Steve Goodman has been practicing telecommunications law since 1983, when he began working at the Federal Communications Commission. He now represents a wide variety of clients, including telecommunications equipment manufacturers, satellite service providers and international carriers.
When Congress injected competition into the communications market in its landmark Telecommunications Act of 1996, Congress recognized that the previous system of hidden subsidies was incompatible with a competitive marketplace.
Congress required the Federal Communications Commission to create a transparent, fair and non-distortive subsidy program, which became the Universal Service Fund. Over the last twenty-two years, the USF program has been expanded, updated and reformed significantly to reflect the significant changes in telecommunications technology.