September 22, 2006 Mr. Milton Brown Re: Implementation and Administration of a Coupon Program for Digital-to-Analog Converter Boxes [Docket No.: 060512129-6129-01] Dear Mr. Brown: We respectfully share some thoughts and concerns about the proposed rules for the above referenced program (the ”Program”). The NTIA proposes that “[a]n eligible household address shall not be a post office box.” Council Tree believes that the NTIA may not have been aware that the U.S. Postal Service does not provide home delivery service on most of the approximately 300 Indian Reservations in the U.S. Nearly all of the 1.5 million, mostly poor, reservation residents depend on service to post office boxes to receive their mail. Similarly, a significant portion of the Alaska Native population live in remote rural locations that do not have the benefit of home postal delivery service, and rely on post office boxes for their mail service. Since we expect that these population segments will be amongst the most likely to request Program assistance, we suggest that the final Program rules allow for alternative methods of delivering the coupons to Indian Reservations and to Alaskan Native Villages. Sincerely,
Michael Brendzel Vice President Council Tree Communications, Inc. |
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