How Do We Pay For Universal Service?

As the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act awaits a vote in the House of Representatives later this month, a debate over the future of the Federal Communications Commission's Universal Service Fund (USF) is already starting. Provisions in the infrastructure bill call for the FCC to quickly complete an evaluation of how the legislation will impact how the FCC's achieves the goal of deploying broadband to all Americans. Congress wants to know how the FCC can be more effective in achieving this goal. One brewing USF issue is how we pay for it. A report released this week by the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition, INCOMPAS, and NTCA-The Rural Broadband Association thoughtfully examines the issue.