Four associations representing rural telcos gave a tentative thumbs-up to a draft rewrite of the Telecom Act released by House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R.-Tex.).

The bill establishes that broadband regulation is the job of the federal government, not states while also classifying video services provided over broadband networks the same way. The four associations—the National Telecommunications Cooperative Association, the Independent Telephone and Telecommunications Alliance, the Organization for the Protection and Advancement of Small Telecommunications Companies and Western Rural Telecommunications Association—issued a statement saying they had to conduct a comprehensive review of the proposal, but were happy to see inclusion of universal service and reciprocal compensation issues.

Speaking for all four groups, Shirley Bloomfield, vice president of government affairs for NTCA said in a prepared statement, “There are simply too many outstanding policy questions that must be resolved sooner rather than later. At the very least, the circulation of this draft at this time signals the chairman’s recognition of that notion and serves as a starting point for meaningful debate.”

All four groups have been fighting to preserve universal service funding as well as inter-carrier compensation, which can make up the bulk of rural telcos’ revenue.

“We are pleased to see that the draft recognizes the need for communications providers to live up to their universal service and reciprocal compensation responsibilities, though we would like to see these guidelines even more definitive,” Bloomfield said. “Our objective going forward will be to ensure these draft provisions are strengthened from the perspective of rural carriers and consumers to fully ensure we are able to maintain a nationwide integrated communications infrastructure that has proven so critical to our economic and national security.”