No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), within 18 months of enactment, to complete a rulemaking under the Universal Service Fund (USF) to (1) expand the contribution base to require broadband providers (i.e., providers of broadband internet access service) and edge providers (e.g., digital advertising services, search engines, social media platforms, streaming services) to contribute on an equitable and nondiscriminatory basis, with exemptions for edge providers transmitting less than 3% of U.S. broadband data and earning less than $5 billion in U.S. revenue in the prior year or for de minimis contributors; and (2) adopt a new high-cost program mechanism providing specific, predictable, and sufficient support to cover unrecovered expenses of eligible telecommunications carriers (ETCs) serving high-cost areas at just, reasonable, and affordable rates, limited to one ETC per area. (As background, the USF supports telecommunications and broadband services for underserved consumers, including through the high-cost program that subsidizes deployment and operation in rural and high-cost areas; contributions are currently assessed primarily on interstate telecommunications revenues.) The section subjects violations to Communications Act penalties and states that it provides no new FCC authority over broadband providers or any authority over edge providers beyond USF contributions.