The Regulatory Mix, TMI’s daily blog of regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of a TMI Briefing.
TELECOM
FCC
Commissioner Ajit Pai sent a letter to USAC asking them to provide certain information about four Lifeline providers identified by sales agents of Total Call Mobile as having engaged in activities similar to those of Total Call Mobile. See our Blog “FCC Proposes Record Fine Over Lifeline Program Abuse,” dated 4/11/16. This includes a description of any audits or investigations USAC conducted on the companies, whether the companies were informed of duplicate enrollments and whether the consumers were later de-enrolled, and how many subscribers relied on SNAP cards for eligibility verification. Commissioner Pai also asks for a list of all wireless Lifeline providers that overrode the safeguards of the National Lifeline Accountability Database and an explanation of USAC’s audit and investigation plans. The names of the four carriers were redacted from the publicly released letter.
New York
The PSC initiated a proceeding to investigate Verizon’s service quality processes and programs as they relate to its regulated telephone operations in order to determine if modifications are necessary. The PSC said it will “explore whether competition is providing a sufficient incentive for Verizon to maintain its non-Core customer service quality, why certain non-Core customers are not exercising choice, what efforts Verizon is making to retain those customers, and what efforts the Company is making to ensure the continued viability of the copper network. Moreover, this investigation will inherently include an examination as to the state of the copper system and whether Verizon’s investment in its network has been sufficient to provide adequate levels of service to consumers on regulated services.” Public comment will be received until May 28, 2016.
Technologies Management, Inc. podcast from Telecom Reseller Magazine. An interview with TMI’s Tom Forte on VoIP regulatory requirements.
