Wisconsin Administrative Code › Public Service Commission › Chapter PSC 160 - Universal Service Support Funding And Programs › Section PSC 160.18 - Collection of universal service fund monies

Current through June 24, 2024
(1)Each assessed
			 provider shall pay the amount of its assessment to the universal service fund.
			 Assessed providers include all telecommunications providers operating within
			 Wisconsin, except those with intrastate gross telecommunications revenues of
			 less than $200,000 during the preceding calendar year.
(2)The commission may require a person other
			 than a telecommunications provider to contribute to the universal service fund,
			 if after notice and opportunity for hearing the commission determines that the
			 person is offering nontraditional broadcast services in competition with a
			 telecommunications service for which a contribution is required under this
			 chapter.
(3)Telecommunications
			 providers shall be assessed on the basis of their gross intrastate operating
			 revenues from telecommunications services.
(4)Each telecommunications provider shall
			 submit information, on a schedule and in a format set by the commission, on the
			 telecommunications provider's gross intrastate telecommunications revenues
			 during the preceding calendar year.
(5)The percentage liability for a given
			 telecommunications provider is the ratio of that provider's intrastate gross
			 telecommunications revenues to the sum of the intrastate gross
			 telecommunications revenues for all contributory providers.
(6)A given telecommunications provider shall
			 be assessed the percentage liability of that provider under sub. (5) multiplied
			 by the total annual amount to be collected. For monthly billings, the annual
			 assessment amount shall be divided into 12 equal parts. For quarterly billings
			 the annual amount shall be divided into four equal parts.
(7)Telecommunications providers who provided
			 telecommunications service in Wisconsin for only part of the preceding calendar
			 year shall be assessed based on actual revenues for the year, without
			 adjustments to annualize that revenue.
(8)Failure to receive a bill is not grounds
			 for relief from a telecommunications provider's liability for
			 assessment.
(9)
(a) The commission may bill
			 telecommunications providers for the assessments as calculated in sub. (6) on a
			 monthly, quarterly or annual basis. A telecommunications provider shall pay its
			 monthly, quarterly or annually billed portion of its calculated assessment
			 within 30 days after the bill is mailed. A telecommunications provider that has
			 not paid within 30 days after the bill is mailed shall be considered to have
			 not paid under s.
			 196.218(8),
			 Stats., and the commission may collect the bill using the process described in
			 s.
			 196.85(3),
			 Stats.
(b)
1. A telecommunications provider that
			 disagrees with a new assessment amount as calculated under sub. (6) shall
			 object within 30 days after the bill using the new assessment amount is mailed.
			 The commission shall consider an objection to an assessment amount made more
			 than 30 days after the first bill using the new assessment amount is mailed as
			 an objection to the assessment amount beginning with the most recent assessment
			 bill.
Note:
For example, if a new assessment amount is
				billed on October 1 and an objection is filed on October 15, the objection will
				be to the amount on all bills from October 1 on. If an objection is filed on
				November 15, the objection will be to the amount on all bills from November 1
				on.
2. The making of an
			 objection and commission action regarding that objection shall follow the
			 process described in s.
			 196.85(4),
			 Stats.
3. Notwithstanding subd. 1.,
			 if the objection is due to a mistake in calculating or reporting data, and the
			 mistake results in a provider overpaying, then the commission shall reimburse
			 the provider the amount overpaid even if the objection is made more than 30
			 days after the first bill using a new assessment amount.