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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE UTILITY CONSUMER ADVOCATES
R E S O L U T I O N
Supporting a Reduction in the Residential and Single Line
Business Subscriber Line Charges and Increased Federal Contribution
to the Lifeline Assistance Program in Response to the Recommended
Decision of the Universal Service Joint Board
WHEREAS, the federal-state Joint Board, of which the Missouri Public
Counsel Martha Hogerty was a member, issued a Recommended Decision
on November 8, 1996 at In the Matter of Federal-State Joint Board
on Universal Service, CC Docket No. 96-45 which concerned the implementation
of Section 254 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996;
WHEREAS, contained within Section 254 are Subsection 254(b)(2),
requiring quality service to be provided at just, reasonable, and
affordable rates; Subsection 254(b)(4) requiring telecommunications
providers, rather than end users, to make equitable and nondiscriminatory
contributions to the preservation and advancement of universal service;
Subsection 254(i) requiring universal service to be provided at
just, reasonable, and affordable rates; and 254(k) requiring that
universal service should bear no more than a reasonable share of
joint and common costs;
WHEREAS, various state consumer advocates, and other parties have
filed comments in this proceeding advocating, inter alia, that the
Subscriber Line Charge (SLC) should be reduced and that federal
benefits to low income consumers should be increased;
WHEREAS, the residential SLC has not been reduced since it was
increased to $3.50 in 1989, even though many other telecommunications
rates set by the FCC have been reduced since that time;
WHEREAS, Carrier Common Line Charge (CCLC) reductions have occurred
in the past and these reductions have facilitated reductions in
toll rates, but no SLC rate reductions have occurred;
WHEREAS, all SLC revenue represents approximately 66% of revenue
used to recover the interstate portion of common line cost with
the remainder recovered from the CCLC, which is directly assessed
to interexchange carriers;
WHEREAS, the FCC concluded in Amendment of Part 67 of the Commission's
Rules and Establishment of a Joint Board, 2 FCC Rcd 2953, 2958 n.36,
(1987) that payment of 50% of common line costs by the Interexchange
Carriers through the CCLC would represent a "fair share"
of common line cost recovery;
WHEREAS, consumers should share in the productivity benefits realized
by the telecommunications industry;
WHEREAS, NASUCA supports reducing, and expeditious elimination
of, the SLC as the SLC functions as a component of local rates;
WHEREAS, many low income consumers continue to go without telephone
service;
WHEREAS, many states have not implemented Lifeline programs or
have implemented such programs at less than the maximum available
federal benefit;
WHEREAS, the Joint Board on November 8, 1996 issued a Recommended
Decision and such Recommended Decision will be reviewed and voted
upon by the full Federal Communications Commission on May 8, 1997;
WHEREAS, the Recommended Decision conditionally proposes that the
SLC for the initial Residential connection for the primary residence
and for Single Line Business customers should be reduced by one
half of the CCLC reduction produced by the transfer of the Long
Term Support revenues from the CCLC to a High Cost Fund and, also,
by the CCLC reduction produced by the removal of pay phone support
from the CCLC;
WHEREAS, the Recommended Decision proposes that all Lifeline customers
will receive $5.25 per month in federal assistance and that additional
state assistance will be matched by federal assistance in a ratio
of 2:1 up to a maximum $7.00 federal contribution;
WHEREAS, the Recommended Decision proposes that Lifeline assistance
should expand to all states and territories; that all Lifeline eligible
customers may not lose local service for nonpayment of toll charges;
that toll blocking and toll limitation services should be available
at no charge for Lifeline customers; and that there shall be no
service deposits required for Lifeline customers who elect toll
blocking service;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that NASUCA supports a reduction of the
SLC as consumers should share in the productivity benefits enjoyed
by the telecommunications industry by have not received any reduction
in the SLC since it was set at $3.50; consumers;
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that NASUCA supports the recommendation
of the Joint Board as set forth above concerning assistance to low
income consumers;
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that NASUCA supports a SLC reduction
in the amount recommended by the Joint Board as a minimal step in
redressing the inequity involving the SLC as demonstrated above;
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that NASUCA authorizes its Executive
Committee to develop specific positions and to take appropriate
actions consistent with the terms of this resolution. The Executive
Committee shall notify the membership of any action taken pursuant
to this resolution.
Approved by NASUCA:
San Francisco, California
Place
November 19, 1996
National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates
8380 Colesville Road, Suite 101, Silver Spring, MD 20910
Phone: (301) 589-6313 Fax: 589-6380
e-mail: nasuca@nasuca.org |