Terms and definitions

Terms used in this part have the following meanings:

Act. The term “Act” refers to the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.

Administrator. The term “Administrator” or “USAC” shall refer to the Universal Service Administrative Company that is an independent subsidiary of the National Exchange Carrier Association, Inc., and that has been appointed the permanent Administrator of the federal universal service support mechanisms.

Community anchor institutions. For the purpose of high-cost support, “community anchor institutions” refers to schools, libraries, health care providers, community colleges, other institutions of higher education, and other community support organizations and entities.

Competitive eligible telecommunications carrier. A “competitive eligible telecommunications carrier” is a carrier that meets the definition of an “eligible telecommunications carrier” below and does not meet the definition of an “incumbent local exchange carrier” in § 51.5 of this chapter.

Contributor. The term “contributor” shall refer to an entity required to contribute to the universal service support mechanisms pursuant to § 54.706.

Eligible telecommunications carrier. “Eligible telecommunications carrier” means a carrier designated as such under subpart C of this part.

High-cost support. “High-cost support” refers to those support mechanisms provided pursuant to subparts D, J, K, L, M, and O of this part.

Incumbent local exchange carrier. “Incumbent local exchange carrier” or “ILEC” has the same meaning as that term is defined in § 51.5 of this chapter.

Information service. “Information service” is the offering of a capability for generating, acquiring, storing, transforming, processing, retrieving, utilizing, or making available information via telecommunications, and includes electronic publishing, but does not include any use of any such capability for the management, control, or operation of a telecommunications system or the management of a telecommunications service.

Interconnected VoIP Provider. An “interconnected VoIP provider” is an entity that provides interconnected VoIP service, as that term is defined in section 9.3 of these rules.

Internet access. “Internet access” includes the following elements:

(1) The transmission of information as common carriage; and

(2) The transmission of information as part of a gateway to an information service, when that transmission does not involve the generation or alteration of the content of information, but may include data transmission, address translation, protocol conversion, billing management, introductory information content, and navigational systems that enable users to access information services, and that do not affect the presentation of such information to users.

Interstate telecommunication. “Interstate telecommunication” is a communication or transmission:

(1) From any State, Territory, or possession of the United States (other than the Canal zone), or the District of Columbia, to any other State, Territory, or possession of the United States (other than the Canal Zone), or the District of Columbia,

(2) From or to the United States to or from the Canal Zone, insofar as such communication or transmission takes place within the United States, or

(3) Between points within the United States but through a foreign country.

Interstate transmission. “Interstate transmission” is the same as interstate telecommunication.

Intrastate telecommunication. “Intrastate telecommunication” is a communication or transmission from within any State, Territory, or possession of the United States, or the District of Columbia to a location within that same State, Territory, or possession of the United States, or the District of Columbia.

Intrastate transmission. “Intrastate transmission” is the same as intrastate telecommunication.

LAN. “LAN” is a local area network, which is a set of high-speed links connecting devices, generally computers, on a single shared medium, usually on the user's premises.

Mobile competitive eligible telecommunications carrier. A “mobile competitive eligible telecommunications carrier” is a carrier that meets the definition of a “competitive eligible telecommunications carrier” in this section and that provides a terrestrial-based service meeting the definition of “commercial mobile radio service” in § 51.5 of this chapter.

Qualifying competitor. A “qualifying competitor” is a facilities-based terrestrial provider of residential fixed voice and broadband service access meeting or exceeding 3 Mbps downstream and 768 kbps upstream.

Rate-of-return carrier. “Rate-of-return carrier” shall refer to any incumbent local exchange carrier not subject to price cap regulation as that term is defined in § 61.3(ee) of this chapter.

Rural incumbent local exchange carrier. “Rural incumbent local exchange carrier” is a carrier that meets the definitions of “rural telephone company” and “incumbent local exchange carrier,” as those terms are defined in § 51.5 of this chapter.

Rural telephone company. “Rural telephone company” has the same meaning as that term is defined in § 51.5 of this chapter.

State commission. The term “state commission” means the commission, board or official (by whatever name designated) that, under the laws of any state, has regulatory jurisdiction with respect to intrastate operations of carriers.

Technically feasible. “Technically feasible” means capable of accomplishment as evidenced by prior success under similar circumstances. For example, preexisting access at a particular point evidences the technical feasibility of access at substantially similar points. A determination of technical feasibility does not consider economic, accounting, billing, space or site except that space and site may be considered if there is no possibility of expanding available space.

Telecommunications. “Telecommunications” is the transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of information of the user's choosing, without change in the form or content of the information as sent and received.

Telecommunications carrier. A “telecommunications carrier” is any provider of telecommunications services, except that such term does not include aggregators of telecommunications services as defined in section 226 of the Act. A telecommunications carrier shall be treated as a common carrier under the Act only to the extent that it is engaged in providing telecommunications services, except that the Commission shall determine whether the provision of fixed and mobile satellite service shall be treated as common carriage. This definition includes cellular mobile radio service (CMRS) providers, interexchange carriers (IXCs) and, to the extent they are acting as telecommunications carriers, companies that provide both telecommunications and information services. Private mobile radio service (PMRS) providers are telecommunications carriers to the extent they provide domestic or international telecommunications for a fee directly to the public.

Telecommunications channel. “Telecommunications channel” means a telephone line, or, in the case of wireless communications, a transmittal line or cell site.

Telecommunications service. “Telecommunications service” is the offering of telecommunications for a fee directly to the public, or to such classes of users as to be effectively available directly to the public, regardless of the facilities used.

Tribal lands. For the purposes of high-cost support, “Tribal lands” include any federally recognized Indian tribe's reservation, pueblo or colony, including former reservations in Oklahoma, Alaska Native regions established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (85 Stat. 688) and Indian Allotments, see § 54.400(e), as well as Hawaiian Home Lands—areas held in trust for native Hawaiians by the state of Hawaii, pursuant to the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, July 9, 1921, 42 Stat 108, et seq., as amended, and any land designated as such by the Commission.

Unsubsidized competitor. An “unsubsidized competitor” is a facilities-based provider of residential fixed voice and broadband service that does not receive high-cost support.

Website. The term “website” shall refer to any websites operated by the Administrator in connection with the schools and libraries support mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, the high cost mechanism, and the low income mechanism.

Wire center. A wire center is the location of a local switching facility containing one or more central offices, as defined in the Appendix to part 36 of this chapter. The wire center boundaries define the area in which all customers served by a given wire center are located.

For Federal Register citations affecting § 54.5, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.govinfo.gov.