With dramatic cuts in operating expenses, Windy City Cellular (WCC) can sustain operations at 70 percent of prior 2011 funding levels, and Adak Telephone Utility (ATU) can sustain operations at 95 percent of 2011 levels, the companies said in a revised proposal to the FCC, an ex parte filing said (http://bit.ly/10Qdmk3). They have been working with the FCC for months to come up with a financial proposal that would let them get a waiver of certain USF rules. The companies submitted a publicly redacted five-year financial forecast reflecting similar funding levels.

Dell Telephone Cooperative seeks review of an FCC Wireline Bureau decision dismissing its request for waiver of the high-cost USF rules, a public notice said Tuesday. The bureau had dismissed the waiver because of the availability of alternative remedies and support through a state process (CD May 1 p8). Oppositions to the request for review are due June 14 in docket 10-90, with replies due June 24.

The USF waiver process is not “a viable remedy” to help East Ascension and Vision Communications weather the USF and intercarrier compensation reforms passed by the FCC, the telcos told aides to FCC commissioners Ajit Pai and Jessica Rosenworcel Thursday and Friday (http://bit.ly/19u3zDo). Due to “unique situations,” these companies have fared worse than others under the FCC’s quantile regression analysis regime, they said. The “sudden influx of new residents and resulting increased broadband deployment in the wake of Hurricane Katrina” drove up costs, as did the “financial and operational challenges resulting from living in an area susceptible to hurricanes,” they said. The companies’ S-corp status also requires them to pay income taxes while being analyzed along with companies that do not, they said. Rather than dealing with case-by-case waivers, the FCC needs to comprehensively address the “significant flaws” in the regression analysis regime, they said.

The total projected collected interstate and international end-user revenue base to be used in determining the USF contribution factor for Q3 is about $16.1 billion, the Universal Service Administrative Co. told the commission in a report Friday (http://bit.ly/19u2Z8s). That amount was derived from FCC Form 499-Q data reported by wireline and wireless carriers in May, it said.

Google Fiber sees a future profit, but many options should be on the table for local officials, a company executive told community stakeholders last week. The Fiber to the Home Council Americas attracted more than 400 people to its meeting on advanced broadband networks in Kansas City, Mo., it said (http://bit.ly/13qTP8o). The council emphasized ways municipalities can welcome such advanced network services and how its behavior can influence that timeline, a process highlighted in the council’s community toolkit (CD Jan 25 p9). Google is pioneering one of the many options for faster broadband that stakeholders discussed at that meeting, with an emphasis on the role of municipalities.

More Texas companies want money from the state’s USF to make up for federal high-cost support lost due to the FCC November 2011 USF order. The Texas Public Utility Commission issued two notices Wednesday noting requests from Alenco Communications and West Texas Rural Telephone co-op. The PUC granted a similar request to Hill Country co-op this spring after a lengthy proceeding that began last fall, which inspired other Texas telcos to follow suit (CD April 4 p5). Alenco wants $146,049 (http://bit.ly/11e1gRt) and West Texas (http://bit.ly/18Bpp6m) wants $173,069 to replace lost revenue in 2012, according to the notices. Neither request involves any rate increases. The notices said there will be an opportunity to comment and intervene on the requests.

Adak Eagle Enterprises and subsidiary Windy City Cellular have spent a great deal of time, energy and resources “sincerely and diligently responding” to FCC Wireline Bureau requests for information to supplement their waiver requests, the companies told bureau chief Julie Veach May 23, said an ex parte filing released Tuesday (http://bit.ly/16pXyJ5). Given the applicable waiver standard and the commission’s promise of “no flash cuts,” there “must be a way to reach a positive result,” they said. The companies are “working rapidly” to submit a revised proposal based on FCC suggestions on how to further reduce operating expenses, they said. Adak Eagle and Windy City have sought waivers of some of the caps on high-cost USF support, without which they say operations would become unsustainable (CD Sept 19 p10).

FCC acting Chairwoman Mignon Clyburn has yet to lay out a clear agenda for what she will do in what could be an extended period leading the agency. More will be known next week, when Clyburn releases the preliminary agenda for her first meeting as chair, scheduled for June 27.

The Texas Public Utility Commission will give money from the Texas universal service fund to help Hill Country Telephone Cooperative make up for federal high-cost support money lost to the FCC’s November 2011 USF order. The approval was expected (CD April 4 p5). The PUC issued its final order last week (http://bit.ly/14IJfLi) and recounted the proceeding that started last fall. Due to the FCC’s order, Hill Country lost $551,601 in 2012, $399,614 in 2013, and $271,221 in 2014 due to prices that fell below new federal benchmarks, the order said. But the PUC, the telco and others worked together to permit Hill Country to hike its prices, which will allow it to recover much of the lost revenue for 2012, the PUC said. Hill Country will recover $181,799 from the Texas USF for that year. The hikes, however, will help avoid federal revenue losses for future years, the order said: “The increases in revenue realized by Hill Country are anticipated to fully replace the current projected 2013 and 2014 reduction of FUSF revenues by Hill Country.”

General Communication Inc. “stands ready” to ensure voice and broadband service continue to exist if Adak Eagle Enterprises (AEE) and Windy City Cellular go under, GCI told the FCC Friday (http://bit.ly/ZiMB8Z). AEE and subsidiary Windy City have been seeking waivers of some USF reforms, without which the companies say they may cease providing service on the Alaskan island. “If AEE ceases providing broadband service as a result of the Commission denying AEE’s petition for waiver, GCI will provide broadband through a wireless broadband service similar to that it offers in Dutch Harbor,” the telco said: GCI can afford to provide service not because of “phantom customers” -- as it said AEE has claimed. GCI provides service on Adak within the FCC’s $3,000 per line annual high cost support “by providing service efficiently and by spreading common costs across all its Alaska operations,” the telco said.