Who pays for the USF?
A4: As required by the 1996 Telecom Act, all telecommunications carriers providing international and interstate service make contributions to the Universal Service Fund. Consumers may notice a “Universal Service” line item on their telephone bills. This line represents a charge by a telephone company to recover its mandated contributions to the USF. USAC collects these contributions and then allocates the proceeds to the four USF programs: High Cost, Low Income, Rural Health Care, and Schools and Libraries.
