Lawmakers, Past FCC Leaders Urge Supreme Court to Uphold USF
In all, 29 lawmakers and eight former FCC commissioners signed the briefs.
Jake Neenan

WASHINGTON, Jan. 20, 2025 – A bipartisan group of nearly 30 lawmakers from both chambers of Congress urged the Supreme Court to uphold the Universal Service Fund last week.
“The Fifth Circuit’s wholesale dismantling of the Universal Service Fund would have disastrous consequences for millions of Americans that have come to rely on this assistance,” the lawmakers, led by Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., wrote in a Jan. 16 amicus brief. “And as Members of Congress, amici have seen the immense benefits that these programs have provided in the communities we represent—especially for those in low-income and rural areas who depend on this support as their only means of connecting to the Internet or maintaining phone service.”
The $8.1 billion USF, a subsidy program run by the Federal Communications Commission, buoys programs supporting rural broadband networks and internet discounts for low-income households, schools and libraries, and healthcare centers. It has been funded since the 1990s by fees on interstate voice revenue, which get calculated and collected by the Universal Service Administrative Company, a nonprofit the FCC set up for the purpose.
After a string of unsuccessful legal challenges to the fund by conservative nonprofit Consumers’ Research, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals broke with other federal courts and ruled the fund unconstitutional in July. Judges said the law standing up the fund had too little guidance, and the FCC’s delegation to USAC was improper, finding the combination of those two factors—without addressing either one individually—illegally took taxing power away from Congress. The case is before the Supreme Court after an FCC appeal.
Some of the lawmakers pushing justices to affirm the fund’s legal footing have been part of a group working to modernize the fund for more than a year. It has generally been considered in need of reform to be sustainable as the voice revenue tapped for funding is decreasing.
“But these concerns do not erase the Commission’s extensive record of faithfully (and successfully) exercising its delegated authority within the bounds Congress has established,” the lawmakers wrote. “Nor do they justify upending telecommunication access for millions of Americans, schools, libraries, and health care providers.”
Widespread support
A total of 19 amicus briefs came in Thursday, from a broad array of entities including state and national telecom industry groups, state and Tribal governments, rural businesses and community groups, consumer advocates, and others. All but one, a law firm that didn’t weigh in on the crux of the case, urged justices to reverse the Fifth Circuit ruling.
Former FCC commissioners and USAC leadership were also among the filers. The commissioners come from both parties and include Mignon Clyburn, Tom Wheeler, Richard Wiley, and five others.
“While Amici have differing views on many regulatory issues, they share the view that the decision below misunderstands the FCC’s role in discharging its statutory responsibilities to advance universal service,” the former commissioners wrote of the Fifth Circuit decision. “Amici also share the view that allowing the decision below to stand would undermine important universal-service programs that help rural and other under-served communities enjoy the benefits of ubiquitous advanced communications services.”
The former commissioners argued that, in their experience, the agency had interpreted the Communications Act as limiting its ability to fund certain efforts through USF, and had exercised close control over USAC.
A brief from Consumers’ Research is due Feb. 11.