Senate Commerce ACP Amendment Imperils Plan for Broadband Act: Cruz

The Senate Commerce Committee’s surprise adoption Wednesday of an amendment to the Proper Leadership to Align Networks for Broadband Act (S-2238) that would allocate $7 billion in stopgap funding for the FCC’s lapsed affordable connectivity program likely imperils chamber passage of that measure, lawmakers and lobbyists told us. Debate over the pro-ACP amendment and a proposal that attached $3.08 billion to fully fund the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program also signaled continued friction among panel members over the Spectrum and National Security Act (S-4207).

Senate Commerce’s ACP action occurred amid program backers’ lingering perception that Congress lacked the appetite or ability to revive it this year (see 2406200057). Senate Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee Chairman Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., punctuated the malaise, saying Tuesday night that his subpanel’s pending FY 2025 FCC-FTC funding bill wouldn’t include stopgap ACP money. “We just don’t have the capacity within the annual discretionary funding accounts to do something on the scale” of providing ACP funding, he told us. Senate Appropriations is set to mark up the FCC-FTC funding bill Thursday.

Senate Commerce approved S-2238 and two other telecom bills on voice votes: the Rural Broadband Protection Act (S-275) and Network Equipment Transparency Act (S-690). The panel also approved a slate of AI-focused measures (see 2407310042).

Senate Commerce ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told us after the meeting that S-2238 “is not going to pass" in the full chamber with the pro-ACP amendment attached. Senate Commerce voted 14-12 along party lines to approve the proposal, which mirrors the ACP Extension Act (HR-6929/S-3565) that allocates $7 billion for the lapsed program in FY 2024 without changing its scope and rules. The underlying S-2238 and House-passed companion HR-4505 would require the Biden administration to develop a national broadband strategy. The House approved HR-4505 in May (see 2405160052) as part of the NTIA Reauthorization Act (HR-4510).

“The Democrats wanted a show vote, but that’s not going to pass [S-2238] along,” Cruz told us. “I don't see any path for the ACP to be extended without very significant reforms, and as it stands there are no reforms.” Sens. Peter Welch, D-Vt., and JD Vance of Ohio, now the Republican vice presidential nominee, unsuccessfully sought to attach language from HR-6929/S-3565 earlier this year to the FAA Reauthorization Act (see 2405010055). Vance wasn’t at the Senate Commerce meeting and didn’t exercise proxy votes on S-2238 or the ACP amendment.

Welch offered the ACP amendment after Senate Commerce voice-approved a proposal from Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., to attach the rip-and-replace-focused Supporting National Security with Spectrum Act (S-4049) to S-2238. S-4049 would offset the additional rip-and-replace funding by authorizing that the FCC reauction 197 AWS-3 licenses that Dish and affiliated designated entities returned to the commission last year (see 2403220056). Lawmakers made dueling claims about whether Schmitt filed the proposal with enough notice before the meeting.

Meeting Drama

Senate Commerce Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., unsuccessfully tried convincing Schmitt to withdraw his amendment. She promised Schmitt she would allow a vote on his amendment as part of a potential September markup of her S-4207 or on the floor if the panel is able to advance that measure. Cantwell wanted to prevent consideration of S-2238 from becoming “a big proxy fight on so many of the spectrum issues” that led the panel to postpone consideration of S-4207 four times during May and June (see 2406170066).

Schmitt countered that S-2238 is “a bill that’s moving” and “we don’t get amendment votes on the floor ever unless they’re sure to fail.” The spate of recent Senate Commerce markup postponements has meant “an individual member has very little recourse to advocate for things that actually have broad support,” he said. S-2238 lead sponsor Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Communications Subcommittee ranking member John Thune, R-S.D., were among others who spoke in favor of Schmitt’s amendment.

Welch and Senate Communications Chairman Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., argued Senate Commerce must adopt the ACP amendment if they also attached the rip-and-replace language to S-2238. “Those of us who support the ACP include a lot of folks who [also] support rip and replace,” Welch said: “We're not going to get one without the other.” Lujan said the ACP proposal should also “be included in that same bipartisan spirit of us working together to ensure these programs get put in place.”

Welch argued ACP could “ride on the revenues” the proposed AWS-3 reauction could generate in response to concerns from Senate Commerce Republicans that his proposal didn’t include a funding source. Cruz rejected Welch’s claim and convinced Republicans to vote against the amendment.

Competitive Carriers Association President Tim Donovan praised Senate Commerce for including funding for ACP and rip and replace in S-2238. “Both Chambers of Congress must act as soon as possible to secure our networks and preserve connectivity for millions of Americans,” he said. The Affordable Broadband Campaign, Benton Institute, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, National Lifeline Association and the Pew Charitable Trusts also lauded the panel.