The FCC and Department of Health and Human Services will host a joint roundtable Nov. 17 on the intersection of broadband and maternal health. The event, beginning at 10:30 a.m. at the FCC's headquarters, will include a discussion on the role of broadband as a social determinant of health and how to improve maternal health outcomes, per a public notice Thursday in docket 23-309. The roundtable will also be livestreamed.

The FCC wants comments by Dec. 1, replies by Dec. 18, in docket 22-270 on a notice of inquiry kicking off the agency's evaluation of the state of broadband and setting higher broadband speed benchmarks (see 2307250068). "To get big things done, it is essential to set big goals," said Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel: "That is why we are kicking off this inquiry to update our national broadband standard and also set a long-term goal for gigabit speeds." Commssioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington approved and concurred in part the order, which was adopted Oct. 25 and released Wednesday. "As a policy matter, it makes sense that Congress would task the commission with this type of progress-based inquiry," Carr said, adding he was glad to see the item "takes a more holistic approach to the question of setting broadband speed metrics and other benchmarks" following the addition of language he sought. Simington shared Carr's concerns about "the misframing of our inquiry."

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied a joint motion from the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, Center for Media Justice and National Digital Inclusion Alliance to intervene on behalf of the FCC in Consumers' Research's new challenge of the USF Q4 2023 contribution factor (see 2310030069). An order posted Monday in case 23-60525 was denied "without prejudice" should the groups want to file amicus curiae.

Tive received conditional certification to be compensated through the Telecom Relay Service Fund for providing video relay service, per an FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau public notice Friday in docket 10-51. Tive also received a 60-day waiver regarding "documentary and other evidence demonstrating that the applicant leases, licenses, or has acquired its own facilities for VRS call centers."

The FCC Friday granted two additional participants in the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program six-month extensions of their mandate to rip and replace Huawei and ZTE equipment from their networks. Point Broadband Fiber Holding’s deadline to remove the gear was delayed from Sunday to April 29, SI Wireless’ deadline from Nov. 24 to May 24, said the Wireline Bureau order. The bureau found “each made a sufficient showing that they have been impacted by the funding shortfall” in the program “to an extent sufficient to warrant an extension.”

An FCC Monday roundtable on cybersecurity for emergency alerts (see 2310160060) will feature remarks from FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and panels on cybersecurity risk management, incident reporting and the potential cost burden of improvements, said an agenda released Thursday. The event also includes a number of cybersecurity officials from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the FBI, and executives from alerting equipment manufacturers, AT&T, T-Mobile, E.W. Scripps and others.

Louisiana, Virginia, Delaware, Kansas and Vermont continue to lead in submitting their initial proposals for NTIA’s broadband, equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program, per an updated dashboard released Wednesday (see 2310180059). The agency said in an email to reporters that the dashboard will be updated Wednesdays on a weekly basis. NTIA approved a second proposal: Virginia's volume one.

NTCA representatives explained the group’s stance on an FCC proposal on rules to speed a move to next-generation 911 (see 2309110042) in a meeting with an aide to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, said a filing Tuesday in docket 21-479. “NTCA reiterated its support for reasonable steps to advance a transition to NG911 given the increased situational awareness it will provide to first responders,” the group said: “NTCA’s advocacy for an alternative cost allocation methodology in place of that proposed by the Commission is simply a surgical amendment to the overall approach as found in the NPRM in specifying that the party that is paid by and contractually responsible to state and local governmental entities to implement NG911 should be responsible for the costs of doing so.”

Searchlight Capital Partners and British Columbia Investment Management will acquire Consolidated Communications in an all-cash transaction, Consolidated said Monday. The roughly $3.1 billion deal is expected to close by the first quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals. "We believe this transaction provides substantial value for our shareholders while also enhancing our flexibility to continue the execution of our fiber expansion strategy,” said Consolidated CEO Bob Udell. “We have been operating in a shifting economic environment over the course of this past year, resulting in higher operating costs and a challenging market for attractive financing options," Udell said: "While we are pleased with how we have managed the business despite these headwinds, several factors recently necessitated that we delay our estimated fiber build completion beyond 2026."

The FCC Native Nations Communications Task Force's term was extended until Dec. 31, said a public notice Monday. Applications for the task force's next term are due by Nov. 30. The current term was to expire Oct. 24.