Wireless carriers in comments this week condemned a “dynamic approach” to data and other proposals for California’s low-income program. The California Public Utilities Commission received feedback Wednesday on an Oct. 30 staff proposal for setting California LifeLine specific support amounts (SSA) and minimum service standards (MSS). Some urged the CPUC to tap the brakes, especially with uncertainty about continued funding for the federal affordable connectivity program (ACP).
The FCC will continue updating Congress about the affordable connectivity program's status in hopes of convincing lawmakers for money to keep it running, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel told reporters Thursday after the commissioners’ open meeting (see 2401250064). The FCC expects the initiative will exhaust its $14.2 billion allocation in April. The Wireline Bureau said earlier this month it would freeze new enrollments Feb. 8 as part of the program's wind-down process (see 2401110072).
The FCC released draft items set for votes at the commissioners' Feb. 15 open meeting, including an NPRM aimed at simplifying the process for alert originators to send multilingual emergency alerts over TV and radio. Also released Thursday was a second draft item that codifies some robocall rules while asking about applying protections in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act to robocalls and robotexts from wireless carriers to their own subscribers.
The FCC unanimously approved all its agenda items at Thursday's open meeting, including orders on mandatory outage reporting, mitigating orbital debris and misrouted 911 calls. The agency also announced millions of dollars in proposed pirate radio fines and FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel commented on former President Donald Trump's remarks about revoking the “licenses” of CNN and NBC over their coverage of him (see 2401170050). “The First Amendment is something we take seriously and I take seriously,” Rosenworcel said. Commissioner Brendan Carr declined comment on the former president's remarks.
Public Knowledge hires Stephen Bennett, ex-Institute for Palestine Studies-USA, as director-development and external affairs; Alisa Valentin, ex-National Urban League and ex-FCC, as broadband policy director; Nat Purser, former Center for Economic and Policy Research, as government affairs policy advocate; and Georgetown Law Communications and Technology Law Clinic’s Lauren Harriman as fellow … Free State Foundation announces former FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly as adjunct senior fellow, launching video podcast, TMT With Mike O’Rielly.
Connecticut low-power TV broadcaster Radio Communications Corp. (RCC) seeks “expedited consideration” of its Jan. 10 petition for review to overturn the FCC’s Dec. 12 order implementing the 2023 Low Power Protection Act (LPPA), said RCC's emergency motion Tuesday (docket 24-1004) at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The LPPA allows certain LPTV stations to upgrade to Class A status (see 2401180075), RCC also requests a stay of the FCC order and expedited case processing should a stay be entered, said the motion. The FCC opposes the motion, and DOJ takes no position, RCC said. The company argues that the FCC order unconstitutionally restricts program content for Class A eligibility purposes, and unlawfully precludes Class A licensees from asserting cable TV must-carry rights, said the motion. The order also fails to follow the LPPA’s “direction” to protect LPTV stations, it said. The stay, expedited review, and summary reversal are warranted, it said. Expeditious consideration is required because the FCC “announced the imminent commencement of the one-year LPTV license upgrade filing window under the LPPA to change station class from LPTV to Class A “with the same license terms as full power TV stations,” it said. But the FCC order “precludes RCC from filing an LPPA Class A upgrade application,” said the motion. Absent expedited consideration of its petition, “it appears unlikely that RCC would be able to fully litigate this case, come into compliance with full power TV rules, and then timely file a Class A license upgrade application within the LPPA’s one-year window,” it said. RCC’s loss of its Class A license upgrade “filing right” causes irreparable injury because “the only opportunity to file for the economic benefits afforded during the LPPA’s one-year Class A license upgrade period will be lost forever,” the motion said. “Loss of license by displacement” will also cause irreparable injury because RCC would lose revenue and viewers, “and viewer relationships would be damaged,” it said: “Lost viewers would necessarily move on to other program content providers and that lost good will could never be recaptured even if RCC were somehow able to locate new spectrum.”
The FCC identified tentative selectees in six groups of mutually exclusive applications for noncommercial educational FM construction permits from the November 2021 NCE window, according to a unanimously approved order Wednesday. Selectees include New Hope Baptist Church in Gallup, New Mexico. The order also rescinded a previous grant of New Media Humanity Association's application at Weeki Wachee, Florida, with Call Communications Group's reconsideration petition granted and its application reinstated. Also rescinded was a previous grant for Sound in Spirit Broadcasting's application in Burlington, Iowa, with Heritage Baptist Church tentatively selected instead. In addition, the commission rescinded a previous grant for Teleamerica Communications West Palm Beach's application in Key West, Florida, tentatively selecting instead Newland Broadcasters. Petitions to deny the applications of the selectees are due 30 days after the order.
The FCC Enforcement Bureau issued 44 notices in fiscal year 2023 to owners or managers of properties where apparent pirate radio broadcasts operate, warning them of consequences, the agency said Wednesday. In its annual report to Congress required under the 2020 Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act, the agency said 25 notices related to pirate sweeps. It said the Enforcement Bureau will continue monitoring the properties, saying pirate radio stations often stop operations temporarily and then resume. The bureau said it hired four full-time staffers in FY 2023 focusing on pirate radio and is hiring more. In addition, it ordered six mobile direction-finding investigative vehicles to support the additional staff. Those vehicles will be outfitted this year or next with specialized hardware and software for detecting pirate radio operators. The commission's online pirate radio database went live this week (see 2301240056).
The 120-day initial national security review for Element8's acquisition of AtLink Services began Tuesday, the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the U.S. Telecom Services Sector, known as Team Telecom, said in a letter to the FCC posted Wednesday in docket 23-268. Team Telecom said it will notify the FCC if an extension or additional 90-day review is necessary. Element8, a Texas-based ISP, announced the acquisition of AtLink, an Oklahoma City-based ISP, in March for "an undisclosed sum." Element8 received a $200 million investment for the purchase from Digital Alpha, a strategic investment firm with foreign ownership.
FCC commissioners approved ahead of Thursday’s open meeting an order allowing point-to-point links to endpoints in motion in the 70 GHz and 80 GHz bands under Part 101 rules, for aeronautical and maritime users (see 2401040064). Aeronet sought changes to the FCC’s draft order (see 2401120048), which proved controversial (see 2401190040). The commission also adopted a Further NPRM seeking comment “on the addition of another type of link as part of maritime operations otherwise authorized in the Report and Order, and the inclusion of Fixed Satellite Service earth stations in the light-licensing regime for the 70 GHz and 80 GHz bands,” said a news release. The order changes the link registration process in the 70/80/90 GHz bands "to require certification of construction of registered links, which will promote more efficient use of this spectrum and improve the accuracy of the link registration database," the agency said. Also taken off the agenda, a restricted adjudicatory matter from the Media Bureau.