S 1127 IS

To stimulate the deployment of advanced telecommunications services in rural areas, and for other purposes.

June 28, 2001

Mr. BROWNBACK (for himself and Mr. ENZI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

To stimulate the deployment of advanced telecommunications services in rural areas, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Rural Broadband Deployment Act of 2001'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

(a) FINDINGS- Congress makes the following findings:

(1) Consumers living in rural areas require access to advanced telecommunications services in order to be full participants in the American economy.

(2) The current rate of deployment of advanced telecommunications services in rural areas is inadequate and must be accelerated.

(3) Certain regulations issued by the Federal Communications Commission make the deployment of advanced telecommunications services cost prohibitive in rural areas.

(b) PURPOSE- It is the purpose of this Act to stimulate the deployment of advanced telecommunications services in rural areas by exempting carriers serving such areas from regulations that make the deployment of such services cost prohibitive.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON REGULATING ADVANCED TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES IN RURAL AREAS.

(a) IN GENERAL- Part 1 of Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:

`SEC. 232. ADVANCED TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES IN RURAL AREAS.

`(a) IN GENERAL- The provisions of this Act shall not apply to advanced telecommunications service deployed by a carrier in a rural area.

`(b) RURAL AREA DEFINED- In this section, the term `rural area' means any place or territory, whether incorporated or unincorporated, that--

`(1) is located outside of a Metropolitan Statistical Area (as determined by the Office of Management and Budget); and

`(2) has a population of less than 50,000.'.

(b) ADVANCED TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE DEFINED- Section 3 of that Act (47 U.S.C. 153) is amended--

(1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (51) as paragraphs (2) through (52), respectively; and

(2) by inserting before paragraph (2) the following new paragraph (1):

`(1) ADVANCED TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE- The term `advanced telecommunications service' means any service that consists of or includes the offering of a capability to transmit, using a packet-switched or successor technology, information at a rate that is generally not less than 384 kilobits per second in at least one direction. Such term does not include special access service offered through dedicated transport links between a customer's premises and an interexchange carrier's switch or point of presence.'.

END