Terms Used In CFR > Title 31 > Subtitle B > Chapter V > Part 592 > Subpart C - General Definitions

• Act: refers to the Communications Act of 1934, as amended. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
• community anchor institutions: refers to schools, libraries, health care providers, community colleges, other institutions of higher education, and other community support organizations and entities. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Database: is a n electronic system, with associated functions, processes, policies and procedures, to facilitate the detection and elimination of duplicative support, as directed by the Commission. See 47 CFR 54.400
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• economic unit: consists of all adult individuals contributing to and sharing in the income and expenses of a household. See 47 CFR 54.400
• eligible resident of Tribal lands: is a "qualifying low-income consumer" as defined in paragraph (a) of this section, living on Tribal lands. See 47 CFR 54.400
• Eligible telecommunications carrier: means a carrier designated as such under subpart C of this part. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Embezzlement: In most states, embezzlement is defined as theft/larceny of assets (money or property) by a person in a position of trust or responsibility over those assets. Embezzlement typically occurs in the employment and corporate settings. ^{Source: OCC}
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Forgery: The fraudulent signing or alteration of another's name to an instrument such as a deed, mortgage, or check. The intent of the forgery is to deceive or defraud. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• High-cost support: refers to those support mechanisms provided pursuant to subparts D, J, K, L, M, and O of this part. See 47 CFR 54.5
• household: is a ny individual or group of individuals who are living together at the same address as one economic unit. See 47 CFR 54.400
• Income: means gross income as defined under section 61 of the Internal Revenue Code, 26 U. See 47 CFR 54.400
• interLATA service: includes both interLATA telecommunications services and interLATA information services. See 47 CFR 53.3
• Internet access: includes the following elements:

  (1) The transmission of information as common carriage; and

  (2) The transmission of information as part of a gateway to an information service, when that transmission does not involve the generation or alteration of the content of information, but may include data transmission, address translation, protocol conversion, billing management, introductory information content, and navigational systems that enable users to access information services, and that do not affect the presentation of such information to users. See 47 CFR 54.5

• Interstate telecommunication: is a communication or transmission:

  (1) From any State, Territory, or possession of the United States (other than the Canal zone), or the District of Columbia, to any other State, Territory, or possession of the United States (other than the Canal Zone), or the District of Columbia,

  (2) From or to the United States to or from the Canal Zone, insofar as such communication or transmission takes place within the United States, or

  (3) Between points within the United States but through a foreign country. See 47 CFR 54.5

• Intrastate telecommunication: is a communication or transmission from within any State, Territory, or possession of the United States, or the District of Columbia to a location within that same State, Territory, or possession of the United States, or the District of Columbia. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Legacy: A gift of property made by will.
• mobile competitive eligible telecommunications carrier: is a carrier that meets the definition of a "competitive eligible telecommunications carrier" in this section and that provides a terrestrial-based service meeting the definition of "commercial mobile radio service" in § 51. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• National Verifier: is a n electronic and manual system with associated functions, processes, policies and procedures, to facilitate the determination of consumer eligibility for the Lifeline program, as directed by the Commission. See 47 CFR 54.400
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• own: means to own an equity interest (or the equivalent thereof) of more than 10 percent. See 47 CFR 53.3
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
• Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
• qualifying assistance program: means any of the federal or Tribal assistance programs the participation in which, pursuant to § 54. See 47 CFR 54.400
• qualifying low-income consumer: is a consumer who meets the qualifications for Lifeline, as specified in § 54. See 47 CFR 54.400
• Recourse: An arrangement in which a bank retains, in form or in substance, any credit risk directly or indirectly associated with an asset it has sold (in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles) that exceeds a pro rata share of the bank's claim on the asset. If a bank has no claim on an asset it has sold, then the retention of any credit risk is recourse. ^{Source: FDIC}
• Rural incumbent local exchange carrier: is a carrier that meets the definitions of "rural telephone company" and "incumbent local exchange carrier" as those terms are defined in § 51. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• state commission: means the commission, board or official (by whatever name designated) that, under the laws of any state, has regulatory jurisdiction with respect to intrastate operations of carriers. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• telecommunications carrier: is a ny provider of telecommunications services, except that such term does not include aggregators of telecommunications services as defined in section 226 of the Act. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Telecommunications channel: means a telephone line, or, in the case of wireless communications, a transmittal line or cell site. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Toll blocking service: is a service provided by an eligible telecommunications carrier that lets subscribers elect not to allow the completion of outgoing toll calls from their telecommunications channel. See 47 CFR 54.400
• Toll control service: is a service provided by an eligible telecommunications carrier that allows subscribers to specify a certain amount of toll usage that may be incurred on their telecommunications channel per month or per billing cycle. See 47 CFR 54.400
• Tribal lands: include any federally recognized Indian tribe's reservation, pueblo or colony, including former reservations in Oklahoma, Alaska Native regions established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (85 Stat. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Tribal lands: include any federally recognized Indian tribe's reservation, pueblo, or colony, including former reservations in Oklahoma; Alaska Native regions established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (85 Stat. See 47 CFR 54.400
• unsubsidized competitor: is a facilities-based provider of residential fixed voice and broadband service that does not receive high-cost support. See 47 CFR 54.5
• Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.