Our Work, Reports & Filings

NEW NETWORKS INSTITUTE BIBLIOGRAPHY 1985-2020

 2020 Reports, Filings, Articles

  • NEW REPORT Solve the Digital Divide: Halt the Cross-Subsidies in the Verizon NY 2019 Annual Report, August 24, 2020
  • On March 13th, 2020, our challenge of the FCC, IRREGULATORS v FCC, was a win for the American public. The DC Court of Appeals made it clear that the states are now independent to devise a new set of accounting requirements and not use the FCC’s formulas.
  • On June 8th, 2020, Verizon also filed a Motion with the NY Public Service Commission to hide, (they call it ‘redact’), basic financial and business data.
  • On June 30th, 2020, the IRREGULATORS filed comments to block Verizon NY’s Motion and are now calling for investigations.
  • On July 20th, 2020, NY Department of Public Service determined that the information we requested was confidential.
  • On August 5th, 2020 we also filed with the FCC in the $9 billion 5G plan, pointing out that the FCC never examined the wireless cross-subsidies.
  • On August 5th, 2020, we also filed with the FCC  “The FCC must start serious audits and investigations into the actual expenses for the backhaul services and halt all of the cross-subsidies that are now in place with 5G wireless, and the harms to local service’.

We summarized our filing and what was redacted and why it matters:

IRREGULATORS vs FCC: was decided on March 13th, 2020. It was a big win for consumers. The DC Court of Appeals made it clear that the States are now independent and do not have to rely on the FCC Cost Accounting Rules.

REPORT SERIES: THE DIGITAL DIVIDE BY DESIGN   

  • THE “BIG FREEZE” PROCEEDING — We have filed in multiple FCC proceedings over the FCC’s accounting rules.
  • DESCRIPTION: Verizon, AT&T et al., with the help of the FCC, created the Digital Divide by “freezing” a federal accounting formula to match the year 2000– 18 years ago.  The FCC has never audited the financial books for 19 years, and has never fixed the harms that the Freeze caused.
  • On December 17th, 2018 the FCC decided to extend this “FREEZE’ until 2024 –6 more years. (It had intended to keep the Freeze for 15 more years.)

THE IRREGULATORS ARE APPEALING THIS DECISION. 

This is what we filed. The FCC never addressed any specific claim presented, including entire reports to document the failure of the FCC’s rules and how they created the Digital Divide. We have called for investigations of the harms caused by the accounting rules ,multiple times.

  • FILING:  Comments filed in “The Big Freeze“ Docket 80-286 and FCC 18-99 -FURTHER NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING
  •  FILED WITH COMMENTS: REPORT 1:  Did AT&T, Verizon, CenturyLink & the FCC Intentionally Create the Digital Divide?
  • FILED AS REPLY COMMENTS:  REPORT 2: Verizon New York 2017 Annual Report: An Analysis of Cross-Subsidies and Customer Overcharging
  • DESCRIPTION: This report, based on the Annual Report shows that there is a utility and that it is hemorrhaging money because of the FCC.
  • MANIPULATION OF THE ACCOUNTING OF ACCESS LINES: THE USTELECOM  PETITION FOR FORBEARANCE
  • FILED AS COMMENTS:  REPORT 3: Bell Access Line Accounting Manipulation 1984-2018
  • Description: Verizon, AT&T, CenturyLink, and their association, USTelecom, with the help of the FCC, have manipulated the basic accounting of access lines, and have removed or hidden 80% of all lines, including all Business Data Services, (special access) DSL, competitor lines, FiOS, U-Verse, all of the wires to the cell sites or WiFi hot spots, alarm circuits, and this has been done to reinforce a claim that the utility networks are unprofitable.

FCC Filings and Related Reports

New Networks Institute & the IRREGULATORS filed in over 35 separate FCC  proceedings and created “Fixing Telecom” series.

  •  New Report: Solving Net Neutrality: We Found a Fatal Structural Flaw in Every FCC Proceeding”, February 26th, 2018
Partial List of the Proceedings We Filed In:
  • Net Neutrality Internet Order –Restoring Internet Freedom WC 17-108
  • Section 706 —Inquiry Concerning Deployment of Advanced Telecom Capability to All Americans GN 17-199
  • Shut off the Copper Proceedings —Accelerating Wireline Broadband Deployment by Removing Barriers to Infrastructure Investment   Report and Order, Declaratory Ruling, and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking – WC Docket No. 17-8
  • Technology Transitions, GN Docket No. 13-5
  • AT&T Petition to Launch a Proceeding Concerning the TDM-to-IP Transition, GN Docket No. 12-353
  • Wireless Replacement of Wired Services Wireless Infrastructure NPRM WT Docket Nos. 17-79 and 15-180
  • FCC Cost Accounting Rules Review of Part 32 Uniform System of Accounts Docket 14-130
  • Jurisdictional Separations and Referral to the Federal-State Joint Board CC Docket No. 80-286
  • Business Data Services (Special Access)   Docket No.16-143;WC Docket No. 05-25;

FCC and State Filings. 

VERIZON NEW YORK: EXAMINING THE FINANCIAL SHELL GAME

In July 2018, Verizon New York and the NY state Public Service Commission settled and closed the investigation that had started in 2015. Estimated to be worth 0-0 million, Verizon NY is required to upgrade 32000 lines of fiber in unserved areas as well as maintain the existing copper networks that are not being upgraded, that has been left to deteriorate over the last 2 decades. (https://inboundrem.com)

PREVIOUS REPORTS:  FIXING TELECOM REPORTS: 2015-

Over the last decade, New Networks Institute and the IRREGULATORS have created a series of research reports that were filed at the FCC as part of proceedings as well as at the NY Public Service Commission. We have already documented the harms of this ‘big freeze’ based on the Verizon New York Financial Reports.

REPORTS AND FILINGS, 2010-

These are the research reports which help to create the Verizon New York investigation and eventual settlement in July 2018.