FCC Establishes Regulatory Assessment Fee for FY 2009

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The FCC released its schedule of annual regulatory fees for FY 2009. For Interstate Telecommunications Service Providers (“ITSPs”), the FCC adopted a fee factor of 0.00342 (or 0.342%), which reflects an increase over last year‘s fee factor of 0.00314 (or 0.314%).

The annual FCC regulatory fee applicable to ITSPs must be paid by all interstate wireline telecommunications providers and interconnected VoIP service providers. Although no due date has been established at this time, consistent with past practices, we anticipate the FCC will set a payment date sometime in September.

Historically, the FCC mailed pre-bills to licensees, including ITSPs, detailing the fees owed and filing obligations. Starting this year, the FCC will not be mailing any pre-bills.  Instead, the FCC will issue a Public Notice when annual regulatory fees have been calculated and are available on the FCC‘s electronic filing and payment system (“Fee Filer system”).  At that time, a licensee may login to the Fee Filer system and review its FY 2009 payment obligations.

DETAILS AND IMPORTANT REMINDERS

Payment Details

The FCC will not contact carriers directly about payment of regulatory fees. Instead, the FCC will likely issue a Public Notice in September with information about the regulatory fee due date and payment procedures.

Following the FCC‘s issuance of the Public Notice, clients are instructed to review their regulatory fee information posted in the online Fee Filer system (at https://www.fcc.gov/fees/feefiler.html) and, if undisputed, to pay the calculated amounts.

Regulatory fee payments must be accompanied by a FCC Registration Number (“FRN”) and FCC Form 159-E Remittance Advice Form. Form 159 is generated automatically from the Fee Filer system. Payment may be made by check, money order, credit card (less than $100,000.00), wire transfer, electronic check/ ACH debit from bank account or through the Customer Initiated Payment Program (CIP).

De Minimis Exemption

Entities whose total regulatory fee liability, including all categories for which payment is due, amounts to less than $10.00 are exempt from payment of the FCC’s regulatory fees.

Non-ITSP Regulatory Fees

In addition to the proposed ITSP fee factor, the FCC also imposes regulatory fees on other regulated service providers, including cable operators, submarine cable licensees, and broadcasters. Clients providing FCC licensed services other than, or in addition to, interstate telecommunications should consult the FCC‘s fee schedule or contact our firm to determine the applicable fees.

25% Late Payment Penalty

Clients are also reminded that the FCC will impose a significant penalty, equal to 25% of the regulatory fee owed, for any payments received after the due date. For example: paying a $10,000 regulatory fee even one (1) day late would yield a $2,500 late payment penalty. Failure to pay regulatory fees or late payment may lead to additional sanctions, fees, and charges and could result in the revocation of licenses and authorizations.

Questions about the FCC‘s proposed annual regulatory fee should be directed to Jonathan Marashlian, jsm@commlawgroup.com, or your assigned regulatory compliance consultant.

ATTORNEY ADVERTISING DISCLAIMER: This information may be considered advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. The determination of the need for legal services and the choice of a lawyer are extremely important decisions and should not be based solely upon advertisements or self-proclaimed expertise. No representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers

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