Computer & Communication Industry Association

Broadband Revenues Fund Universal Service at a Low, Stable Contribution Factor

PublishedOctober 15, 2026
Written By
  • Trevor Wagener

The Universal Service Fund (USF) contribution base is shrinking, leading to a spiraling contribution factor assessed on the contribution base. Broadband revenues are roughly eight times the size of the shrinking, existing telecommunications base and continue to grow. Bringing broadband revenues into the contribution base would fully fund universal service over the next decade at a stable factor between 4 and 5 percent under the baseline assumptions, ending the spiral in which an ever-smaller tax base pays an ever-larger tax rate year after year.

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Research
October 11, 2026

Freshwater Strategy UK Data Regulation Survey

Freshwater Strategy has conducted a quantitative survey of 113 senior decision-makers at British technology and data-intensive businesses, looking at both the compliance cost and broader economic o...

  • Digital Economy
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Research
October 6, 2026

The Anti-Brussels Effect in Digital Competition Policy and the DMA’s Fading Appeal As a Global Model

The European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) is losing appeal as a global model for digital competition policy, with governments increasingly pursuing narrower approaches. Of the 14 jurisdictio...

  • Digital Economy
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Research
September 23, 2026

The $103,265 H-1B Fee Could Cost the U.S. Treasury More than $32 Billion over a Decade

DHS proposes a $103,265 fee on every cap-subject H-1B petition, 78 percent of median H-1B pay, and projects $8.8 billion a year by assuming employers keep filing 85,000 petitions. DHS's own docket ...

  • Immigration
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Research
September 8, 2026

The Supply Chain Costs of the FCC’s 2026 Covered List Regime

The FCC's 2026 Covered List regime now bars routers, drones, inverters, and robots made anywhere abroad, yet no agency has estimated the cost. This study finds domestic-only production-location det...

  • Digital Economy
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