Proposals in the FCC November NPRM on the IP transition single out ILECs “for disparate regulatory treatment and would continue to place ILECs at a competitive disadvantage in comparison to their cable and wireless competitors,” representatives of the Independent Telephone & Telecommunications Alliance said in a meeting with Wireline Bureau staff. ILECs are no longer the dominant providers of residential or business voice service, ITTA said. “We urged the Commission to refrain from adopting needless and intrusive regulations that will stifle innovation and investment and undermine its goals of facilitating the IP transition and advancing broadband deployment to consumers throughout" the U.S., the group said. ITTA expressed confidence that an analysis of the record “will show sufficient competition in the market for special access services, such that adopting the proposals in the NPRM would be premature and wholly unnecessary,” ITTA said. Its members CenturyLink and Frontier Communications also participated in the meeting, said an ex parte filing Monday in docket 14-174.

Sheriffs' offices from across the U.S. are pressuring the FCC to not impose inmate calling service (ICS) rules that would restrict their ability to charge for calls made from jails. Most of the letters use the same language asking the FCC to proceed with care as it moves forward on ICS rules. “Inmate calling is a discretionary service in our jail and it is allowed for the benefit of inmates and their families,” said a letter from the Mackinac County Sheriff’s Office in northern Michigan. “If we are not permitted to recover the costs associated with the provision of ICS service, then we can and we may be forced to significantly limit or eliminate altogether access to inmate phones in our jail.” The office said prisoners are allowed to make calls 16 hours a day: “Denying payments to jails or restricting such payments to levels that do not at least cover our costs, will have the effect of reducing the incentive and ability to continue to allow ICS in this manner.” The filings were made in docket 12-375. The National Sheriff’s Association made many of the same points in a January filing. “Sheriffs incur significant costs in allowing ICS in jails and … must be allowed to recover their costs to encourage the deployment of ICS,” the association said. It said a higher rate for ICS services in jails is appropriate and there should be a “significant transition period” before new rules are imposed.

The FCC’s opposition to Allband Communications Cooperative’s petition for Supreme Court review of the agency’s 2011 USF/intercarrier compensation order should be rejected, the company said in a reply brief Wednesday. The company is contesting the order’s $250 per-line-per-month USF cap. The agency had argued Allband lacks standing to challenge the order because it had been granted a three-year waiver from the cap, has a pending petition to renew the waiver and thus hasn't been subject to the cap, said Allband’s brief. But the company said “’the ripeness doctrine’” shouldn't apply because the matter involves “issues of continuing public interest, capable of repetition and capable of evading review.” The agency also has no deadline for acting on the renewal request, and absent action, Allband would be subject to the cap July 1, the company said. The FCC also didn't respond to the company’s claims in its petition for review, including that the agency didn't follow applicable statutory provisions or congressional intent, the reply brief said. NARUC, U.S. Cellular and Cellular South have also asked the court to review a 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision upholding the order on various grounds (see 1504090054).

The FCC’s letter-of-credit requirement for rural broadband experiment funding recipients shouldn't be implemented for CAF, Phase II funding, NTCA said in comments posted Monday in docket 10-90. The organization had filed an emergency petition seeking a waiver of the RBE requirement for an LOC from a “’top 100 bank,’” NTCA said. Those responding to the proposal have unanimously agreed the requirement should be changed and “should not be ported over” to CAF bidding, “if these programs are to have any chance for success,” NTCA said. The requirement is ”overly burdensome and impractical, if not impossible -- particularly for smaller entities obtaining relatively smaller awards,” the group said. A “deeper look at the specific track records of individual would-be CAF recipients is just as (if not more) important [as] any LoC obligations,” and a preference for funding should be given to those with a “demonstrated history of actual performance in or near the areas they propose to serve,” the group said.

The global wireline services market is likely to undergo “phenomenal growth” because of a rise in oil and gas exploration and production, said a report by Transparency Market Research released Friday. The market is expected to reach $34.96 billion by 2020, from $19.10 billion in 2014, a news release said. “Wireline services form an integral component of the oil and gas industry as the service is used for exploration, drilling, completion, stimulation, and intervention,” the release said.

The Independent Telephone & Telecommunications Alliance is working with industry to develop a consensus approach for a voluntary transition to model-based support for rate-of-return companies, ITTA President Genny Morelli and officials of TDS Telecom and Hargray Communications told aides to Commissioners Jesssica Rosenworcel and Mike O’Rielly April 7, and aides to Commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Ajit Pai and Chairman Tom Wheeler April 9, said an ex parte filing posted in docket 10-90 Friday. The industry representatives discussed an appropriate multiyear transition from legacy support to support based on a cost model, the time frame for the voluntary plan to be made available for carriers to opt in to, the possible utilization of jump-start funding to incent early adoption of the plan, and the need for a simple and straightforward process for determining areas eligible for support, the filing said. Representing TDS was Bob DeBroux, director-federal affairs and public policy, and for Hargray, Trey Judy, director-regulatory and carrier relations. Separately, USTelecom representatives told Wireline Bureau officials April 6 that Connect America Fund Phase II more than doubled the speed requirement from Connect America Fund Phase I, which more than doubles the costs of deployment, said an ex parte filing posted in the docket Thursday. Representing the group were AJ Burton, Frontier Communications director-federal regulatory affairs; Mary Henze, AT&T assistant vice president-federal regulatory; Jeff Lanning, CenturyLink vice president-federal regulatory; and Malena Barzilai, Windstream senior government affairs counsel.

Frontier Communications is committed to maintaining and expanding broadband in rural areas if the FCC approves the proposed transfer of Verizon LEC operations in California, Florida and Texas to the company, Frontier and Verizon executives told FCC officials, said an ex parte filing posted Thursday in docket 10-90. Frontier Executive Vice President-External Affairs Kathleen Abernathy and Verizon’s Kathy Grillo, senior vice president-federal regulatory and legal affairs, and Alan Buzacott, executive director-federal regulatory affairs, met with Daniel Alvarez, aide to Chairman Tom Wheeler, and Deputy Wireline Bureau Chief Carol Mattey April 7, said the filing. Bryan Tramont and Patrick Halley, of Wilkinson Barker, were also at the meeting.

The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) asked for comment Wednesday on public safety and the IP transition. “Network operators are planning for the eventual phase-out of copper facilities, PSTN [public switched telephone network]-based services, and traditional power arrangements; migrating to an IP-based network architecture, increasingly reliant upon commercial power,” ATIS said. It asked "how to meet critical public safety-related needs during this complex migration to new IP-based media alternatives.”

The “widespread” comments filed on inmate calling service overhauls are “not consistent” and “plague the industry” with much regulatory uncertainty, Global Tel*Link said in a letter to the FCC posted Tuesday in docket 12-375. The company continues to back a joint proposal made by itself, Securus and Telmate (see 1410100086), the letter said. The joint proposal ”would lead to windfall profits for the largest companies,” Pay-Tel Communications President Vincent Townsend and company counsel Marcus Trathen of Brooks, Pierce told Wireline officials April 2, according to an ex parte filing also posted Tuesday. The joint proposal supports inmate calling rate caps that favor their clientele in prisons, said Pay-Tel, which serves more jails.

NCTA’s proposal to cut Connect America Funds from ILECs that don't meet the new FCC 25 Mbps download/3 Mbps upload standard (see 1501290043) is “baseless,” Frontier Communications said in reply comments on a notice of inquiry on ways to increase broadband deployment. NCTA had said in initial comments that the funds should be shifted to any broadband provider able to meet the standard (see 1503060064). Frontier called the proposal a “last-minute attack” and said pursuing the change would “severely delay the deployment of broadband to rural areas.” NTCA and the American Cable Association, in replies posted Tuesday in docket 14-126, also urged the agency to enact reforms to curb increasing programming costs. An ACA study took particular aim at “'Cablization’ of the Internet,” in which content providers charge ISPs fees on a per-subscriber basis to permit the broadband providers’ customers to access the content, said ACA's filing. Should “content providers pursue this business model, the effect on broadband deployment will almost certainly be immediate and grave,” ACA said. Among other reforms, the association urged the agency to monitor for “cablization” and address commercially unreasonable actions. Using Telecom Act Section 706 to deal with the costs of programming would not “present the challenges” of using the provision to pre-empt state anti-municipal broadband laws, the cable association said. Making video content available at affordable rates and under reasonable terms and conditions “spurs rural broadband investment,” NTCA said. It urged changes to USF to support smaller rural companies. Frontier noted that CAF Phase II is “specifically targeted to the areas that most need funding.” By requiring only 10 Mbps download/1 Mbps upload speeds for CAF, the agency is recognizing “a tradeoff between the number of households reached and the speeds achieved,” Frontier said.