Special access reform is the secret to job growth, NoChokePoints says

A coalition that wants special access reform released a study Tuesday that linked its recommendations to job growth. 

The NoChokePoints coalition study, commissioned by Sprint, found that special access reform would increase national output by up to $37.7 billion and create up to 176,000 new U.S. jobs. 

Special access is a concern for wireless providers such as T-Mobile and Sprint who have to pay bigger companies to connect their cell towers to wireline networks.

The U.S. economy "cannot afford the special access drag on our growth and recovery. The FCC must act. Period," coalition spokeswoman Maura Corbett said.

NoChokePoints, which includes Sprint, T-Mobile, and others who depend on high-capacity broadband lines, are pushing the FCC to move on special access reform after collecting data on the issue.

"How many times do we need to be reminded of how important special access lines are to the national economy before the FCC stops ‘studying’ and starts acting?” Corbett said. “The FCC has in its hands the power to create positive economic growth, and it needs to use it.”

Major phone providers argue that there isn't a need to overhaul special access policies. AT&T's Bob Quinn said Tuesday that the NoChokePoints study "fails as have all of their past studies" in part because lowering rates "will result in less broadband infrastructure investment, not more."