3 AAC 53.340 - Universal service surcharge

(a) A public utility that provides intrastate telecommunications service to the public, or to those classes of users as to be effectively available to the public for a fee, shall pay a universal service surcharge to the AUSF. The public utility must pay the surcharge on its annual gross revenues that are generated from end users on the following intrastate telecommunications services and charges:

(1) cellular telephone and paging services;

(2) mobile radio services;

(3) operator services;

(4) personal communications services (PCS);

(5) special access service;

(6) wide area telecommunications service (WATS);

(7) toll-free service;

(8) 900 service;

(9) message telephone service (MTS);

(10) private line service;

(11) telex;

(12) telegraph;

(13) video services;

(14) satellite service;

(15) resale of intrastate services;

(16) pay phone services;

(17) local exchange services;

(18) the network access fee assessed on end users in accordance with section 109 of the Alaska Intrastate Interexchange Access Charge Manual, adopted by reference in 3 AAC 48.440;

(19) interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

(b) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, a public utility providing intrastate telecommunications services in the form of open video systems (OVS), cable leased access, or direct broadcast satellite (DBS) services is not required to pay the universal service surcharge.

(c) A public utility providing a service for which a universal service surcharge payment is due shall provide to the administrator a verified accounting of its annual gross revenues from intrastate end users. The accounting shall be submitted on a form designated by order of the commission as the AUSF Worksheet. The public utility shall submit the completed AUSF Worksheet to the administrator twice a year. The first AUSF Worksheet is due March 31 of each year, containing data for the prior calendar year. The second AUSF Worksheet is due September 1, of each year, containing data for the six-month period from January 1 through June 30 for the current calendar year. If a public utility's payments to the AUSF in a calendar year would be less than $100, that public utility is not required to submit a payment or the AUSF Worksheets for that calendar year, unless the public utility has received universal service support from the AUSF in that calendar year.

(d) By October 1 of each year, the administrator shall calculate a proposed budget for the estimated total amount of the universal service support payment that will be needed from the AUSF for the following calendar year and for the administrative costs anticipated to be approved by the commission. The administrator shall recommend the annual universal service surcharge factor for the following year to cover the proposed budget. The universal service surcharge factor is calculated based on the ratio of the total estimated amount of disbursements for the AUSF to the total annual gross revenues from intrastate end users subject to the universal service surcharge. The administrator shall recommend to the commission adjustments to the universal service surcharge factor on a quarterly basis, as necessary, as described in 3 AAC 53.330. The recommended universal service surcharge factor and adjustments must be approved by the commission, before implementation by the administrator. The universal service surcharge factor is capped at and may not exceed 10 percent.

(e) A public utility subject to the universal service surcharge under this section shall remit its monthly universal service surcharge payment to the administrator of the AUSF within 15 days after the end of each calendar month.

(f) The administrator must hold universal service surcharge payments required from the AUSF in excess of disbursements for a current month in a low-risk interest bearing account and use the excess for disbursements under 3 AAC 53.300 - 3 AAC 53.399 in a following month.

Notes

3 AAC 53.340

Eff. 1/10/99, Register 149; am 1/30/99, Register 149; am 7/31/2011, Register 199; am 3/1/2017, Register 221, April 2017; am 12/20/2018, Register 228, January 2019; am 7/1/2023, Register 247, October 2023 (EMERGENCY); am 9/15/2023, Register 247, October 2023

Authority:AS 42.05.141

AS 42.05.145

AS 42.05.151

AS 42.05.431

AS 42.05.711

AS 42.05.800

AS 42.05.840