State Telecom Activities

摘要

The Georgia Public Service Commission should reverse a $5 fee imposed on about 785,000 staternresidents on the federal Lifeline program in late October (CD Oct 18 p18), consumer advocacy groupsrnurged the PSC in a joint statement Thursday (http://bit.ly/condemningGAPSC). Consumer Action, thernCommunity Action Partnership, League of United Latin American Citizens, Maryland Consumer RightsrnCoalition, National Consumers League and National Grange urged the PSC to “reverse this punitive, anticonsumerrnfee.” The new fee “flies in the face of the goals” of the Lifeline program, which was created tornensure that “qualifying Americans have the opportunities and security that phone service brings,” said therngroups. The federal Lifeline program doesn't use funds from the states, and any possible savings “fromrnsqueezing low-income consumers out of the program” wouldn't impact state-level taxpayers, it said. Nornother state charges its Lifeline consumers this fee, and the monthly fee “of this sort” was rejected by thernFCC when it was considered, said the groups. There's no factual basis or evidence that this kind of feernwill result in reduced fraud or less abuse of the program, or that it will result in better sales practice conductrnon behalf of the Lifeline providers, said the letter. It said the National Lifeline Accountability Databasernis going online in five states this month to help carriers identify and resolve duplicate claims for Lifeline-rnsupported service, and Georgia will begin participating in the database in January. The coalitionrnurged other states to not follow Georgia in “attacking the pocketbooks of low-income Americans in thisrnmisguided fashion.” The Georgia PSC didn't respond to request for comment.