Telecom Analysts Urge Congress to Fund the USF Annually

WASHINGTON, Aug 31, 2024 – Congress needs to take control of a major federal subsidy program that keeps rural areas, anchor institutions, and low-income Americans connected to the Internet, according to two telecom policy experts.

In a new analysis, economists Scott Wallsten and Gregory Rosston said they want the $8.1 billion Universal Service Fund to become an annual congressional spending measure and reformed programmatically in ways that can steeply reduce the size of the fund without causing a reduction in service.

"Funding the [USF] program from general government revenues, as Congress did with the Affordable Connectivity Program, is more efficient and less regressive than the current system," said Wallsten and Rosston in their analysis posted Aug. 28 on the Technology Policy Institute website.