Ian Cohen

FCC commissioner offices are discussing rural call completion issues in a draft order and Further NPRM on the agenda for Tuesday's meeting, an agency official told us Friday (see 1803280046). "I think we'll be able to work them out for the meeting," the official said. "The chairman’s proposal has made the major providers pretty happy," said another official, though NTCA voiced objections and some others sought modifications (see 1804110066, 1804100039 and 1804060043). The second official said "there has been a stunning lack of stakeholder interest" in an agenda item on possible rural business data service regulation changes.

Oral argument on FCC business data service litigation is set for May 15 in St. Paul, Minnesota, according to an 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals calendar. Judges Bobby Shepherd, Michael Melloy and Steven Grasz will review a 2017 BDS order in Citizens Telecommunications v. FCC, No. 17-2296, and consolidated cases (see 1704200020 and 1705010019). Incompas, Sprint and others argue the FCC didn't justify broad deregulation of incumbent telco BDS price caps, but Citizens and CenturyLink argue the 8th Circuit should vacate a 2 percent "X-factor" legacy rate cut because the FCC overstated productivity efficiency gains (see 1709280035 and 1710050021). The FCC and DOJ defended the order as "reasonable" in largely undoing the "imprecise and costly-to-administer price caps" (see 1711280015).

The Rural Utilities Service announced an applications window and requirements for a telecom and electrification loan-guarantee program for FY 2018. Completed applications are due May 31 on funding applications "under the Guarantees for Bonds and Notes Issued for Electrification or Telephone Purposes Program (the 313A Program) authorized under the Rural Electrification Act of 1936, as amended, and related terms," said a notice for Friday's Federal Register. Under the program, the Federal Financing Bank will make loans, and the Department of Agriculture's RUS will guarantee repayment. An FCC rule for Friday's FR will set a May 14 effective date for a reconsideration order in docket 10-90 resolving final issues for a Connect America Fund Phase II auction of subsidies for fixed broadband and voice services set to begin July 24 (see 1801300032).

Verizon supports a draft FCC rural call completion order, with clarifications "to the safe harbor exempting covered providers from data recording, retention, and reporting requirements." The agency "should clarify that: (1) incidental or de minimis use of a third intermediate provider during network congestion or outages does not conflict with the required safe harbor certification; and (2) the certification applies only to traffic destined for rural LECs," said a filing posted Wednesday in docket 13-39 on discussions with Wireline Bureau staffers and aides to Chairman Ajit Pai about the draft order and Further NPRM on the agenda for commissioners' meeting Tuesday (see 1803280046). Verizon is "unaware of any opposition to these proposed modifications to the safe harbor," it said. "Clarifying the safe harbor to exclude de minimis volumes of traffic for overflow purposes would be good public policy because it would help calls complete during emergency situations or network congestion by eliminating disincentives to establish arrangements for overflow traffic." NTCA (here) and NCTA (here) filed on meetings with officials that were similar to their previous concerns and proposals (see 1804060043 and 1804100039).

AT&T and NCTA sought revisions to the FCC rural call completion (RCC) draft on the agenda for Tuesday's commissioners' meeting (see 1803280046). A draft order and Further NPRM aim to replace reporting requirements with monitoring of intermediate carrier performance. AT&T "generally supports" FCC efforts "to adopt a more effective regulatory approach ... particularly emphasizing providers' adherence to ATIS best practices in call completion," said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 13-39. The telco "also strongly agrees" with the agency that comprehensive intercarrier compensation "reform" will likely diminish financial incentives contributing to problems, and it urged the FCC "to take prompt action." But AT&T said the FCC "should clarify or revise" its proposed RCC rules so they don't encompass and benefit LECs "engaged in access stimulation" that has "exploited" agency rules. The FCC should also "clarify that any determination that a competitive LEC meets the relatively broad definition of 'rural telephone company' for purposes of the forthcoming [RCC] rules does not mean that the [CLEC] also satisfies the far more narrow definition of a 'rural CLEC' for purposes of the Commission's rural exemption to its CLEC access charge rules" (capping rates). NCTA backed the FCC proposals to eliminate RCC "reporting obligations of covered providers" and "not to impose specific call completion metrics on covered providers." But NCTA voiced concern about suggestions "that originating providers could be held solely responsible any time a call fails to complete," said a filing on a meeting with Wireline Bureau staffers that included proposed line edits. It also sought clearer FCC guidance on how covered providers comply with their monitoring obligation, encouragement that terminating providers notify covered providers' RCC contact persons before FCC staff, and a 12-month transition period before rules take effect. USTelecom said it "generally supports many of the items outlined in the draft order, and believes their final adoption by the Commission will alleviate burdens on covered carriers of collecting information that does not [serve] a useful purpose, while emphasizing monitoring of intermediate providers that more directly addresses potential call failures." NTCA voiced objections and proposed changes last week (see 1804060043).

Comments are due at the FCC April 20, replies April 27 on three license-transfer requests under Communications Act Section 214, said Wireline Bureau public notices in Monday's Daily Digest. The PNs covered the proposed transfer of control of NTC Holdings to Giuseppi Giurfa (here) in docket 18-75; the proposed transfer of control of Ellerbe Telephone and Etcom from Daniel Bennett to RiverStreet Management Services (here) in docket 18-94; and the proposed transfer of control of Tri-County Telephone Membership and Tri-County Communications to Wilkes Telephone Membership (here) in docket 18-95. All three deals also involve separate applications to transfer international authorizations.

CenturyLink wants an FCC rule to make it easier to overlash pole attachments in some cases. Consistent with precedent, the agency "should codify the principle that attachers are permitted, without a pole owner’s prior approval, to overlash their own or third parties’ pole attachments with telecommunications wires, including fiber-optic cable, fiber splice closures, and similar incidental equipment," said the telco's filing posted Monday in docket 17-84 on an NPRM. "This rule will enable rapid deployment and upgrade of broadband services, while relying on subsequent inspection and make-ready processes to ensure that overlashed facilities comply with safety and engineering standards. This streamlined process should not apply, however, to equipment that is not incidental to overlashed telecommunications lines, such as strand-mounted antennas and other RF-emitting devices, batteries, and power supplies, because such equipment is much more likely to present safety and load concerns that should be addressed upfront through the pole attachment process, as modified in this proceeding." CenturyLink noted docket comments were divided on overlashing precedent, with cable, wireless and fiber providers generally focused on benefits and electric utilities focused on risks (see 1801180032). "There is merit to each of these positions," the telco said. Overlashing "can and does accelerate broadband deployment. ... On the other hand, strand-mounted equipment can create risks that may not have been considered or present when the host facilities were installed." It said the FCC should strike a "balance" by "drawing a line between wire-to-wire overlashing and attachment of strand-mounted equipment that is not incidental to the host attachment."

The Retail Industry Leaders Association objected to FCC Lifeline USF proposals that would "weaken" the program and reduce or eliminate "availability to thousands -- perhaps millions -- of low income families." A "proposal to categorically exclude wireless resellers from Lifeline would be especially problematic," RILA filed Wednesday in docket 17-287. "Removal of those providers from the Lifeline program would leave low-income households with no available wireless Lifeline options." It also criticized a possible FCC budget cap that would deny services to qualifying households and a proposal to require low-income participant co-pays. The group said its 200-plus members have $1.5 trillion in annual sales and many are vendors of wireless services for major carriers. The FCC didn't comment Friday.

Tribal telco representatives praised FCC targeted USF relief, but one voiced concern about a left-out carrier, and the others said further steps are needed. The agency Thursday voted, with Chairman Ajit Pai partially concurring and Democratic commissioners partially dissenting, for relaxed operating-expense restrictions on rate-of-return telcos primarily serving tribal lands, attaching broadband conditions to target the extra funding (see 1804050028). It's "significant for the providers and the communities they serve," emailed Patrick Halley, Wilkinson Barker counsel to Saddleback Communications, one of five carriers staff expects to be covered. "While more can certainly be done to address the Tribal broadband deployment gap, Chairman Pai and the Commission are to be commended for recognizing the higher costs incurred in maintaining and deploying broadband networks on Tribal lands," he said. "We are pleased the commission recognized the need of some of the tribes," said Randy Tyree of GRTyree Consulting, who represents the National Tribal Telecommunications Association and Mescalero Apache Telecom. "We're very concerned about Mescalero Apache not being able to receive relief just because they built out their broadband further than the others. Without this relief, Mescalero is certainly going to have to look at other alternatives" for funding. Mescalero wants "to remain constructive and see what" it can do with the agency, he added. Gila River Telecommunications, another carrier expected to receive relief, is pleased the FCC "has finally adopted this order that will ensure USF support better reflects the cost of providing service on tribal lands," emailed counsel Gregory Guice of Akin Gump, who also lauded Pai's work and lawmaker attention. "We do, however, agree with the Chairman that it is too bad that certain restrictions were placed on this change, particularly ones that penalize companies that have built out their networks, as those companies will incur more operating costs for that action."

FCC staff denied Alaska Communications Services' request to temporarily waive a Connect America Fund Phase I duty to pinpoint subsidized broadband deployment with geocodes for 2,379 locations (latitude and longitude coordinates to the sixth decimal place). "ACS had until July 1, 2016 to provide the required information, but it failed to do so and filed this waiver petition on March 14, 2017 -- more than nine months" later, said a Wireline Bureau order in Thursday's Daily Digest. "ACS has not shown good cause for relief from its obligation to report location data that is critical to ensuring accountability of high-cost support." Citing logistical challenges and costs due to extreme conditions and remote locations, the telecom provider requested extension until Oct. 31, 2018, so field technicians doing maintenance could collect geocodes on a rolling basis, rather than make special trips (see 1703150048). The order said Universal Services Administrative Co. cited options to "use 'web-based maps and imagery' to pinpoint locations or employ 'an address geocoder program to convert addresses into [latitude and longitude] coordinates.'" ACS must now "file the required geocoded location information within six weeks." The company didn't comment.