§ 7515. High-Cost Program
(a) The Universal Service Charge shall be used as a means of keeping basic telecommunications
service affordable in all parts of this State, thereby maintaining universal service,
and as a means of supporting access to broadband service in all parts of the State.
(b) The Public Utility Commission, after review of a petition of a company holding a certificate
of public good to provide telecommunications service in Vermont, and upon finding
that the company meets all requirements for designation as an “eligible telecommunications
carrier” as defined by the FCC, may designate the company as a Vermont-eligible telecommunications
carrier (VETC).
(c) The supported services a designated VETC must provide are voice telephony services,
as defined by the FCC, and broadband internet access, directly or through an affiliate.
A VETC receiving support under this section shall use that support for capital improvements
in high-cost areas, as defined in subsection (f) of this section, to build broadband
capable networks.
(d) The Commission may designate multiple VETCs for a single high-cost area, but each
designated VETC shall:
(1) offer supported services to customers at all locations throughout the high-cost area
or areas for which it has been designated; and
(2) for its voice telephone services, meet service quality standards set by the Commission.
(e) A VETC shall receive support as defined in subsection (i) of this section from the
fiscal agent of the Vermont Universal Service Fund for each telecommunications line
in service or service location, whichever is greater in number, in each high-cost
area it services. Such support may be made in the form of a net payment against the
carrier’s liability to the Fund. If multiple VETCs are designated for a single area,
then each VETC shall receive support for each line it has in service.
(f) As used in this section, a Vermont telephone exchange is a “high-cost area” if the
exchange is served by a rural telephone company, as defined by federal law, or if
the exchange is designated as a rural exchange in the wholesale tariff of a regional
bell operating company (RBOC), as defined by the FCC, or of a successor company to
an RBOC. An exchange is not a high-cost area if the Public Utility Commission finds
that the supported services are available to all locations throughout the exchange
from at least two service providers.
(g) Except as provided in subsection (h) of this section, a VETC shall provide broadband
internet access at speeds no lower than 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload in each
high-cost area it serves within five years of designation. A VETC need not provide
broadband service to a location that has service available from another service provider,
as determined by the Department of Public Service.
(h) The Public Utility Commission may modify the buildout requirements of subsection (d)
of this section as it relates to broadband internet access to be the geographic area
that could be reached using one-half of the funds to be received over five years.
A VETC may seek such waiver of the buildout requirements within one year of designation
and shall demonstrate the cost of meeting broadband internet access requirements on
an exchange basis and propose an alternative buildout plan.
(i) The amount of the monthly support under this section shall be the pro rata share of
available funds based on the total number of incumbent local exchange carriers in
the State and reflecting each carrier’s lines in service or service locations in its
high-cost area or areas, as determined under subsection (e) of this section. If an
incumbent local exchange carrier does not petition the Commission for VETC designation,
or is found ineligible by the Commission, the share of funds it otherwise would have
received under this section shall be used to support the Connectivity Initiative established
in section 7515b of this chapter.
(j) The Public Utility Commission shall adopt by rule standards and procedures for ensuring
projects funded under this section are not competitive overbuilds of existing wired
telecommunications services.
(k) Each VETC shall submit certification that it is meeting the requirements of this section
and an accounting of how it expended the funds received under this section in the
previous calendar year, with its annual report to the Department of Public Service.
For good cause shown, the Public Utility Commission may investigate submissions required
by this subsection and may revoke a company’s designation if it finds that the company
is not meeting the requirements of this subsection. (Added 1993, No. 197 (Adj. Sess.), § 5; amended 2011, No. 169 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. May 18, 2012; 2013, No. 190 (Adj. Sess.), § 5, eff. June 16, 2014; 2015, No. 41, § 11; 2019, No. 79, § 4, eff. June 20, 2019.)