S. 1380: Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003

108th Congress · introduced 2003-07-09 · Science, Technology, Communications · Latest: By Senator McCain from Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation filed written report. Report No. 108-422.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2003-07-09 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Smith, Gordon H. [R-OR] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: By Senator McCain from Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation filed written report. Report No. 108-422. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003

Plain summary

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003 - Requires the Comptroller General to report to Congress on the need to reform the high cost support mechanism (with respect to universal telephone service) for rural, insular, and high cost areas. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in calculating Federal universal service support for eligible telecommunications carriers that serve such areas, to revise its support mechanism for high cost areas to provide support to each wire center in which the incumbent local exchange carrier's average cost per line exceeds the national average by such amount as the FCC determines appropriate for the purpose of ensuring the equitable distribution of universal service support throughout the United States. Requires: (1) the FCC to ensure that no State receives less Federal support than it would have received, up to ten percent of the total support distributed, under the FCC's previous support mechanism; and (2) the total amount of support for all States to be equal to the total support calculated under the support mechanism in existence before enactment of this Act. States that nothing in this Act shall affect the support provided to rural telephone companies.

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate without amendment), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate without amendment)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Smith, Gordon H. [R-OR] · 32 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: S. 1380, Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003 (2004-10-20); CBO cost estimate: S. 1380, Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003 (2004-10-20)

Cosponsors on this site

Mike Crapo (R-ID), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Patty Murray (D-WA)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate without amendment)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-108s1380.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/108/s>

Record fed-us-cong108-s1380 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong108 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong108