A ruling by the 5th Circuit Court continues to allow the FCC to added those so-called fees to your phone bill.
If you look closely to your phone bill, you may notice a charge called 'Universal Service Fund,' or USF. Effectively, it was a fee established in the mid 1990's to fund a buildout of the internet to rural areas.
The fee falls under the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission. And FCC officials are appointed, not elected. And considering the fee keeps going up, it irks Will Hild of Consumer's Research.
"By handing it over to the FCC and giving them 'carte blanche,' to charge whatever they want, they have bacically insulated the decision makers from any kind of accountability" said Hild. "None of these people face elections, nor do they face the customers."
But keep the wallet open, the 5th Circuit has shut down the petition to hear the case. Meaning the decisions to charge additional feeds to users will continue to be made by the FCC, not elected officials.
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