HB 1310 - AS INTRODUCED
2000 SESSION
HOUSE BILL 1310
AN ACT relative to the universal service fund.
SPONSORS: Rep. Thomas, Belk 3; Rep. Bradley, Carr 8
COMMITTEE: Science, Technology and Energy
This bill requires the public utilities commission to prepare a report on the establishment of a state universal service fund for telecommunications services.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
00-2417
03/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand
AN ACT relative to the universal service fund.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Intrastate Telecommunications; Universal Service Fund; Report by Public Utilities Commissions.
I. In the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 (TACT), Congress recognized the importance of universal service in section 254 of the act. Universal service, a cornerstone of national telecommunications policy for years, was defined by the Communications Act of 1934 as making available, so far as possible, to all the people of the United States, rapid, efficient, nationwide and worldwide wire and radio communications services with adequate facilities at reasonable charges. As a result of the TACT, the Federal Communications Commission in consultation with the Federal-State Joint Board established a list of the services that must be included in the definition of universal service, which list will be periodically reviewed and updated. In addition to requiring universal service action at the federal level, the TACT provided authority to states to adopt regulations not inconsistent with the Federal Communications Commission's rules to preserve and advance universal service. The state of New Hampshire, through the public utilities commission, therefore needs to evaluate whether to create a state universal service fund to complement the federal universal service fund to support the cost of the features that constitute universal service in New Hampshire.
II. The public utilities commission shall prepare a report on the establishment of a state universal service fund. The report shall evaluate issues related to universal service for telecommunications consumers throughout the state, including the relationship between such a fund and the federal universal service fund and, if a state fund is to be established, potential funding mechanisms for the fund as well as distribution of the proceeds of the fund. The report shall also consider the need for the commission to define what services must be available and on what basis in order for the state to have universal service; the extent to which New Hampshire now enjoys universal service; the threat, if any, to achieving and maintaining universal service; and the role of a universal service fund in protecting and advancing universal service.
III. The public utilities commission may establish a docket for the purposes of soliciting input on the universal service issue.
IV. The public utilities commission shall submit its report and recommendations for proposed legislation to the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate president, the chairpersons of the house science, technology, and energy and the senate energy and economic development committees, the governor, and the state library by November 1, 2000.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.