Regulators Hone In On USf

摘要

Wark rockwell-Regulators and lawmakers are groping for new ways to shore up sagging rural telephone subsidies, and while wireless carriers may well become part of the solution, no firm conclusions are expected anytime soon. The issue of how to morph universal service funding from the early 20th Century world into a 21st Century support mechanism that supports rural customers effectively and efficiently is "coming to a head," according to FCC Chairman Michael Powell. An ever-increasing number of members of Congress say modernizing the fund is a priority if it's to remain an effective way to get telecommunications services to rural and hard-to-serve areas.