ACT NOW TO PRESERVE CONSUMER PROTECTIONS AND ACCESS FOR ALL
July 9, 2004

The "VoIP Regulatory Freedom Act of 2004," introduced by Senator John Sununu, is tentatively set for markup by the Senate Commerce Committee on July 20th. If passed as is, this bill would deal a serious blow to consumer protection and accessibility in the IP-enabled era. The VOICE Coalition urges you to take action to stop this from happening.

What does the Sununu bill say?

The bill categorizes VOIP as an “information” service, severely restricting any type of regulation from being imposed. If it is passed, the following consumer protections would be at risk:

Universal Service. VoIP providers would not be required to contribute directly to the universal service fund. This fund provides access to telephone service to residents in rural high-cost areas and low income consumers, and it is the funding mechanism for the E-rate.

Public Safety, Reliability, and Security. The provision of 911 and enhanced 911 services, reliability and security would not be required. They are all voluntary provisions.

Accessibility. Standards of accessibility by customers with disabilities would be voluntary for providers of VoIP services, leaving it to the industry to develop their own guidelines. Important provisions such as Telecommunications Relay Services would be optional.

To read the whole bill, see the website.

CONSUMER CONCERNS MUST BE HEARD NOW!

What can you do?

Visit/contact members of the Senate Commerce Committee to express support for the extension of social obligations to VoIP. They need to know how this legislation would affect your constituency. For a complete Committee contact list, visit the website .

Circulate this information to your network of members and/or others in the public interest community to enlist their support.

Join APT’s VOICE (Voice Over Internet Consumer Equity) Coalition and stay informed. For more information, visit APT’s VoIP web page and read the attached VoIP fact sheet. You can also read the APT’s comments to the FCC (pdf).

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