476.102  Universal service.
  1.  The commission shall initiate a proceeding to preserve universal service such that it shall be maintained in a competitively neutral fashion. As a part of this proceeding, the commission shall determine the difference between the cost of providing universal service and the prices determined to be appropriate for such service.
  2.  The commission shall base policies for the preservation of universal service on the following principles:
  a.  A plan adopted by the commission should ensure the continued viability of universal service by maintaining quality services at just and reasonable rates.
  b.  The plan should define the nature and extent of the service encompassed within any entities’ universal service obligations.
  c.  The plan should establish specific and predictable mechanisms to provide competitively neutral support for universal service. Those mechanisms shall include a nondiscriminatory mechanism by which funds to support universal service shall be collected, and a mechanism for disbursement of support funds to eligible subscribers, either directly to those subscribers, or to the subscriber’s provider of local exchange services chosen by the subscriber.
  d.  The plan should be based on other principles as the commission determines are necessary and appropriate for the protection of the public interest, convenience, and necessity and consistent with the purposes of this section.
95 Acts, ch 199, §13; 2018 Acts, ch 1160, §20; 2024 Acts, ch 1170, §369
Referred to in §476.1B
Code editor directive applied