Menu

compiled by Annie Cunningham

Folks who live out in the country could soon have their phone service choices cut. American Farm Bureau Infrastructure Specialist Dave Salmonsen said debate over renewal of the 1996 Telecommunications Act is raising concerns among rural residents.

"Just in the last few weeks we've had a court decision, activity by the Federal Communications Commission (and) some Congressional hearings all pointing to the concern that rural America may be shut out of the benefits of the new telecommunications technologies that are coming down the line," he said.

Salmonsen said this is because the 1996 Telecommunications Act has fallen under attack. The law that allowed more phone competition is up for reauthorization next year.

"What's happening now is the bigger companies have gone to court, and they're ratcheting up the pressure on Congress, trying to get rid of that part of the Telecommunications Act and basically remonopolize the phone industry," he said

Salmonsen said without that law, those phone companies would likely hike the prices to rural customers and offer fewer services.

"We have enough infrastructure problems to overcome, but telecommunications is basically a way to jump over all the remoteness of rural America (and) bring you into the modern business community, and we don't want to be shut out of that," Salmonsen said. "The 1996 law has been good. There's been competition. It's held down phone rates and had the promise of offering more and better services to people, especially in the rural areas of the country where with the lack of density, there’s just not enough subscribers, the big companies don't want to service them. So other companies are moving to fill the niche."

For the business that rural Farm Bureau members are engaged in, phone service costs are higher, and Farm Bureau wants the competition in there to make sure that phone service rates stay down.

"And we also want that service in there so that in the future they can get the internet services they need, the broadband, the new telecommunication technologies that other businesses have access to; we don't want rural America to be shut out," Salmonsen said.