Rural Cellular Association Calls on FCC to reject Reverse Auctions

The Rural Cellular Association urged the Federal Communications Commission to reject reverse auctions and seek Congressional authority to institute Universal Service Fund reform.

“The FCC should establish a level playing field that gives every carrier a fair and equal opportunity to compete for funding,” said RCA President and CEO, Steven Berry. “A cost-model approach is the most efficient and effective way to allocate funding, and truly portable funding would direct support to those carriers that successfully capture customers.” The FCC supports reverse auctions as one of the key mechanisms in its USF reform proposal. Currently, multiple firms receive USF money in order to operate. Under the proposed plan a single company would win the right to get USF funding to provide service to consumers.