I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3850
To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to promote deployment of ad-
vanced services and foster the development of competition for the benefit
of consumers in all regions of the Nation by relieving unnecessary bur-
dens on the Nation’s two percent local exchange telecommunications
carriers, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 8, 2000
Mrs. CUBIN (for herself, Mr. GORDON, Mr. PICKERING, and Mr. BARRETT of
Wisconsin) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to promote de-
ployment of advanced services and foster the development
of competition for the benefit of consumers in all regions
of the Nation by relieving unnecessary burdens on the
Nation’s two percent local exchange telecommunications
carriers, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION. 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Independent Tele-
communications Consumer Enhancement Act of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:
(1) The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was
enacted to foster the rapid deployment of advanced
telecommunications and information technologies
and services to all Americans by promoting competi-
tion and reducing regulation in telecommunications
markets nationwide.
(2) The Telecommunications Act of 1996 spe-
cifically recognized the unique abilities and cir-
cumstances of local exchange carriers with fewer
than two percent of the Nation’s subscriber lines in-
stalled in the aggregate nationwide.
(3) Given the markets two percent carriers typi-
cally serve, such carriers are uniquely positioned to
accelerate the deployment of advanced services and
competitive initiatives for the benefit of consumers
in less densely populated regions of the Nation.
(4) Existing regulations are typically tailored to
the circumstances of larger carriers and therefore
often impose disproportionate burdens on two per-
cent carriers, impeding such carriers’ deployment of
advanced telecommunications services and competi-
tive initiatives to consumers in less densely popu-
lated regions of the Nation.
(5) Reducing regulatory burdens on two percent
carriers will enable such carriers to devote additional
resources to the deployment of advanced services
and to competitive initiatives to benefit consumers in
less densely populated regions of the Nation.
(6) Reducing regulatory burdens on two percent
carriers will increase such carriers’ ability to respond
to marketplace conditions, allowing them to accel-
erate deployment of advanced services and competi-
tive initiatives to benefit consumers in less densely
populated regions of the Nation.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to accelerate the deployment of advanced
services and the development of competition in the
telecommunications industry for the benefit of con-
sumers in all regions of the Nation, consistent with
the Telecommunications Act of 1996, by reducing
regulatory burdens on local exchange carriers with
fewer than two percent of the Nation’s subscriber
lines installed in the aggregate nationwide;
(2) to improve such carriers’ flexibility to un-
dertake such initiatives; and
(3) to allow such carriers to redirect resources
from paying the costs of such regulatory burdens to
increasing investment in such initiatives.
SEC. 3. DEFINITION.
Section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47
U.S.C. 153) is amended by adding at the end thereof the
following:
‘‘(53) TWO PERCENT CARRIER.—The term ‘two
percent carrier’ means a local exchange carrier with
fewer than two percent of the Nation’s subscriber
lines installed in the aggregate nationwide, within
the meaning of section 251(f)(2) and that meets the
requirements of section 251(h).’’.
SEC. 4. REGULATORY RELIEF FOR TWO PERCENT CAR-
RIERS.
Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 is
amended by adding at the end thereof a new Part IV as
follows:
‘‘PART IV—PROVISIONS CONCERNING TWO
PERCENT CARRIERS
‘‘SEC. 281. REDUCED REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS FOR
TWO PERCENT CARRIERS.
‘‘(a) COMMISSION TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT DIF-
FERENCES.—In adopting rules that apply to incumbent
local exchange carriers, the Commission shall adopt sepa-
rate and less burdensome regulatory, compliance, or re-
porting requirements, or exemptions from such require-
ments, or both, for two percent carriers that take into ac-
count the more limited resources available to such carriers