A. “affordable rates” means rates for basic service that promote universal service within a local exchange service area, giving consideration to the economic conditions and costs to provide service in the area in which service is provided;

B. “basic service” means service that is provided to a rural end-user customer that is consistent with the federal act;

C. “broadband infrastructure” means any cable or device used for high-capacity transmission over a wide range of frequencies that enables a large number of electronic messages to be transmitted or received simultaneously;

D. “cable service” means the transmission to subscribers of video programming or other programming service and subscriber interaction, if any, that is required for the selection or use of the video programming or other programming service;

E. “commission” means the public regulation commission;

F. “comparable carrier” means an eligible telecommunications carrier established prior to enactment of the Rural Telecommunications Act of New Mexico that has a similar number of access lines as an eligible telecommunications carrier established after enactment of that act;

G. “digital equity” means information technology needed for civic and cultural participation, employment, education, business and economic development, lifelong learning and access to essential services generally available to residents regardless of their racial grouping, socioeconomic status or cultural identity;

H. “digital inclusion” means access to and the ability to use information technologies;

I. “eligible telecommunications carrier” means an eligible telecommunications carrier as defined in the federal act;

J. “federal act” means the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996; K. “fund” means the state rural universal service fund;

L. “incumbent local exchange carrier” means a person that:

(1)     was designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier by the state corporation commission in Docket #97-93-TC by order dated October 23, 1997, or that provided local exchange service in this state on February 8, 1996; or

(2)     became a successor or assignee of an incumbent local exchange carrier; M. “incumbent rural telecommunications carrier” means an incumbent local exchange carrier that serves fewer than fifty thousand access lines within the state and has been designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier by the state corporation commission or the public regulation commission;

N. “local exchange area” means a geographic area encompassing one or more local communities, as described in maps, tariffs or rate schedules filed with the commission, where local exchange rates apply;

O. “local exchange service” means the transmission of two-way interactive switched voice communications furnished by a telecommunications carrier within a local exchange area;

P. “long distance service” means telecommunications service between local exchange areas that originate and terminate within the state;

Q. “private telecommunications service” means a system, including its construction, maintenance or operation for the provision of telecommunications service, or any portion of that service, by a person for the sole and exclusive use of that person and not for resale, directly or indirectly. For purposes of this definition, the person that may use the service includes any affiliates of the person if at least eighty percent of the assets or voting stock of the affiliates is owned by the person. If any other person uses the telecommunications service, whether for hire or not, the private telecommunications service is a public telecommunications service;

R. “public telecommunications service” means the transmission of signs, signals, writings, images, sounds, messages, data or other information of any nature by wire, radio, lightwaves or other electromagnetic means originating and terminating in this state regardless of actual call routing. “Public telecommunications service” does not include the provision of terminal equipment used to originate or terminate the service; private telecommunications service; broadcast transmissions by radio, television and satellite broadcast stations regulated by the federal communications commission; radio common carrier services, including mobile telephone service and radio paging; or cable service;

S. “statewide broadband plan” means the State of New Mexico Broadband Strategic Plan and Rural Broadband Assessment published by the department of information technology in June 2020; provided that, upon Senate Bill 93 of the first session of the fifty-fifth legislature becoming law, “statewide broadband plan” means the statewide broadband plan developed pursuant to that law; and

T. “telecommunications carrier” means a person that provides public telecommunications service.