[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 14 (Wednesday, February 8, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S866-S867]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BURNS:
  S. 2256. A bill to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to ensure the 
availability to all Americans of high-quality, advanced 
telecommunications and broadband services, technologies, and networks 
at just, reasonable, and affordable rates, and to establish a permanent 
mechanism to guarantee specific, sufficient, and predictable support 
for the preservation and advancement of universal service, and for 
other purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation.
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, this is a special day to those of us who 
serve on the Commerce Committee and have served on the Commerce 
Committee ever since we have been in the Senate because today is the 
10th anniversary of the Telecom Act of 1996. I want to talk about a 
bill I am introducing today as the Internet and Universal Service Act 
of 1996, or the NetUSA, if you will.
  When I first came here and went to work, I was very much interested 
in telecommunications. The big reason is in my State of Montana we have 
only 900,000 people but we have 148,000 square miles. I remind my 
colleagues, if you drew a straight line from Yaak, MT, to Alzada, MT, 
it is farther than it is from Chicago to Washington, DC.
  So we went to work in telecommunications for the simple reason we had 
to do something about distances, and we did. But it took almost 6 or 7 
years before we came up with a bill that overhauled the old Telco Act 
of 1935. What we were trying to do is deal with the 1990s technology 
with a 1930 law and we found it almost impossible to do, so the whole 
act had to be rewritten.
  Since the Telecom Act, the only thing that is certain is change. With 
change, several trends have emerged, including the development of new 
technologies, industry consolidation and convergence, and product 
bundling.
  The pace of technological change has been astounding. We have a 
plethora of new technologies including WiFi and WiMAX, and all new 
words in telecommunications--wireless Internet access, voice over 
Internet protocol, which we refer to now as VOIP, the

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telephone service using the Internet and broadband over powerline--
BPL--for Internet access via electrical lines.

  While the Telecom Act promised industry and technology convergence, 
only recently is it materializing--with telephone, cable, and wireless 
companies invading one another's turf. Cable companies are offering 
television service over the Internet, telephone companies are offering 
video services over their facilities. New technologies have brought 
consumers a variety of choices for local, long distance, video, 
wireless, and Internet services, and many companies are offering 
bundled services.
  The radical transformation of the industry has led some to call for a 
complete rewrite to the Telecom Act. Central issues in the debate today 
are the reform of the Universal Service Fund--the USF, reform of 
intercarrier compensation, franchising issues for video providers, and 
net neutrality are some among a whole host of other challenges.
  As Congress begins working to rewrite the telecom laws, my central 
focus will be encouraging broadband deployment in every corner of the 
U.S. and preserving and improving universal service. Broadband 
deployment is more vital now than ever before, and it is a key to our 
future. In the 21st century, how do we compete against workers who work 
in economies of scale and their salaries are a little bit less than 
ours? We ensure that U.S. workers can obtain broadband services at 
affordable prices no matter where they live in this great country.
  The GAO recently agreed, recommending the Government make more 
broadband infrastructure investments to improve the U.S. workforce's 
human capital and skill level. I think the President talked much about 
this in his State of the Union.
  Technology provides a greater chance to live where you want and hold 
a good job. If a community does not have broadband, it is at a huge 
competitive disadvantage. It is just that simple.
  Even though the technologies were developed in the United States, we 
still lag behind other countries in the deployment of broadband. We 
need to provide incentives for companies to continue to expand their 
broadband facilities and to ensure all Americans have access to the 
Internet, regardless of where they live--particularly since, although 
Internet penetration has grown in rural communities, a gap still exists 
between them and the suburban and urban communities.
  One way I will provide such incentive is to continue my support of 
universal service, although it may take a little bit different 
direction in the distribution. The nearly 100-year commitment Congress 
and this Nation have had to USF has been indispensable in providing the 
same opportunities for rural America to participate in the Nation's 
education and health care systems that exist for Americans in urban 
areas, and for every American to participate fully in the Internet 
economy.
  Just as rural electrification in the 1930s led to the surge in 
economic growth and raised the living standards across rural America, 
universal service plays the same role in the Internet era. We didn't 
get electricity on my farm until early in the 1950s. I can remember 
when you used to go to town and that electricity seemed like a pretty 
special thing. Had not the Government created the REC, or the rural 
electrics, I contend that out on the farm we would still be watching 
television by candlelight.

  Without universal service support, phone bills in rural areas across 
the country, such as Montana, would increase dramatically. Universal 
service also helps to ensure that schools and libraries receive access 
to the Internet at rates they can afford. Because of universal service, 
the Internet now reaches almost all school-age children, no matter 
where they live. Universal service helped link rural health facilities 
to urban medical centers, promoting telemedicine. My State of Montana 
is on the cutting edge of that. Many people in remote communities would 
not have access to health care just using the Internet. The all-
important issue in Montana is where these counties do not even have a 
doctor. I have 13 counties that have no physician.
  For those who say universal service no longer makes sense, or that it 
should be repealed or scaled back, I encourage them to visit my State 
and see the fund in action. As one official from a carrier serving a 
remote corner of Alaska recently commented, universal service is ``more 
than a line item on a bill. . . . [It] provides a link to the outside 
world.''
  That is not to say that changes do not need to be made in universal 
service. They do need to be made. It is a different world. Technologies 
are different and we must respond. As the length of time that new 
technologies emerge shortens, we must be able to deal with them. As 
consumers switch to new technologies such as wireless service, e-mail, 
voice over IP, universal service is slowly taking in less money every 
year. Therein lies the problem.
  At the same time, the amount of money we disburse is increasing. This 
situation is obviously not sustainable, nor is it acceptable to 
Congress.
  Additionally, we need to ensure the universal service is distributed 
where it is needed. The Senator from Alabama understands universal 
service and the impact it has on rural Alabama. In revising universal 
service to adapt to the changing technology landscape, it is essential 
to maintain the commitment levels to universal service programs to 
foster the continued availability of telecom and advanced services in 
rural communities, and to strengthen and improve the overall fund.
  My proposed legislation will speed up deployment of broadband in 
rural areas and preserve and improve universal service.
  Some things my bill seeks to do are to ensure that companies that 
receive universal service funds will invest in deployed broadband 
services; to ensure that universal service support contributions are 
assessed in a fair and competitively neutral manner; ensuring the 
integrity of the Schools and Libraries Program to deter waste, fraud, 
and abuse by strengthening the FCC's management and oversight, 
including imposing sanctions on applicants or vendors who repeatedly 
and knowingly violate the rules. That is what my bill does, in part. 
Lastly, improving the effectiveness of rural health care programs. It 
is unbelievable what we can do for rural health care when we can move 
massive amounts of information.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues to craft creative 
solutions to these issues that are so vital to our Nation's future. It 
is the 10th anniversary. It took us almost 50 years--in fact, a little 
over 50 years, to change the act in 1996. This time, we had to act a 
little bit quicker because emerging technologies wait for no man. They 
are there, they are being used, and we must deal with them as they 
emerge.
  I thank the Senator from Alabama for allowing me this little time and 
I look forward to working with my colleagues on the passage of the 
universal bill in this body.
  I yield the floor.
                                 ______