The National Exchange Carrier Association (NECA)  - The National Exchange Carrier Association (NECA) has sent a letter to the Common Carrier Bureau wherein it states that the FCC's treatment of Internet-bound traffic as intrastate for jurisdictional separations purposes will produce a $170 million misallocation of costs to the state jurisdiction for carriers participating in NECA's access charge pools. This misallocation will undoubtedly result in higher local rates as local ratepayers will be required to compensate the telcos for costs associated with this interstate traffic.

The National Exchange Carrier Association (NECA)  released a study outlining small and mid-sized companies' projected costs for deploying digital subscriber line (DSL) technologies to provide broadband telecommunications services in rural areas. According to the report, by the year 2002 more than 65 percent of rural Americans will be able to access high-speed connections to the Internet. However, providing broadband access to these customers is likely to cost more than $10.9 billion.

Satellite - The FCC has proposed to redesignate the 3650 - 3700 MHz band from fixed satellite service (FSS) to provide for broadband services. Although the Commission proposes to grandfather existing facilities, it proposes to ban future satellite service offerings and has initiated a freeze on new applications.

In a separate proceeding, several satellite companies have filed petitions for  reconsideration of a Commission Order, wherein the FCC allocated 4 gigahertz of spectrum in the 36 - 51.4 GHz band for fixed satellite services and 5.6 GHz of spectrum for wireless services. The satellite industry had vehemently argued that it would require at least 6 GHz of spectrum for satellite services.           

Satellite Providers - In response to public pleas from the satellite provider and television broadcasting industries for assistance in alleviating the strained relationship of the industries in connection with enforcement of the Satellite Home Viewer Act, the FCC has revised the method used to measure whether a television station delivers a signal of Grade B intensity to a particular household, but has declined to modify the definition of the Grade B signal itself. Specifically, a new on-site signal testing method has been adopted, and a new method for predicting whether a particular household receives a signal of Grade B intensity, called Individual Location Longley-Rice or ILLR, has been endorsed. As of November, 1999, satellite providers may carry local broadcast signals into their local markets in certain circumstances.

Tower Marking - The FCC has amended Section 17.23 of its Rules to substitute references to the current 1995 and 1996 versions of FAA advisory circulars in place of 1991 and 1992 circulars specifying requirements for painting and lighting towers. The major differences between the current standards and the old ones are that the current standards require the painting of cable and conduit attached to the tower and require that all red lights blink simultaneously. No FCC licensee will be required to change the painting or lighting of its tower solely on account of the updating of the FCC rule. FCC licensees may continue to paint and light in accordance with the specifications on their licenses, unless directed otherwise by the FAA. However, the current FAA circulars will apply to any newly constructed towers and may apply to modifications of existing towers. 

You should check the specifications on your license to make sure that you are in compliance with whichever standards apply to you, because the FCC may have updated your specifications during the tower registration process. If your specifications are Circular AC 70/7460-1J and/or AC 150/5345-43E, you are subject to the new standards. If you feel that specification on your license is in error, you can request a change through the FCC's online tower registration system. The current FCC circulars may be obtained from the Dept. of Transportation, Property Use and Storage Section, Subsequent Distribution Office, M483.6, Ardmore East Business Center, 3341 Q 75th Ave., Landover, MD 20785, tel. 301-322-4961, fax 301-386-5394.

Line Sharing - The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission has recommended steps to help CLECs implement line sharing arrangements over fiber loops. Line sharing allows a competitive carrier to provide high-speed data over the high frequency portion of a loop while the incumbent carrier provides voice services over the low frequency portion of the loop. If the recommended decision is adopted, CLECs would be permitted to insert line cards into DSLAMs (digital subscriber line access multiplexers) located in Bell Atlantic-Pennsylvania’s remote terminals, or Bell Atlantic could install the line cards itself and then provide the services to a competitor.

FCC Establishes Merger Conditions Oversight Team - The FCC has established a Merger Conditions Oversight Team whose duty will be to monitor compliance with common carrier merger conditions. This Team was initially responsible for monitoring SBC Communications, Inc.'s compliance with the conditions attached to its merger with Ameritech, but now it will also oversee compliance with conditions associated with other major common carrier mergers. This Team should be your point of contact if you wish to report instances of possible noncompliance with merger conditions.

You may obtain additional information about the Merger Compliance Oversight Team at http://www.fcc.gov/ccb/mcot/. The leaders of the merger oversight team are Anthony Dale, a senior attorney in the Accounting Safeguards Division of the Common Carrier Bureau and Radhika Karmarkar, Assistant Chief of the Market Disputes Resolution Division, Enforcement Bureau. Mr. Dale, adale@fcc.gov, and Ms. Karmarkar, rkarmark@fcc.gov, can be contacted by phone at (202) 418-2260 and (202) 418-1628, respectively.

Rural Utilities Service Amends Regulations - The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) has amended its regulations to allow applicants to obtain RUS financial assistance in order to provide mobile telecommunications service even if the applicant is providing basic local exchange service in the territory to be served. The Rural Electrification Act (REA) prohibits RUS from financing duplicate, non-competitive, service offerings. However, RUS has clarified its rules that mobile and wireline services are distinct and therefore do not duplicate, but rather compete with each other when offered in the same area. Also, RUS has clarified that while the REA prohibits it from financing duplicative service offerings, it is not prohibited from financing competitive service offerings. Therefore, in certain situtations, RUS may provide financing to some service providers even though another provider purports to serve that same area.

Future Auction - The Commission has adopted rules for the future auction of licenses in the 24 GHz band for Fixed Wireless Services. Licenses will be granted in 40 MHz flexible channel pairs and either the upper or lower side of the pair may be used for the nodal station or the subscriber station. The term of these licenses will be 10 years and they may be partitioned and/or disaggregated. Licensing will be awarded in the 175 Economic Areas (EA) and EA-like areas and the Gulf of Mexico. Bidding credits will be awarded to very small businesses (companies with average annual gross revenues at or below $3M are eligible for 35% bidding credit), small businesses (companies with average annual gross revenues at or below $15M are eligible for 25% bidding credit) and entrepreneurs (companies with average annual gross revenues at or below $40M are eligible for 15 % bidding credit). The date of the auction has not yet been set.

Emergency Information for Video Distributors - The FCC has issued a public notice reminding all video program distributors of the regulatory requirement that local emergency information be made accessible to deaf or hard of hearing persons.  Thus any time that emergency information is broadcast aurally, it must also be displayed visually. 

The Call Sign Desk -  The mandatory online system for call sign requests and changes is now available for use. The system can be accessed on the FCC’s Mass Media Bureau’s website http://www.fcc.gov/mmb. Users may check the availability of call signs, apply for new call signs, request changes to existing call signs, or check the status of such requests. If a request is made that requires a fee to be paid to the FCC, the FCC’s fee payment form must be sent to the appropriate lockbox within fifteen (15) days of the request. Users may now use Master Card and Visa credit cards throughout the system to pay for any applicable fees.