Congressional USF Monies Concerns

FCC Chairman Pai recently responded to a letter by several Members of Congress that have concerns with the FCC transferring Universal Service Funds to the U.S. General Treasury. Chairman Pai reiterated that he is “fully committed to bridging the digital divide, and the Fund is an essential component of our strategy for accomplishing that goal.” Chairman Pai further stated that having USF monies in a private account provides additional accountability risks that the FCC is not willing to continue to take and argued that “…despite any suggestion to the contrary, moving the accounts to the U.S. Treasury will not allow fund monies to be used for any other purpose other than supporting the universal deployment of voice and broadband services…” 
 

In August 2017, Funds For Learning provided additional background information about this issue which can be viewed here. FCC Chairman Pai’s April 2018 USF letter can be viewed here.