For Immediate Release
Contact:Laura Withers, (703) 351-2087, [email protected]
Arlington, Va. (April 11, 2017)—NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association today thanked 56 Senators for signing a letter to the FCC encouraging the agency to continue working to advance broadband deployment in our country’s hardest-to-serve rural areas by addressing a lack of sufficient resources in the Universal Service Fund (USF) High-Cost program.
The bipartisan letter was led by Sens. Deb Fischer (R–Neb.) and Amy Klobuchar (D–Minn.) and encourages the commission to ensure the USF high-cost program, which supports the deployment of broadband communications to the country’s hardest-to-serve and costliest areas, “can achieve the goal of making affordable broadband available to Americans in high-cost rural areas.”
“We are deeply grateful to Senators Fischer and Klobuchar, and the many other members of the Senate representing more than half of the chamber, for their leadership in encouraging the FCC to ensure this program continues to be an effective linchpin of our country’s efforts to deploy and sustain advanced, affordable communications in rural communities,” said NTCA Chief Executive Officer Shirley Bloomfield. “This letter demonstrates a consistent and enduring commitment on the part of Congress to make sure that ongoing reforms to the USF are done right for the benefit of consumers who need better broadband at reasonably affordable rates both now and well into the future.”
The full letter is available here.
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NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association is the premier association representing more than 800 independent, community-based telecommunications companies that are leading innovation in rural and small-town America. NTCA advocates on behalf of its members in the legislative and regulatory arenas, and it provides training and development; publications and industry events; and an array of employee benefit programs. In an era of exploding technology, deregulation and marketplace competition, NTCA’s members are leading the IP evolution for rural consumers, delivering technologies that make rural communities vibrant places in which to live and do business. Because of their efforts, rural America is fertile ground for innovation in economic development and commerce, education, health care, government services, security and smart energy use. Visit us at www.ntca.org.