OFFICE OF
THE CHAIRMAN
The Honorable Jared Huffman
WASH INGTON
December 23, 2014
U.S. House of Representatives
1630 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Congressman Huffman:
Thank you for your letter regarding the implementation of certain aspects of Phase II of
the Connect America Fund (CAF II). In your letter, you urge the Commission to create an
inclusive process where all eligible providers, including electric cooperatives, have an
opportunity to compete for support. You also request that the Commission raise the minimum
broadband speed benchmark for CAF II funding. Your views are very important and will be
included in the record of the proceeding and considered as part of the Commission's review.
The universal service program is one of the most important tools at our disposal to ensure
that consumers and businesses in rural America have the same opportunities as their urban and
suburban counterparts to be active participants in the United States of the 21st century. We are
focused on updating the universal service high-cost program to ensure that we are delivering the
best possible voice and broadband experiences to rural areas of states within the confines of our
Connect America budget, while providing increased certainty and predictability for all carriers
and a climate for increased broadband expansion.
Last week, the Commission adopted a Connect America Fund Phase II Report and Order
to move forward with Connect America for price-cap carriers. Importantly, the Order raises the
minimum broadband speed from 4 Mbps to 10 Mbps, consistent with our statutory obligation to
ensure that rural Americans have access to services that are reasonably comparable to those
available to their urban and suburban neighbors. And in response to concerns raised by price cap
carriers regarding the increased speed requirement, the Order extends the term of support for
price cap carriers that accept the state-level commitment, and gives those carriers more flexibility
in serving those areas. The Commission also determined that we should adjust the offer of
support for a Phase II state-level commitment based on the results of our rural broadband
experiments. This approach will ensure that those areas where there is already a competitive
provider willing to offer state-of-the-art broadband service will enjoy the benefits of competition
as soon as possible.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
These actions represent a critical step in our continued effort to reform and modernize the
universal service high-cost program - as well as other components of the Universal Service Fund
- to ensure that all Americans have access to robust voice and broadband services.
Page 2-The Honorable Jared Huffman
I appreciate your interest in this matter. Please let me know if I can be of any further
assistance.
Sincerely,
Tom Wheeler