Senate and House hearings on universal service fund and tribes

Monday, June 4, 2012  

The Universal Service Fund and its impact in Indian Country will be the subject of two hearings on Capitol Hill this week.

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on the issue on Thursday. It will be followed by a hearing before the House Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs on Friday.

"The Federal Communications Commission recently released its Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which overhauls the Universal Service Fund and substantially revises its inter-carrier compensation mechanisms," the National Congress of American Indians said in a recent update. "This recent Order released by the FCC represents the most significant overhaul of telecommunications regulation in nearly a century."

Committee Notices:
OVERSIGHT HEARING on Universal Service Fund Reform: Ensuring a Sustainable and Connected Future for Native Communities (June 7, 2012)
Oversight Hearing on "Federal Communications Commission’s rule on the Universal Service Fund and its impact on American Indians and Alaska Natives" (June 8, 2012)