Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, plans to file a Congressional Review Act resolution next week to undo a July 2024 FCC order that lets schools and libraries use E-rate support for off-premises Wi-Fi hot spots and wireless internet services (see 2407180024), a Cruz spokesperson said Thursday. The E-rate CRA and two unrelated “measures are forthcoming,” the spokesperson added. Cruz has repeatedly opposed proposals expanding E-rate’s scope to pay for off-campus hot spots (see 2307310063). The 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals tossed Maurine and Matthew Molak's challenge to the July order (see 2409260046) but is still reviewing another case the couple brought against the FCC’s 2023 declaratory ruling (docket 23-60641) clarifying that Wi-Fi on school buses is an educational purpose eligible for E-rate funding. Lobbyists said Cruz’s E-rate CRA resolution may not be congressional Republicans’ only bid to undo an FCC rule enacted during the administration of outgoing Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said during a Tuesday American Petroleum Institute event that he and other Republicans “are scrubbing right now to determine what is eligible” for CRA action.

Telecom infrastructure vendors in mature 5G markets like North America will face "a critical pivot" this year, as operators' capital spending plateaus because of completed 5G rollouts, ABI Research said Tuesday. In a white paper, ABI said vendors also will find themselves competing with specialized AI companies for operators' technology budgets. The result will be strategic partnerships between infrastructure companies and AI-focused firms, offering telecommunications network expertise with AI capabilities. ABI said AI-enhanced personal computers will become the new normal in 2025, moving from premium to a standard market feature. In addition, the U.S. and Europe will realize this year that onshoring their semiconductor manufacturing and building self-sufficient local supply chains will require far more time and resources than initially projected. 2025 will become an inflection point for multi-protocol adoption in smart home devices, with manufacturers learning that no single wireless technology can address modern connected home requirements. Companies like Samsung, Apple, and Amazon will expand their whole-home coverage strategies, embedding combinations of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth into mainstream devices like TVs, soundbars and displays. But don't expect to see industrial IoT users flocking to private 5G in 2025. Instead, they will rely on 4G or noncellular connectivity technology, ABI said. It predicted 2025 will see the launch of Amazon's Kuiper commercial service, providing competition for SpaceX, and the 3rd Generation Partnership Project's Release 19 should come out this year, enabling new satellite communications technologies.

The FCC issued a consumer alert, an enforcement advisory and a public notice warning about a spoofed mortgage relief call campaign in all 50 states it calls “Green Mirage.” The agency has classified the campaign as a consumer communications information services threat. The Enforcement Bureau “applies this classification to heighten awareness of these threat actors among our law enforcement partners and industry stakeholders,” said the public notice. Under the scheme, callers phone homeowners posing as their mortgage lender, threaten foreclosure but then offer relief if the homeowner makes payments that go to the scammer, the agency said. “The use of the real mortgage lender’s caller ID number, along with knowledge of the homeowner’s personal information, creates a persuasive guise of legitimacy,” the FCC’s public notice said.

The FCC and National Domestic Violence Hotline (NDVH) have signed a memorandum of understanding creating “a formal partnership dedicated to supporting survivors of domestic violence,” said an agency news release Monday. “This partnership will focus on creating resources and training materials to ensure that survivors are aware of their rights and can access the support they need,” it said. “By working together to provide resources, training, and outreach, we can empower survivors to access the essential communication tools they need to rebuild their lives,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel in the release. Under the MOU, the FCC and the NDVH will collaborate on guides to help domestic violence survivors use the agency’s line separation rules and emergency communications support services. The FCC “will educate The Hotline’s staff on relevant rules and services,” and the NDVH “will train FCC contact center personnel on trauma-informed approaches to supporting survivors,” the release said. “By combining their expertise, the FCC and The Hotline aim to empower survivors and promote their safety and well-being through access to essential communication services and support.”

The FCC defended its 3-2 April decision (see 2404290044) to fine T-Mobile $80 million for allegedly not safeguarding data on customers' real-time locations, filing a brief Friday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. T-Mobile was also fined $12.2 million for violations by Sprint, which it later acquired. Whether the government will continue fighting T-Mobile and the other major carriers is in doubt following the start of Donald Trump's presidency next week, industry lawyers said. Republican Commissioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington dissented on the April order, even though the FCC approved the initial notices of apparent liability under Republican Chair Ajit Pai with Carr’s approval (see 2002280065). Simington wasn’t a commissioner at that time. Verizon challenged the FCC’s fine in the 2nd Circuit, AT&T in the 5th Circuit (see 2411060008). The 5th Circuit is slated to hear oral argument the week of Feb. 3.

The FCC has "boots on the ground" in Los Angeles County, having deployed spectrum survey teams to assess the impact of the wildfire disaster on cellular communications, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said Monday. The teams were sent at the request of state officials and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The agency is using data to identify communications gaps and FCCers also are managing public safety spectrum use and coordinating with government and industry on response efforts, Rosenworcel said. She said the agency has issued special temporary authority grants to keep communications operational. For example, SpaceX received a STA Friday to provide supplemental coverage from space service in wildfire areas to handsets not yet authorized for satellite service, according to the Daily Digest. SpaceX is also providing free Starlink broadband service to people affected by the wildfires (see 2501100064). Skylo said its direct-to-device traffic is up substantially in southern California (see 2501130023).

T-Mobile and UScellular countered opposition filed against their deal that has T-Mobile acquiring “substantially all” of the smaller provider’s wireless operations, including about 30% of its licensed spectrum. Numerous commercially sensitive details were redacted from the filing posted Friday in docket 24-286. In December, the Rural Wireless Association, EchoStar and Communications Workers of America asked the FCC to reject the deal (see 2412100044), which was announced in May. In the filing, T-Mobile and UScellular pointed to the transaction's economic benefits, laid out (see 2409160029) in a September public interest statement (PIS). “Unsurprisingly, the petitioners and commenters questioning the consumer benefits described in the PIS fail to provide any credible evidence or technical analysis to support their allegations,” the filing said. “Instead, these parties baselessly assert that the Transaction will harm competition among mobile wireless providers and result in higher prices for consumers.”

Impact on telecommunications from the Los Angeles County wildfires are “minimal so far,” but the FCC will continue monitoring the situation, said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel in a statement Thursday. If the fires begin affecting “residents’ ability to receive the information they need to stay safe” the FCC “stands ready to support in any way it can,” Rosenworcel said. That could include requests to deploy FCC staff to help with communications network recovery, she said. “Our hearts remain with everyone impacted by the wildfires ravaging Los Angeles County and the first responders answering the call during this time of emergency.”

With the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling overturning the FCC’s latest order (see 2501020047), the U.S. has likely seen the last gasps of net neutrality, Free State Foundation President Randolph May said in the Yale Journal on Regulation. “Because of Loper Bright’s burial of Chevron deference, there’s a good chance that the ‘net neutrality’ saga, finally, may be over, at least in the courts,” May wrote. “With the impending change in the FCC’s makeup, there’s virtually no chance the agency will seek reconsideration or appeal to the Supreme Court,” he added. Other parties in the litigation “favoring regulating ISPs like public utilities could pursue those avenues, but it’s unlikely they will want to risk a Supreme Court decision affirming the Sixth Circuit decision.” Congress, not the FCC, is “the appropriate forum for the debate regarding adoption of a proper policy framework for broadband providers.” Daniel Lyons, a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, also praised the 6th Circuit decision. “The court eschewed the easier path of ruling under the Major Questions Doctrine and instead tackled the complex and often contradictory language of the Communications Act,” Lyons wrote in a Thursday blog post. He saw the decision as a win for industry and innovation. The FCC can no longer “impose a one-size-fits-all business model on broadband providers, allowing them to explore innovations like 5G network slicing without fearing regulatory backlash,” he said: ISPs “are no longer at risk of rate regulation and other regulatory requirements that come with Title II classification, a category originally designed to discipline the telephone system.”

The FCC increased application fees to reflect a 17.41% increase in the Consumer Price Index, said an order in Wednesday’s Daily Digest. The order was unanimous, with FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, President-elect Donald's Trump pick for chairman, reluctantly concurring, according to a statement. The increase “means some applications now cost hundreds, or in some cases, thousands of dollars more than they did just a few years ago,” Carr said. “It is difficult to support what is ultimately a direct tax increase on startups and other job creators at a time when they are already battling rising costs from inflationary policies,” but “the law does not provide the FCC with much discretion in terms of how these fees are assessed.” The agency is required to adjust the fees to reflect the CPI in every even-numbered year. The 2022 increase reflected a rise in the CPI of 11.6%. The higher fees mean a major change for full-power TV stations has risen from a $4,755 application fee to $5,000, according to the 2022 and 2025 orders. The application fee for a petition for declaratory ruling for a non-geostationary orbit foreign-licensed space station to access the U.S. market rose from $16,795 to $17,670, the orders said.