A wireless infrastructure order set for a vote at the FCC's Sept. 26 commissioners' meeting takes a “balanced approach” by allowing local governments to retain some autonomy over their reviews of small-cell deployments in rights of way while also streamlining the process, Commissioner Brendan Carr said Tuesday in a speech at the Indiana State House. NATOA officials raised concerns about the coming action during their meeting last week, we previously reported.

A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated one part of the FCC’s decision easing regulation of the business data service rates of major incumbent telcos. The St. Paul, Minnesota-based panel heard the case in May and asked few questions then (our report here). The court’s sole quibble was on TDM transport.

President Donald Trump directed U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to consider raising the third round of Trade Act Section 301 tariffs to 25 percent from 10 percent, the USTR and others confirmed Wednesday afternoon.

New York Public Service commissioners voted 3-0 to revoke the state's 2016 conditional approval of Charter Communications’ buy of Time Warner Cable, directing the acquirer to submit a transition plan within 60 days. At a Friday special session, commissioners also voted 3-0 for an order directing PSC counsel to begin a civil enforcement case against Charter in New York Supreme Court seeking civil financial penalties for past failures.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld FCC reinstatement of the UHF discount, denying anti-consolidation groups’ petition for review because they didn’t show sufficient standing, according to a judgment (in Pacer) issued Wednesday morning. Some had thought the FCC might lose the case, based on oral argument, but standing was always a question.

With FCC members having unanimously approved a hearing designation order on Sinclair buying Tribune, the agency said Wednesday evening that the HDO will be released the next day. That was despite the companies changing their plan earlier Wednesday. Some of the divestitures that would have gone to broadcasters linked to Sinclair would instead be sold to others once buyers were found.

With "serious concerns" on Sinclair buying Tribune, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is asking commissioners to OK a draft order to designate, for an administrative law judge hearing, issues involving some proposed divestitures. “Based on a thorough review of the record," Pai said Monday morning, "the evidence we’ve received suggests that certain station divestitures that have been proposed to the FCC would allow Sinclair to control those stations in practice, even if not in name, in violation of the law."

The draft FCC hearing designation order for an administrative law judge hearing on issues involving some proposed divestitures in Sinclair's planned buy of Tribune is getting majority support from commissioners, we're told. Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said she voted to OK the HDO, shortly after Chairman Ajit Pai announced he had circulated it. Commissioner Brendan Carr also is voting yes, an official said.

President Donald Trump chose Judge Brett Kavanaugh, 53, of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Monday night to be his nominee to replace retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court.

For Disney's $71.3 billion deal to buy much of 21st Century Fox, DOJ said it would require the would-be acquirer to divest 22 regional sports networks. In a settlement agreed to by Disney, the Antitrust Division filed suit Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Justice announced. "To streamline agency clearance, Disney agreed to divest the 22 RSNs rather than continue with the Antitrust Division’s ongoing merger investigation." Smaller cable operators and others recently said they were concerned about such RSN concentration.