For Immediate Release
Contact: Kelly Wismer, 703-351-2015, [email protected]
Arlington, Va. (July 13, 2017)—NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association today issued the following statement from Chief Executive Officer Shirley Bloomfield in response to the Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) adopted at today’s FCC open commission meeting. The FNPRM seeks to better address ongoing problems related to calls that are not being delivered to rural areas for completion, an issue rural Americans have been dealing with and NTCA has been working on for nearly seven years.
“While reporting and record-keeping requirements have served as a deterrent to those that would fail to complete calls to rural areas by either design or neglect, NTCA recognizes that a periodic review of regulations can be useful to retarget them toward the right aims and sustain and enhance their effectiveness. At the end of the day, however, we have already seen what can happen in a regulatory vacuum in terms of calls failing to reach rural America. It is essential therefore that the FCC neither relent nor permit backsliding in the protection of rural consumers and businesses who depend greatly on reliable connectivity to stay in touch with families, friends, customers, and suppliers.”
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NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association is the premier association representing nearly 850 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.