RWA, Mediacom at Odds on Rip-and-Replace Funding for ETCs
The Rural Wireless Association asked the FCC to reject Mediacom arguments that the FCC can't make changes to its rip-and-replace program and to rescind a decision not to fully fund eligible telecom carriers. RWA asked for the change in September.…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
“The Commission modified its rules exactly as directed by Congress, and RWA provides no rationale under which the Commission would be free to ignore that direction,” Mediacom said. “Mediacom argued that the Commission had ‘no discretion to deviate from the prioritization scheme established by Congress and was required to revise its prior plan to prioritize ETCs,’” RWA replied, posted Tuesday in docket 18-89: “This statement is inaccurate.” NCTA supported RWA, saying Congress gave the FCC freedom to retain funding for ETCs when it OK’d the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act as part of an omnibus appropriations bill (see 2012210055). “The well-reasoned basis for prioritizing ETCs to ensure they receive full reimbursement for the cost of removing and replacing covered equipment and services has not changed,” NCTA said. PTA-FLA and Flat Wireless jointly supported the Mediacom arguments: “To set the background for this issue, we must observe that the funding currently available for this program has always been finite, leaving the distinct possibility, if not the certainty, that some rip and replace costs incurred by eligible carriers will go unreimbursed.”