I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2929 

To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish a program 

to promote the availability and sustainability of robust rural broadband 

networks in high cost rural areas, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 22, 2019 

Mr. MULLIN (for himself and Mr. PETERSON) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To require the Federal Communications Commission to establish a program to promote the availability and sustainability of robust rural broadband networks in high 

cost rural areas, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rural Broadband Net5 work Advancement Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Internet data demands are increasing, and 

2 video streaming services represent a significant por3 tion of the growth of internet traffic today. 

4 (2) Broadband network operators must invest 

5 in additional capacity to accommodate that data and 

6 other traffic generated by third-party online services 

7 leveraging underlying broadband networks. 

8 (3) These edge providers depend upon the avail9 ability of such robust underlying network capacity to 

10 deliver their services to users. 

11 (4) The costs associated with broadband infra12 structure upgrades are significant and growing to 

13 keep pace with the online services that depend on 

14 these underlying networks. 

15 (5) The challenges of investing in and maintain16 ing such robust network capacity are even greater in 

17 rural areas due to the significant distances over 

18 which networks must be built and operated and the 

19 limited densities of the rural communities to be 

20 served. 

21 (6) All persons and entities that utilize and le22 verage networks should share equitably in sup23 porting the availability and sustainability of rural 

24 broadband networks. 


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1 SEC. 3. PROMOTING AND SUSTAINING ROBUST RURAL 

2 BROADBAND INFRASTRUCTURE. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

5 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis6 sion shall complete a rulemaking that establishes a 

7 program under which each edge provider, except 

8 those described under paragraph (3), that has data 

9 transported across the network of a rural broadband 

10 provider in a high cost rural area shall pay a net11 work user fee on an equitable and nondiscriminatory 

12 basis to advance and sustain broadband-capable net13 works and broadband internet service in high cost 

14 rural areas. 

15 (2) SINGLE EFFECTIVE DATE FOR PAYMENTS

16 MADE.—Any rule adopted pursuant to paragraph (1) 

17 shall have the same effective date for payments 

18 made to each rural broadband provider. 

19 (3) EXEMPTIONS.—The following edge pro20 viders are exempt from the requirement to pay a 

21 network user fee described in paragraph (1): 

22 (A) DE MINIMIS AMOUNTS.—An edge pro23 vider or class of edge providers whose assess24 ment of network user fees is determined to be 

25 de minimis by the Commission. 


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1 (B) GENERAL EXEMPTIONS.—Any State, 

2 local, or Tribal government, elementary school 

3 or secondary school (as such terms are defined 

4 in section 8101 of the Elementary and Sec5 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

6 7801)), library, hospital, or individual. 

7 (C) SMALL BUSINESS.—Any small business 

8 concern, as described in section 3 of the Small 

9 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632). 

10 (b) CALCULATION OF LIMITED COSTS, COLLECTION

11 OF NETWORK USER FEES, AND DISTRIBUTION OF NET12 WORK USER FEES.— 

13 (1) CALCULATION OF NETWORK USER FEES.— 

14 (A) CALCULATION OF LIMITED COSTS.— 

15 The rulemaking under subsection (a) shall in16 clude a calculation of costs associated with 

17 transmission by a rural broadband provider of 

18 edge provider data that are not already recov19 ered through user rates that are reasonably 

20 comparable to those in urban areas, Federal or 

21 State universal service support, or other Fed22 eral or State programs aimed at promoting 

23 rural broadband deployment or sustaining rural 

24 broadband networks. 


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1 (B) COSTS DESCRIBED.—The costs de2 scribed in subparagraph (A) include the fol3 lowing: 

4 (i) Costs associated with the initial 

5 deployment of a rural broadband network. 

6 (ii) Costs associated with ongoing op7 eration and maintenance of such network. 

8 (iii) Costs associated with the ongoing 

9 delivery of services to users via that net10 work (including costs of transit and trans11 port between rural service areas and urban 

12 or suburban interconnection points). 

13 (C) UPDATE OF COSTS.—Not less fre14 quently than every 2 years after the date on 

15 which the rulemaking is completed under sub16 section (a)(1), the calculation of costs under 

17 subparagraph (A) shall be updated. 

18 (2) COLLECTION OF NETWORK USER FEES.— 

19 The rulemaking under subsection (a) shall include a 

20 mechanism through which the costs calculated under 

21 paragraph (1) are collected from edge providers 

22 under the program on a quarterly basis. The Com23 mission shall ensure that the assessment of network 

24 user fees on each edge provider is reasonably reflec25 tive of the relative proportion of that edge provider’s 


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1 data transmitted on eligible rural broadband pro2 viders’ networks serving high cost rural areas. 

3 (3) DISTRIBUTION OF NETWORK USER FEES.— 

4 The rulemaking under subsection (a) shall provide 

5 for distribution on an equitable and nondiscrim6 inatory basis to rural broadband providers of net7 work user fees collected from edge providers under 

8 the program on a quarterly basis. The Commission 

9 shall ensure that the distribution of network user 

10 fees to each rural broadband provider is reasonably 

11 reflective of the relative proportion of edge provider 

12 data as measured and transmitted on that rural 

13 broadband provider’s network and by considering 

14 other factors such as regional cost disparities, nat15 ural disasters, and Federal emergencies. 

16 (c) ELIGIBILITY FOR COMPENSATION.—The rule17 making under subsection (a) shall include the following: 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for receipt of 

19 network user fees collected and distributed under the 

20 program, an entity— 

21 (A) shall be a rural broadband provider; 

22 and 

23 (B) shall submit any other information 

24 reasonably prescribed by the Commission as 

25 needed to determine the appropriate level of 


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1 network user fees to be collected and the equi2 table distribution of such collected amounts as 

3 compensation. 

4 (2) USE OF FUNDS.—A rural broadband pro5 vider that receives compensation through network 

6 user fees may only use such funds in connection 

7 with any of the following: 

8 (A) The deployment of a rural broadband 

9 network. 

10 (B) Ongoing operation and maintenance of 

11 a rural broadband network. 

12 (C) The delivery of broadband internet 

13 services to users in a high cost rural area. 

14 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

16 means the Federal Communications Commission. 

17 (2) EDGE PROVIDER.—The term ‘‘edge pro18 vider’’ means a provider that— 

19 (A) provides a service over the internet— 

20 (i) for which the provider requires the 

21 user to subscribe or establish an account in 

22 order to use the service; 

23 (ii) that the user purchases from the 

24 provider of the service without a subscrip25 tion or account; 


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1 (iii) by which a program searches for 

2 and identifies items in a database that cor3 respond to keywords or characters speci4 fied by the user, used especially for finding 

5 particular sites on the World Wide Web; or 

6 (iv) by which the user divulges sen7 sitive user information; and 

8 (B) includes a service described in sub9 paragraph (A) that is provided through a soft10 ware program, including a mobile application. 

11 (3) HIGH COST RURAL AREA.—The term ‘‘high 

12 cost rural area’’ means any area of the United 

13 States that is not contained in an incorporated city 

14 or town with a population in excess of 20,000 inhab15 itants. 

16 (4) NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION.—The term 

17 ‘‘nonprofit organization’’ means an organization that 

18 is described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Rev19 enue Code of 1986 and is exempt from taxation 

20 under section 501(a) of such Code. 

21 (5) RURAL BROADBAND PROVIDER.—The term 

22 ‘‘rural broadband provider’’ means an entity pro23 viding broadband in a high cost rural area pursuant 

24 to any terrestrial technology, including fixed or mo25 bile wireless or wireline networks, if such entity— 


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1 (A) provides broadband service in a high 

2 cost rural area to fewer than 100,000 locations 

3 or subscribers served within a State; and 

4 (B) meets the service obligations on speed, 

5 latency, and usage allowances as determined by 

6 the Commission. 

7 (6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean8 ing given that term in section 3 of the Communica9 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153). 

10 (e) UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUND.—The network user 

11 fees collected by this Act may not be used to support, con12 tribute, or fund universal service under section 254 of the 

13 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254). 

14 (f) PROHIBITION.—An edge provider may not charge 

15 a fee or require any other payment from a rural 

16 broadband provider as an explicit or implicit offset to net17 work user fees. 

18 (g) ENFORCEMENT BY THE FEDERAL COMMUNICA19 TIONS COMMISSION.— 

20 (1) POWERS OF COMMISSION.—Except as other21 wise provided, the Commission shall enforce this Act 

22 in the same manner, by the same means, and with 

23 the same jurisdiction, powers, and duties pursuant 

24 to the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 15 

25 et seq.). 


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1 (2) PENALTIES, PRIVILEGES, AND IMMUNI2 TIES.—Any person who violates this Act shall be 

3 subject to the penalties and entitled to the privileges 

4 and immunities provided in the Communications 

5 Act. 

Æ 


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