The Senate Commerce Committee next week will mark up legislation designed to speed porting of phone numbers from local exchange carriers to wireless carriers and other rivals, Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) said Thursday. That move at the end of a number portability hearing came despite wireline, wireless carriers and cable industry claims that the FCC has the authority in needs to act.
The Association of Public Safety Communications Officials fired back at wireless carriers that told the FCC it should go slow in requiring tougher standards for E-911 location accuracy. In reply comments, APCO took particular exception to comments from at least two companies (CD July 9 p5) that said by requiring carriers to meet identification requirements measured on a public safety answering point (PSAP) basis, rather than through statewide averaging, while other rules are under development the FCC would be “putting the cart before the horse.”
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin late Wednesday began circulating on the 8th floor rules that promote roaming agreements between small and large wireless carriers. The order does not cap prices carriers can charge but does hold that roaming must be offered at just and reasonable rates, sources said. Sources said Martin means the order to deal completely with roaming complaints before the agency.
The monthly FCC agenda meeting is expected to occur July 31 or possibly a day earlier because at least one commissioner has a scheduling conflict. Chairman Kevin Martin circulated at least two orders for possible action at the meeting, a 189-page document on rules for the 700 MHz auction and one on carriers’ automatic roaming obligations. Tuesday marked 21 days before a July 31 meeting; by tradition commissioners get that many days to study orders before voting at a meeting. But the FCC has not posted the meeting date on its Web site. Martin originally had aimed for a meeting July 20.
The National Association of Broadcasters led the charge against a merger of XM and Sirius in comments at the FCC. The 58-page NAB filing called the case for rejecting the merger “simple and straightforward.” Diverse commenters lined for and against the proposed merger, many repeating arguments made at four Congressional hearings and in material already on file at the FCC.
The FCC should revise an April order on telecom carrier use of customer proprietary network information (CPNI) and other customer information (CD April 3 p10), The United States Telecom Association (USTelecom) and CTIA said in separate petitions for reconsideration. USTelecom said the order seems to assume, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), that carriers are at fault when a pretexter obtains protected information. CTIA took exception to a finding in the order that carriers inadequately protect CPNI.
The Media Access Project (MAP) objected at the FCC to the XM-Sirius merger, predicting more media consolidation if the merger is approved. Comments were due at the FCC Monday and were just starting to trickle in. MAP, which previously had not staked out a position, was joined by Prometheus Radio Project and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.
The New York Police Department wants wireless carriers’ success locating E-911 calls measure by public safety answering point (PSAP), not through statewide averaging as carriers prefer, the department told the FCC. The department cited public safety concerns that the agency usually gives significant weight.
The FCC should adjust any pending automatic roaming rules to go beyond voice to include data, said SouthernLINC Wireless. The carrier, a vigorous advocate of wider roaming responsibilities, filed a paper at the FCC this week based on arguments it made in May meetings with Wireless Bureau staffers.
Engineering studies show large areas in rural states where coverage by major wireless carriers is not an option, Alltel said in reply comments in an FCC docket advising the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service on longterm universal service reform. Meanwhile, AT&T provided updated recommendations on its proposal for a pilot program to pay for rural broadband deployment.