Securing the network of the future

Almost from the advent of the telephone, the policy of promoting universal telecommunications service for every American has been fundamental in driving this country’s economic and social development. Everyone in America should benefit from the technological advantages of our vast telecommunications network, no matter his or her economic background or geographic location.

In the 1996 Telecommunications Act, Congress codified core concepts of universal service and directed the Federal Communications Commission to implement these broad goals. In the decade since, there have been important successes.

These successes reach across all four of the Universal Service programs. The High-Cost Program has contributed to the fact that almost 95 percent of American households have telephone service, including those in remote areas. Our nation’s libraries and schools have become Internet access points, making the world’s great literature, music, and art available to all members of society at the click of a button. Advancements in healthcare that in the past would have only benefited those within driving distance of great medical centers are now shared with consumers in the farthest corners of our country. After Hurricane Katrina, the Low-Income Program helped bring wireless technology to those hit hardest by that catastrophe to begin their recovery.

Although the Universal Service Fund’s accomplishments are significant, they have been accompanied by some remarkable and, at times, troubling failures. Waste and fraud continue to be an ongoing concern. In one celebrated instance, organized crime took over a local phone company in order to fraudulently receive universal service support. In many cases, consumers who are poor or disabled have not been adequately informed of the availability of the Low-Income program. The funding formula for the Rural Health Care program has been overtaken by changes in state rate structures. It is clear that the time for comprehensive reform is now.

After 10 years, we must examine how far we have come and how best to move forward. One of the strongest motivations for fundamental reform is that the existing Universal Service program has been bypassed by technology — namely broadband services and the Internet. We must examine whether the Universal Service program currently designed to support local telephone service is effectively supporting the network of the future.

This raises a fundamental question: What is the purpose of the Universal Service program? The answer requires an assessment of the changing technological landscape.

When we last codified the Universal Service programs in 1996, the telecommunications network was largely comprised of copper wires, and our policy choices — namely to support the universal availability of voice service — reflected that reality. In 10 short years, much has changed. Broadband is the network of the future and voice service is just one of many applications that will run over it.

Currently, we spend $7 billion a year on the universal service program. Can that money can be better used for a redesigned program that will become the core of our country’s broadband policy? Ultimately, American consumers are footing the bill. And we owe it to them to get the program right.

Having spent some time working on difficult issues, I am aware of the temptation to avoid tough problems by offering modest or incremental changes. That approach ruffles few feathers and allows for laudatory press releases, but fails to make the benefits of broadband more widely available.

Designing a program that will achieve widespread deployment of robust broadband service raises additional questions. How do we make such a system affordable? How do we encourage innovation and better services and applications for consumers? What is the role of competition, especially in remote and underserved areas? How do we ensure a smooth, efficient transition to the program of the future? What roles should business, government, and public and private enterprises play in implementing such a program?

Congress can, should and must do our duty to ensure that all consumers — no matter where they live or how much they make — have access to this country’s communications network, including the network of tomorrow.

Dingell is chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Special section: Telecom

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