Electric Co-op Today

Citing electric cooperatives’ increasing reliance on broadband communications and on technology that allows telephone calls to be made over the Internet, NRECA has backed a proposal to extend outage reporting requirements to these services.

Electric co-ops and other utilities depend on reliable communications in times of emergency, NRECA told federal regulators. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

Reliable communications networks are critical to co-ops’ ability to provide safe and reliable electric service, particularly during emergencies, the association pointed out in a Nov. 21 letter to the Federal Communications Commission.

The FCC’s proposal [large file, 432 KB] would add providers of broadband and Voice Over Internet Protocol services to the list of those required to report outages, in order to ensure that “current and future 911 systems are as reliable and resilient as possible.” The commission noted that these providers not only carry a large volume of traffic, but serve as a “significant form of communication in times of crisis.”

“As users of these communications services during emergencies, electric co-ops will benefit from these improvements,” said Martha Duggan, NRECA senior principal, regulatory affairs.

“In light of the FCC’s consideration of voluntary reporting requirements, we felt it was important to express co-ops’ view to the commission that mandatory reporting will drive improvements more rapidly.”

Co-ops’ “remote and rugged service territories and low consumer density” pose unique communications challenges, NRECA emphasized. Meanwhile, the importance of broadband and VOIP is growing as co-ops increasingly adopt advanced technologies for better power quality and outage monitoring.

“We believe that extending reasonable outage reporting requirements to commercial providers of broadband and VOIP will lead to increased reliability and availability of these services without undue burden,” the association said.

Because co-ops and other electric utilities are subject to reliability reporting requirements, NRECA added, “We understand both the administrative burden as well as the benefits that such reports can bring.”

“To the extent commercial communications networks are more reliable and are available in times of emergencies, more utilities will engage more commercial carriers to serve their growing communications needs,” the association pointed out. “But utilities cannot and will not do so until they have greater confidence in the reliability of commercial services.”

Reporting requirements for VOIP and broadband providers is “a step in the right direction” to build this confidence, NRECA told the commission.

Tags: Broadband, Smart Grid, Telecom