================================================================= ALAWON Volume 5, Number 14 ISSN 1069-7799 March 22, 1996 American Library Association Washington Office Newsline In this issue: ALA PROVIDES ANALYSIS OF FCC PROCEEDING ON UNIVERSAL SERVICE URGENT ACTION NEEDED: INPUT NEEDED BY MARCH 29 FOR FCC FILING _________________________________________________________________ ALA PROVIDES ANALYSIS OF FCC PROCEEDING ON UNIVERSAL SERVICE The ALA Office for Information Technology Policy and the Washington Office provide the following analysis of the FCC's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Universal Service and an Urgent Request for information and comments to assist ALA in preparing comments for the FCC proceedings which are presently underway. ANALYSIS OF FCC PROCEEDING ON UNIVERSAL SERVICE NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING, FEDERAL-STATE JOINT BOARD ON UNIVERSAL SERVICE, CC DOCKET NO. 96-45 With the passage and signing of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, the FCC has begun proceedings on universal service which, for the first time in history, includes provisions that will provide discounted rates for libraries and schools. The American Library Association is preparing comments for the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM), Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service, CC Docket No. 96-45, due April 8, 1996. ALA is soliciting input from the library community to help make the strongest filing possible. Below is a brief analysis of the NPRM. The NPRM, issued March 8, 1996 consists of 10 sections: (Note: Numbers following each section refer to the relevant numbered paragraphs in the NPRM) 1. Introduction (1-2) 2. Goals and Principles of Universal Service Support Mechanisms (3-12) 3. Support for Rural, Insular, and High-Cost Areas and Low- Income Consumers (13- 70) 4. Schools, Libraries, and Health Care Providers (71-106) 5. Enhancing Access to Advanced Services for School, Libraries, and Health Care Providers (107- 111) 6. Other Universal Service Support Mechanisms (112-115) 7. Administration of Support Mechanisms (116-131) 8. Composition of the Joint Board (132-133) 9. Procedural Matters (134-144) 10.Ordering Clauses (145-151) Sections 2, 3, 4, and 5 are the most important sections pertaining to libraries. Section 2, while short, articulates seven major goals and principles underlying universal service support mechanisms, taken directly from Section 254 (b) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996: (1) Quality & Rates (2) Access to Advanced Services (3) Access in Rural and High Cost Areas (4) Equitable and Nondiscriminatory Contributions (5) Specific and Predictable Support Mechanisms (6) Access to Advanced Telecommunications Services for Schools, Health Care and Libraries (7) Additional Principles Significantly, Principle 6 explicitly directs access to advanced telecommunications services for schools and libraries as being an important principle for universal service. This is the first time such institutions have been made explicitly a part of universal service. Section 3 is of concern to the library community, because it deals with the definition of core universal services to be made available to all consumers, particularly those in rural, insular, and high-cost areas as well as low-income consumers. The definition of those core services will affect the ability of library patrons to have access to online services from their homes or other locations. Part of the core services definition deals with capabilities such as touch tone and single party-line access, and line quality issues, that would affect consumers' ability to use high speed modems. This section also deals with the time frame for redefining what constitutes "core services" as technology changes. IMPORTANT SECTION: Section 4 deals with telecommunications services provided at a discount to libraries, schools, and rural health care providers. (Initiated during the legislative process as the Snowe-Rockefeller-Kerrey-Exon provision.) It covers issues such as core telecommunications services, implementation, and support mechanisms for schools, libraries and health care providers. This section deals with what services, beyond those defined as core universal services under Section 3, should be designated as special services under universal service for schools, libraries, and health care providers. This section also addresses the issue of what discount mechanisms should be set up to make those special services available to these groups; what criteria should be used to determine how frequently the definition of special services should be reviewed to reflect future technological advances; and what types of requests and institutions will be eligible for discounts on these services. Section 5 goes beyond basic universal service capabilities defined in Section 3 and 4 and deals with providing access to schools, libraries, and health care providers of advanced telecommunications services. This section deals with the definition of advanced telecommunications services, who should be eligible for those services, and what mechanisms should be used to encourage deployment of advanced services to schools, libraries, and health care providers. Definitional issues of core, special, and advanced telecommunications services and the mechanisms that should be used to support them are clearly of interest to the library community. Other issues pertaining to universal service are also discussed in the NPRM and readers are encouraged to examine the document in more detail. As of the date of this document, initial comments are due to the FCC on April 8 with reply comments due on May 3. Questions or comments on the discussion presented here may be sent to OITP@ALAWASH.ORG. _________________________________________________________________ URGENT ACTION NEEDED: INPUT NEEDED BY MARCH 29 FOR FCC FILING With the passage and signing of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, the FCC has begun proceedings on universal service, which for the first time in history, includes provisions that will provide discounted rates for libraries and schools. The American Library Association is preparing comments for the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM), Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service, CC Docket No. 96-45* due April 8, 1996. We would appreciate the library community's assistance in this effort by asking them to reply to any or all of the queries below. Replies should be sent to REPLIES@ALAWASH.ORG no later than Friday, March 29, 1996 5:00 p.m. EST. In your replies, please refer to the specific question numbering used below. ALA urges your quick response to this request. This FCC docket is an important proceeding that needs maximum input from library advocates. For those who may be submitting comments directly to the FCC, ALA asks you to share copies of your submissions with the ALA Office for Information Technology Policy at the address or email listed below. *(A text copy of the NPRM document is available at ftp://ftp.fcc.gov/pub/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Notices/fcc96093.txt A WordPerfect copy can be retrieved from ftp://ftp.fcc.gov/pub/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Notices/fcc96093.wp.) 1. Examples of the types of network applications that libraries are or might be doing that require high bandwidth or other types of special resource requirements (i.e., support of branch library systems; access to multimedia sites; acting as Web site for multimedia community information; support for teleconferencing or distance learning; etc.). 2. Data on: a. Annual cost for these services: ISDN, 256Kb (partial T1), T1, T3 service. b. The effect of those costs on a given library's budget. Indicate type of library (public, school, academic, special) and also whether the library is located in a rural, urban, or inner city location. What effect would the above costs have on: i. the library's telecommunications costs; ii. the library's overall budget. (Would the library have to shift funds from other important areas to cover these costs?) 3. What is the overall financial outlook for libraries in your area? Is it likely that additional funding for the library will be available to provide additional telecommunications services? 4. Do you have examples of where wireless technologies would be of benefit to schools or libraries? 5. What considerations should go into determining the frequency with which the definition of Universal Service should be reviewed. Should it simply be time based? Should it look at market penetration factors of various technologies or content formats? Should it be more closely tied to functionalities that we wish to promote as a matter of policy (i.e., access to tele-radiology in all communities). 6. Examples of procedures in place to certify that libraries won't be reselling telecommunications services. 7. Examples of mission statements, activities, programs, etc. that show how cooperative multi-type networks in which libraries participate serve the public interest and convenience and qualify as using telecommunications services for "educational purposes." 8. Examples of places where patrons are accessing library catalogs, Web services, and other online services via modem. 9. Examples where librarians, school media specialists, or others are using modem access to enable them to provide information or other services from off-site locations. _________________________________________________________________ An irregular publication of the American Library Association Washington Office, 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, #403, Washington, DC 20004-1701, ; 202-628-8410 (V); 202-628-8419 (F). Contributors: J. Andrew Magpantay; Editor: Lynne E. Bradley . ALAWON is available free of charge, only in electronic form. To subscribe, send the message "subscribe ala-wo [your_firstname] [your_lastname]" to . ALAWON archives gopher://gopher.ala.org:70/11/alagophwashoff/alagophwashoffnewsline/; Web page http://www.ala.org/alawashingtonlhtml. All materials subject to copyright by the American Library Association may be reprinted for noncommercial purposes with appropriate credits. =================================================================