Oral argument in Radio Communications Corporation’s challenge of the FCC’s implementation of the Low Power Protection Act (see 2407050020) will take place Nov. 18, said an order Thursday from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia scheduled oral argument on Nov. 5 at 9:30 a.m. for LTD's challenge of the FCC's denial of its Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction long-form application, said an order Friday (docket 24-1017). The ISP was the largest winning bidder in the auction (see 2405090056).
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel visited an Arizona elementary school as part of an initiative to promote recent modifications to the E-rate program, said a news release Friday. "Visiting rural Arizona made it clear that if we want our children to succeed in this digital age, then we need to ensure they can get access to the internet," Rosenworcel said. She met with parents, teachers, and school staff to discuss the benefits of the program. The agency noted that the E-rate program "takes on renewed importance following the expiration of the affordable connectivity program," which connected more than 500,000 households in Arizona before it ended. Using hot spots, the FCC is "working to close that digital divide" for schools and libraries, the agency said. Rosenworcel will spend the next few months meeting with national, state, and local school leaders to discuss the program's importance.
The Wireless Innovation Forum, the OnGo Alliance and the Wireless ISP Association jointly petitioned the FCC to delay by 30 days comment deadlines on an August NPRM asking about further changes to rules for the citizens broadband radio service band (see 2408160031). Comments are now due Oct. 7, replies Nov. 5, in docket 17-258. “The NPRM raises significant and complex issues … that warrant detailed Comments to build a robust record from those directly impacted, including over 1,200 member companies of the Joint Petitioners,” said the petition posted Friday: “Each of the Joint Petitioners concurs that additional time to write Comments would help establish a more robust record.” They note numerous groups are “working to coordinate positions among their respective members on the proposals and questions raised.”
Aura Network Systems CEO Bill Tolpegin met with an aide to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel about the company’s 2021 pursuit of a rulemaking on expanding the use of air-ground radiotelephone service channels between 454.675-454.975 MHz and 459.675-459.975 MHz for voice and data communications, including by drones (see 2109230049). Tolpegin also met with aides to Commissioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington. Filings on the meetings had yet to be posted on Friday. The CEO earlier met with an aide to Commissioner Geoffrey Starks (see 2409180020).
FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said including routers under the agency’s recently approved voluntary cyber trust mark program “is vitally important for the security of our home and small business networks.” Commissioners approved the cyber mark program 5-0 in March (see 2403140034). “Consumer routers are the quarterback … of the home network,” Starks said in a speech at American University included Friday's Daily Digest. The program will prove important for consumers, helping them make informed buying decisions “while at the same time incentivize[ing] manufacturers to invest in stronger security measures,” he said. “Much is at stake,” Starks said: “Cybercriminals and adversarial states can steal sensitive personal data, facilitate identity theft, disrupt critical infrastructure and compromise national security.”
While FCC commissioners will vote at their September meeting on allowing non-geostationary satellite use of the 17 GHz band (see 2409040053), nothing in the record supports NGSO operations at up to the ITU power flux density (PFD) limits in the 17.7-17.8 GHz slice, according to AT&T and Verizon. In a docket 22-273 filing posted Friday, the companies said more measures are needed to ensure protection of incumbent fixed service (FS) operators in the band. NGSO operators have "abdicated their burden" of showing that current and future NGSO, geostationary orbit (GSO) and FS systems can coexist in the slice, they said. AT&T and Verizon urged that the FCC require NGSO applicants seeking to operate in the slice have their PFD threshold capped at a certain level unless they submit an aggregate interference analysis showing they will protect FS when operating at a higher level. Cheering the proposed opening of the 17 GHz band to NGSO operations, SpaceX said there's no need to apply equivalent power flux density limits to the band to protect GSO operators. But the FCC should make clear that any EPFD protections adopted will be subject to the outcome of international efforts to modernize EPFD limits and to the outcome of FCC updates of GSO/NGSO spectrum sharing rules, it said. SpaceX said it met with the offices of all five commissioners. AT&T and Verizon said they met with Space, Wireless, and Consumer and Governmental Affairs bureaus and Office of Engineering and Technology staff.
Led by the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition, four public interest groups filed a petition at the FCC asking for changes in a July order that lets schools and libraries use E-rate support for off-premises Wi-Fi hot spots and wireless internet services (see 2407180024). The petition reflects several changes SHLB sought before the order was approved 3-2 (see 2407170035). “The Commission should allow E-Rate funding to support cost-effective options that are functionally equivalent to commercially available mobile wireless services and Wi-Fi hotspots within the established pre-discount budget,” said the petition, posted Friday in docket 21-31: “E-Rate support should also be available for the purchase of hotspots on a standalone basis if an applicant already has access to the service needed to use the hotspots, and for wireless service that could be used with an applicant’s existing non-hotspot Wi-Fi-enabled equipment.” Also signing the petition were the Open Technology Institute at New America, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society and the Consortium for School Networking. Maurine and Matthew Molak filed a legal challenge to the order in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The FCC told the court the case isn’t ripe for review since the agency hasn’t addressed petitions for reconsideration and the order isn’t final (see 2409130063). Commissioner Brendan Carr has questioned whether the order would survive a legal challenge.
An FCC order lowering per minute rate caps for audio calls and establishing interim rate caps on video calls for incarcerated people takes effect Nov. 19, said a notice in Friday's Federal Register. The agency also wants comments by Oct. 21, replies by Nov. 19, in docket 23-62 on a related Further NPRM seeking comment on permanent video rate caps for incarcerated people's communications services. Commissioners adopted the item in July and released part of the order last month (see 2407180039). Several groups filed challenges to the partially released order (see 2409190061).
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit will decide, without oral argument, a case alleging that the FCC has an “affirmative legal obligation” under Sections 552 and 553 of the Administrative Procedure Act “to make its proposed and final rules readily available to the public without charge,” despite the process known as incorporation by reference (IBR), the court said Friday (docket 23-1311). IFixit, Public Resource and Make Community brought the challenge (see 2406050031). They charged that the FCC violated the APA when the commission failed to provide proper notice and comment protocol as it amended rules incorporating four equipment-testing standards (see 2311090002). “When IBR was adopted in the pre-Internet era, its purpose was to save the cost of reproducing in the Federal Register what are often voluminous technical standards that have been adopted by federal agencies as substantive rules, and hence are the law, apparently on the assumption that most of those who needed the standards already had access to them,” plaintiffs said in a June reply brief (see 2406050031): “Now that the FCC and every federal agency has a website on which they can, and do, post all of their rules not subject to IBR, there is no longer a cost justification rationale for IBR.” The court decided on its own motion, that oral argument will not assist … in this case,” the order said. “Accordingly, the court will dispose of the petition for review without oral argument on the basis of the appendix submitted by the parties and the presentations in the briefs.”