NextNav received support from the California Fire Chiefs Association for its controversial proposal that would reconfigure the 902-928 MHz band, enabling a terrestrial “complement” to GPS for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) services (see 2409060046). “We have firsthand experience with degradation of GPS due to the ‘urban canyons’ and dense environment we cover, a problem that is ideally resolved by a terrestrial PNT service of this type proposed,” the group said in a filing posted Friday in docket 24-240. Reply comments are due at the FCC this week.
The FCC on Friday asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to dismiss on procedural grounds Maurine and Matthew Molak's petition seeking review of a commission order from July that lets schools and libraries use E-rate support for off-premises Wi-Fi hot spots and wireless internet services (see 2407180024). Lawyers defending the order had predicted the FCC would take that step because the agency hasn’t yet addressed a petition by the Molaks seeking reconsideration of the order (see 2408300027). “This Court’s jurisdiction to review FCC orders under the Hobbs Act is limited to specified ‘final orders’” of the FCC, the commission said in docket 24-604460. “For purposes of Hobbs Act review, it is well settled that ‘a motion to reconsider renders the underlying order nonfinal’ as to the party that sought reconsideration,” the agency said: That rule “avoids ‘wasting judicial resources’ … without compromising petitioners’ ability to seek judicial review of a subsequent final order.” The Molaks' son died by suicide aged 16 after he was cyberbullied. The couple previously challenged the FCC’s Oct. 25 declaratory ruling that authorizes school bus Wi-Fi, also in the 5th Circuit, widely viewed as the most conservative of the federal circuits (see 2312200051). It's expected that judges will hear the case in November.
There's "no viable proposed timeline" for larger make-ready pole orders that account for "the fundamental realities of broadband deployment," USTelecom told the FCC in a letter Friday in docket 17-84. The commission sought comment on the item in a December Further NPRM (see 2312130044). USTelecom noted such orders are "more complicated and time-consuming," making it "impossible" to determine how long an order for more than 3,000 poles will take (see 2408210034). Timelines for larger pole orders must account for "workforce limitations," workflow management, and coordination between pole owners and attachers, USTelecom said, adding it's "impossible to predict solely from the number of poles involved" how long a make-ready request for more than 3,000 poles will take, it said. "That there are real-world obstacles to deployment is a reason to ensure that any timeline includes a robust good faith exception capturing all situations where the pole owner cannot meet the timeline due to circumstances beyond its control," USTelecom said. The group also opposed several proposals from other groups on cost-allocations for pole replacements, one-touch, make-ready mandates and professional engineer certification requirements.
The Alaska Remote Carrier Coalition (ARCC) recommended that the FCC reject GCI's proposal that addresses revisions in the Alaska Plan for the Alaska Connect Fund (see 2408140040). In a meeting with an aide to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, ARCC defended its proposed adjustment factors associated with performance testing results, said an ex parte filing Friday in docket 23-328. "To suggest that no changes should be made to the original Alaska Plan format deviates from the intent of the first paragraph" of the commission's NPRM seeking comment on "innovative solutions" to connect Alaska's communities, the group said. It also urged that the FCC refrain from allowing "constant waivers of its performance testing guidelines with limited consequences," warning that the "regulatory compliance basis" the commission laid out in its plans is "flawed at best."
After senators sent letters to all five FCC commissioners Friday calling for the agency to avoid “weaponization” of its licensing authority against broadcasters, Commissioner Nathan Simington responded, saying the FCC should renew the license of Fox station WTXF-TV Philadelphia over the opposition of public interest group the Media and Democracy Project (MAD). Letters from Sens. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., referenced recent comments from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump against ABC (see 2409120056).
Ron Repasi, chief of the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology, is leaving the agency. An email sent to industry on Monday announced a retirement party in the commission meeting room Sept. 26. Repasi took over from longtime OET Chief Julius Knapp, initially in an acting capacity, in late 2019. Knapp had led the OET since 2004. Repasi has been in the middle of most spectrum policy issues at the FCC, from 6 GHz rules to the future of the citizens broadband radio service, lower 12 GHz and other bands, industry officials said. Repasi became chief FCC engineer on a permanent basis 18 months ago. “Please join us for a retirement celebration honoring … Repasi on his many accomplishments during his 32 years of Government service,” said the email on his retirement.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday invalidated the FCC’s definition of “qualifying concealment element” in its wireless siting declaratory ruling approved in June 2020 under former Chairman Ajit Pai (see 2006090060). A three-judge panel upheld other parts of the 2020 ruling, but a lawyer who argued the case declared victory and called on the FCC to immediately make changes based on the 9th Circuit's instructions.
The DirecTV-Disney blackout (see 2409090003) illustrates the unsustainable two-tiered system of linear video regulation, with rules for some but not all operators, FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington said Thursday. "We must balance the scales," he said, urging that the FCC in the future "either unleash the video marketplace from outdated rules or balance it with smart and targeted reforms." He added, "What cannot persist is a system that entrenches marketplace power at the expense of the consumer."
T-Mobile asked the FCC for permission to use information from the E.U.’s Galileo system “in conjunction” with U.S. GPS to provide 911 location information. The company satisfied FCC conditions for commercial mobile radio service providers “to receive authorization to use information derived from Galileo signals to improve its 911 location services,” according to a filing posted Thursday in docket 07-114. “More importantly, grant of the requested authorization would serve the public interest by increasing the availability, accuracy, and reliability of T-Mobile’s 911 location services, which will better help emergency responders quickly find and assist 911 callers, potentially saving callers’ lives,” T-Mobile said. The commission has recognized that “supplementing GPS with Galileo … signals can increase the availability, accuracy, and reliability of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing services,” the carrier added.
The BWI Business Partnership urged the FCC not to grant the FirstNet Authority effective control of the 4.9 GHz band. “The FCC’s current 4.9 GHz regulations allow effective communication by public-safety agencies and their partners in Howard County, Anne Arundel County, and throughout Maryland,” the partnership said in a filing posted Thursday in docket 07-100.