The U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous but narrow opinion Friday that reimbursement requests submitted to the E-rate program, administered by the Universal Service Administrative Co., can be considered “claims” under the False Claims Act (FCA). The decision in Wisconsin Bell v. U.S. reaffirmed the ruling of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. Elena Kagan, one of three justices appointed by a Democratic president, wrote the opinion.
The outlook is uncertain about whether President Donald Trump will attempt to fire Democratic members of the FCC, as the administration asserts its authority over “so-called independent” agencies (see 2502190073). It’s unclear whether the FCC and its Democratic members, Anna Gomez and Geoffrey Starks, are in Trump’s sights, but no one is taking anything for granted from the current administration, industry experts said. Gomez is emerging as the more outspoken critic of the regime under Chairman Brendan Carr, especially on media items (see 2502200023).
American Action Forum’s Jeffrey Westling urged Capitol Hill on Thursday not to abandon hopes of mandating reallocation of some federal agencies’ spectrum as part of a budget reconciliation package. His argument came as DOD backers' lingering objections to reapportioning any military-controlled bands still threaten to derail that push (see 2502180058). Meanwhile, Spectrum for the Future pushed back Wednesday night against what it called “misleading claims” during a Senate Commerce Committee hearing (see 2502190068) that an FCC auction of DOD-controlled midband frequencies could generate $100 billion in revenue.
FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez condemned the FCC investigations of broadcast networks as "weaponization" of the FCC's authority, while the Center for American Rights called for the agency to investigate diversity initiatives at CBS.
Satellite interests, led by SpaceX, are hungry for more spectrum for direct-to-device (D2D) service and are expected to seek access to the upper C band, which the FCC will examine in a notice of inquiry set for a vote at Thursday's open meeting (see 2502060062). Elon Musk, who is playing a huge role in the new Donald Trump administration and heads SpaceX, could influence what the FCC does, industry experts note.
Communications Daily is tracking the lawsuits below involving appeals of FCC actions.
Wireless carriers must add spectrum and deepen their fiber commitment, New Street’s Jonathan Chaplin said Wednesday. “Carriers should buy every piece of spectrum they can get their hands on … because we’re going to run out at some point relatively soon,” he told a Broadband Breakfast webinar. “There’s a scramble for both categories of assets, and they’re both imperative.”
President Donald Trump’s latest norm-busting executive order (see 2502180069) directing the FCC, among other "so-called independent" agencies and executive branch bodies, to submit regulatory actions to the White House before they're published in the Federal Register could complicate Brendan Carr’s push to be an active chairman at the FCC, industry experts said Wednesday.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, seemed during and after a Wednesday panel hearing to be eyeing an escalation of his long-simmering battle with DOD and its most vociferous congressional supporters, who oppose legislation mandating reallocation of spectrum bands for 5G use, which they say could impact military incumbents. Cruz touted his 2024 Spectrum Pipeline Act during the hearing as the preferred language for an airwaves title in a budget reconciliation package, as expected (see 2502180058). Some witnesses strongly praised Cruz's proposal. Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., and many panel Democrats criticized it.
Consumers’ Research is getting support from other right-of-center groups as it pushes a legal theory at the U.S. Supreme Court that poses a challenge to the USF's future. SCOTUS will hear FCC v. Consumers' Research on March 26, challenging the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ 9-7 en banc decision invalidating how the USF program is funded (see 2501090045).