06/05/2014
Sharon Telephone Co. and The Bergen Telephone Co. would like to thank our congress for working for us.
Wisconsin’s congressional delegation continues to lead the nation in their support of rural telecommunications providers and the communities they serve.
In May, Senators Ron Johnson and Tammy Baldwin, and Representatives Sean Duffy, Ron Kind, Gwen Moore, Tom Petri, Mark Pocan, Reid Ribble and Jim Sensenbrenner signed letters to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Thomas Wheeler requesting the modernization of the Universal Service Fund (USF) on behalf of rural telecommunications providers. No other state congressional delegation had a greater showing of support than Wisconsin.
At issue is the FCC requirement to establish USF mechanisms that are sufficient and predictable in their support for deploying and operating advanced telecommunication networks. The current FCC rules for USF focus their support on plain old telephone service (POTS). Our congressional delegation is encouraging the FCC to modernize the USF with the creation of a mechanism designed to support the availability and sustainability of broadband capable rural networks.
We all recognize the importance of broadband to our rural communities, schools and businesses. Our company has a tremendous record of investment in broadband capable networks and need FCC rules to keep pace with our products and services. We want to thank our delegation for recognizing the importance of further FCC reforms.
