that would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to submit a report to the Congress on the effectiveness of the Federal Communications Commission’s Universal Service Fund (USF) reforms.

In 2011, the FCC adopted a huge order that, among other things, expanded the scope of its high cost universal service tax and subsidy program to include broadband internet access service. See, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [752 pages in PDF], adopted on October 27, 2011, and released on November 17, 2011. It is FCC 11-161 in WC Docket No. 10-90, GN Docket No. 09-51, WC Docket No. 07-135, WC Docket No. 05-337, CC Docket No. 01-92, CC Docket No. 96-45, WC Docket No. 03-109, and WT Docket No. 10-208.

Sen. Begich stated in a release that "I have heard for months on end about the uncertainty and unpredictably facing the telecom providers in my state of Alaska as a result of the FCC's Universal Service Fund reform order ... The challenges and uncertainty facing Alaska companies are extreme examples of the challenges faced by all providers committed to serving rural areas throughout the nation. Rural telecom expansion and deployment is far too important to go unchecked, which is why more data will help us get a better understanding of how these new rules affect our communities."

4/25. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) that contains a Request for Expressions of Interest (REI) regarding providing accreditation services for laboratories participating in the Project 25 (P25) Compliance Assessment Program (P25 CAP), which pertains to enabling interoperability among digital two way land mobile radio communications products for public safety. The deadline for laboratory accreditation bodies to submit responses is Tuesday, May 28, 2013. See, FR, Vol. 78, No. 80, April 25, 2013, at Pages 24428-24429.

4/24. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) that sets comment deadlines for its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [47 pages in PDF] regarding implementation of the 2012 spectrum act's provisions regarding deployment of a nationwide public safety broadband network in the 700 MHz band under a nationwide license issued to the FirstNet. The deadline to submit initial comments is May 24, 2013. The deadline to submit reply comments is June 10, 2013. The FCC adopted this NPRM on March 7, 2013, and released the text on March 8. It is FCC 13-31 in PS Docket Nos. 12-94 and 06-229, and WT Docket No. 06-150. See, FR, Vol. 78, No. 79, April 24, 2013, at Pages 24138-24147. See also, HR 3630 [LOC | WW], the "Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012", Public Law No. 112-96.

4/23. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) that sets deadlines to submit comments in response to its Public Notice (PN) [17 pages in PDF] regarding its e-rate tax and subsidy program for schools and libraries. The FCC released this PN on April 9, 2013. It is DA 13-592 in CC Docket No. 02-6 and GN Docket No. 09-51. The deadline to submit initial comments is May 23, 2013. The deadline to submit reply comments is June 7, 2013. See, FR, Vol. 78, No. 78, April 23, 2013, at Pages 23877-23882.

4/22. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) adopted and released a Report and Order (R&O) [29 pages in PDF] that adopts a Connect America Phase II cost model platform. This R&O is DA 13-807 in WC Docket No. 10-90 and WC Docket No. 05-337

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