The FCC Public Safety Bureau on Friday approved special temporary authority allowing Morgan County, Indiana, to operate its travelers’ information station for a 15-day period at higher power levels than allowed under commission rules so it can “manage the expected influx of visitors, traffic congestion, and public safety surrounding the April 8 … solar eclipse.” The county can use 100 watts of power, rather than 10, starting April 1. The county is part of the eclipse's zone of totality.
The FCC wasted no time in setting the comment dates on a Further NPRM on a voluntary cyber trust mark program commissioners unanimously approved March 14 (see 2403140034). Comments are due April 24, replies May 24, in docket 23-239, said a notice for Monday’s Federal Register. The FNPRM was added to the order that Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel circulated at the request of commissioners (see 2403180046). “We seek comment on whether we should require manufacturers to disclose to the Commission whether firmware and/or software were developed and manufactured in a ‘high-risk country,’ as well as where firmware and software updates will be developed and deployed from,” the notice says.
CTIA warned of a “patchwork” of state net neutrality rules and called for national policies, filing last week in FCC docket 23-320. Because broadband internet access service “is an inherently interstate service, the Commission should exercise its preemption authority to ensure that BIAS is governed by a uniform national framework rather than disparate requirements that vary state-by-state,” CTIA said. “Commenters on both sides of the classification issue … agree and support broad preemption of state regulation of BIAS,” the group said. CTIA said “the need for uniformity is especially acute if the Commission seeks to regulate BIAS under Title II” of the Communications Act. “Proceeding case-by-case, imposing only a regulatory floor, or adopting a narrow view of preemption would spur litigation and regulatory uncertainty that could hinder investments in improved BIAS services beyond those inherent in Title II.”
Gogo Business Aviation requested a time extension to meet requirements of the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program but requested details remain confidential. “The Extension Request contains proprietary commercial and operational information intended to provide maximum disclosure to the Commission for its consideration of Gogo’s request for additional time in which to complete its [replacement] process,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 18-89. Gogo requested permanent confidential treatment and nondisclosure “because it is impossible to predict when the information contained in the Application would no longer be useful to Gogo’s competitors, other third parties, or, in light of the national security risks ... malignant entities that would seek to take advantage of potential security vulnerabilities in the nation’s communications networks.”
AT&T employees represented by the Communications Workers of America ratified a new mobility collective bargaining agreement, covering about 5,000 workers in the Southwest, AT&T said Friday. The employees work in retail, at call centers and as technicians in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas and Missouri. The new agreement expires Feb. 25, 2028. AT&T is “one of the largest employers of union-represented employees in the U.S., where more than 63,000 employees are unionized,” the carrier said. CWA hailed the agreement before it was ratified, noting it provides a 5% pay hike for employees this year and other benefits, including a $55 monthly stipend for remote employees.
The FCC confirmed Thursday it’s investigating Amazon and other online retailers for allegedly selling wireless signal jammers in violation of FCC rules. “We have several ongoing investigations into retailers, including Amazon, for potential violations of Commission rules related to the marketing and sale of equipment without proper FCC authorization,” an FCC spokesperson emailed. The FCC has long policed signal jammers. In one of the most high-profile cases, in 2016, the agency fined C.T.S. Technology of China $34.9 million for allegedly marketing 285 models of signal jamming devices to U.S. consumers (see 1605250071).
Dish Network executives laid out the company’s positions on mostly wireless issues during a meeting Monday with FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez and staff, said a filing posted Thursday in 20-443 and other dockets. “An updated spectrum screen that is consistently enforced will promote competition, especially toward the goal of at least four nationwide wireless carriers,” Dish said (see 240104004), urging action on the lower 12 GHz band (see 2312270045). “Substantial evidence in the record shows that fixed 5G services can provide broadband to tens of millions of Americans, while fully protecting existing non-geostationary orbit Fixed-Satellite Service and Direct Broadcast Satellite customers,” Dish said. The company also touched on 5G Fund rules, addressed in an order circulated Wednesday by Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel (see 2403200071). “Give greater weight” to 5G Fund projects that use open radio access network technology, Dish urged: “By doing so, not only can the Commission ensure that federal funds are being used to close the digital divide, but it can facilitate deployments that will connect communities well into the future.”
Competitive Carriers Association members are counting on “a strong and effective 5G Fund” to provide service in rural areas, said President Tim Donovan in an emailed statement. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel circulated a 5G Fund order Wednesday (see 2403200071). “We look forward to understanding the details of the draft Order and working with the FCC to make sure that the 5G Fund is a success,” he said. “Details such as eligibility, accurate mobile map data with a robust challenge process, and the timing of a 5G Fund auction are key to avoiding harmful 5G gaps and ensuring the most rural customers are able to share in the benefits of 5G.”
Axon Enterprise fired back at critics of its December request for a waiver allowing it to market three investigation and surveillance devices to law enforcement agencies (see 2403080044). The devices can operate in the 5725-5850 MHz band “without causing harmful interference to other users of these frequencies,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 24-40: “Despite this fact, the Wi-Fi industry makes wholly unjustified claims that the use of Axon’s devices by law enforcement during public safety emergencies ‘could create a perfect storm of disruption of longstanding consumer reliance on Wi-Fi.’” Axon noted that nearly all bands are “highly congested and involve often complex spectrum sharing arrangements with other users.” Critics also ignore “the critical importance of providing law enforcement with effective tools to conduct indoor investigation and surveillance missions during volatile and exceedingly dangerous situations,” Axon said.
Verizon said the FCC doesn’t need a usage rule for Wi-Fi hot spots that the E-rate program funds (see 2401300063). E-rate rules “will require schools and libraries to pay part of the cost of Wi-Fi hotspots, which will discourage" them "from subscribing to unused services,” the carrier told Wireline Bureau staff, said a filing posted Thursday in docket 21-31. The commission “has found it necessary to apply a usage rule only when the support amount covers the entire cost of a service” including services offered under the emergency connectivity fund, Lifeline and the affordable connectivity program, Verizon said: “If the Commission adopts a usage rule in this proceeding, the rule should be flexible and simple for schools and libraries to apply, and focus primarily on guarding against large-scale warehousing.”