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Full-Text Articles in Law
Universal Service In The Schools: One Step Too Far?, Christine M. Mason
Universal Service In The Schools: One Step Too Far?, Christine M. Mason
Federal Communications Law Journal
Universal service is extended to include new recipients, such as schools, as a result of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The FCC should proceed cautiously, and maintain its commitment to the traditional goal of universal service— Americans with basic telephone services— carrying out this new mandate.
All Wired Up: An Analysis Of The Fcc's Order To Internally Connect Schools, Roxana E. Cook
All Wired Up: An Analysis Of The Fcc's Order To Internally Connect Schools, Roxana E. Cook
Federal Communications Law Journal
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 extends universal service support to schools and libraries. Pursuant to this legislation, the FCC has provided all eligible schools with discounts of between twenty and ninety percent on telecommunications services, Internet access, and internal connections— to a 2.25 billion dollar annual cap. Critics have denounced the subsidy for internal connections as unsupported by the Act's language and outside the FCC's authority. However, based on a plain reading of the statute, on case law, and on legislative history, it is clear that the FCC properly exercised discretion in allocating the potential fund.