The FCC’s net neutrality draft order got state support from California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) and the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA). Bonta's office said in a statement Friday that it supports “strong federal net neutrality rules that establish a floor of protection across the country.” The AG “especially applauds the draft order for acknowledging the important role states like California play in protecting net neutrality, and for declining to block enforcement of California’s own net neutrality law,” his office said. NASUCA praised the FCC draft for treating broadband as an essential service and leaving room for states. “The FCC correctly recognizes that there is a dual role for the federal government and states in addressing broadband and other essential services," and that classifying broadband internet access service "as Title II will enhance its ability to address public safety,” said Regina Costa, the group's telecom chair, in a Monday statement. NASUCA is glad the FCC declined to preempt California’s law or “all state authority over broadband,” she said. NARUC praised the draft last week (see 2404050068).
FCC commissioners approved a Further NPRM seeking comment on steps the agency can take to assist survivors of domestic violence access safe and affordable connected car services under the Safe Connections Act. Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel circulated the proposal in February (see 2402280053). Comments are due 30 days after Federal Register publication, 60 days for replies, in docket 22-238. "Having access to a car is also a lifeline," Rosenworcel said: "That is why in this rulemaking we propose that survivors should be able to separate lines that connect their cars."
Tribal-area wireless provider Smith Bagley asked the FCC to temporarily provide expanded monthly tribal Lifeline benefits of $25 to $65.75 to make up for the loss of funding as the affordable connectivity program expires. “Over 329,000 Tribal households currently receive ACP discounts, including residents living in remote rural areas that have poverty rates many times the national average,” said a petition posted Monday in docket 11-42: The loss of tribal ACP funding "will have devastating impacts as many residents will find high-quality broadband connections to be priced out of their reach, with few or no options to connect.” Smith Bagley also reported on a call with an aide to FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez on the proposed 5G Fund. It emphasized that the upcoming Tribal 5G Fund auction mechanism “must treat remote Tribal lands as a special case to ensure that these highest-cost areas are not excluded from receiving support as a result of an auction process,” said a filing in docket 20-32. The firm “discussed the extraordinary costs that the company faces in accessing fiber backhaul to its towers, 90% of which are today served by microwave. Without fiber, it will be difficult to meet the Commission’s 5G Fund auction performance requirements.”
The FCC asked for comments, due June 10, on the burden of complying with an information collection regime required under the FCC wireless emergency alerts rules, said a notice for Tuesday’s Federal Register. “This modification to an existing collection will require all … providers to file their election regarding participation in the WEA system by submitting the information to an FCC-created and maintained WEA database,” the notice said: “This will refresh … provider WEA-elections that were last required over a decade ago and provide a single source of information on WEA availability.”
The FCC is seeking comment, due June 10, on a requirement that upper microwave flexible use service licensees in the 28 GHz band demonstrate how they are using the band. “Licensees relying on mobile or point-to-multipoint service must show that they are providing reliable signal coverage and service to at least 40 percent of the population within the service area of the licensee, and that they are using facilities to provide service in that area either to customers or for internal use,” said a notice for Tuesday’s Federal Register. Licensees relying on point-to-point service “must demonstrate that they have four links operating and providing service, either to customers or for internal use, if the population within the license area is equal to or less than 268,000,” the notice said: If the population within the license area is greater than 268,000, the licensee “must demonstrate it has at least one link in operation and is providing service for each 67,000 [POP] within the license area.”
The FCC asked for comment on how it might “further reduce the information collection burden for small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees” as part of its wireless enhanced 911 location accuracy requirements. The FCC is seeking Office of Management and Budget approval for an extension of this information collection and will submit the information collection after a 60-day comment period, said a notice for Tuesday’s Federal Register.
Dish Wireless filed an amended petition at the FCC seeking eligible telecom carrier status in the federal default states of Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maine, New Hampshire and North Carolina and in the District of Columbia (see 2302020030). “Designation of DISH Wireless as an ETC will make wireless broadband services more robust and more affordable to low-income consumers,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 09-197. Granting the petition would also “promote the public interest in broadband deployment in underserved areas by better positioning the Company to pursue broadband infrastructure funding under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and other programs,” Dish said.
CTIA representatives warned about potential negative effects from some robotexting rules proposed in comments to a December Further NPRM (see 2312190032). “Reject calls from a handful of non-consumer message senders to dismantle the wireless ecosystem’s existing practices that are stopping billions of spam and scam text messages,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 21-402: “These groups’ support for adoption of a content-neutral and non-discriminatory blocking standard would gut the messaging ecosystem’s multi-layered defenses for consumers.” CTIA said adopting that proposed standard “would remove the best practices that prevent non-consumer message senders from sending text messages that consumers do not want, including campaigns related to illegal substances and content related to sex, hate, alcohol, firearms, and tobacco.” CTIA representatives spoke with FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Chief Alejandro Roark and others from the bureau.
Requiring ByteDance to divest TikTok is constitutional and would help block Chinese efforts to control U.S. communications networks, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Monday on the Senate floor. Similarly, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., last week said the upper chamber has an opportunity to make progress on bipartisan TikTok-related legislation (see 2404050050). In his speech, McConnell rejected First Amendment arguments against the House-passed divestment proposal. McConnell quoted FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr: “You can use a pen to write salacious anti-American propaganda, and the government can’t censor that content. Nor can it stop Americans from seeking such messages out. But if you use the same pen to pick a lock to steal someone else’s property, the government could prosecute you for illegal conduct.” China “has spent years trying to pick the lock of America’s communications infrastructure,” said McConnell: “This is a matter that deserves Congress’ urgent attention. And I’ll support commonsense, bipartisan steps to take one of Beijing’s favorite tools of coercion and espionage off the table.”
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel circulated for a commissioner vote initial rules allowing drone use of the 5030-5091 MHz band (see 2303100028), the commission said Monday. If approved, the order would allow operators to obtain direct frequency assignments in a portion of the band for non-networked operations, the FCC said. The band is one of the five targeted for study in the national spectrum strategy (see 2403120056). “The FCC must ensure that our spectrum rules meet the current -- and future -- spectrum needs of evolving technologies such as uncrewed aircraft systems [UAS], which can be critical to disaster recovery, first responder rescue efforts, and wildfire management,” Rosenworcel said. The proposal relies on dynamic frequency management systems (DFMSs) “to manage and coordinate access to the spectrum and enable its safe and efficient use,” said a news release: “These DFMSs would provide requesting operators with temporary frequency assignments to support UAS control link communications with a level of reliability suitable for operations in controlled airspace and other safety-critical circumstances.” During an interim period, users could obtain early permission to use the spectrum, coordinating with the FAA and filing an online registration form with the commission. Under the spectrum strategy, the FCC, in coordination with NTIA and the FAA, is to “take near-term action to facilitate limited deployment of UAS in the 5030-5091 MHz band, in advance of future study of the band,” the FCC said. Under the strategy, work on future use of the band is supposed to start next March and be completed in March 2027.