December Launch Announced for Database

On Wednesday, the FCC announced that the National Lifeline Accountability Database (“NLAD”) will be ready to accept subscriber information from ETCs by December 2013. The NLAD is the national database designed to prevent the provision of more than one Lifeline account per household, also referred to as duplicates.  ETCs will be required to submit data at this point, beginning with Arkansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Oklahoma, and Washington.  The FCC has asked USAC to provide additional guidance regarding the format and timing for transmitting subscriber data, which includes:

1. The subscriber’s full name;
2. Full residential address;
3. Date of birth;
4. Last four digits of the subscriber’s Social Security number or Tribal Identification number, if the subscriber is a member of a Tribal nation and does not have a Social Security number;
5. The telephone number associated with the Lifeline service;
6. The date on which the Lifeline service was initiated;
7. The date on which the Lifeline service was terminated, if it has been terminated;
8. The amount of support being sought for that subscriber; and
9. The means through which the subscriber qualified for Lifeline.

We will provide additional information once USAC has released its guidance.