The Interagency Steering Group on Native American Voting Rights said Thursday “more could be done” by the FCC and other policymakers to promote voting on Tribal lands. The FCC auctioned off spectrum licenses and USF support “to build out broadband capacity to millions of unserved locations, but could do more to integrate Tribal governments into the process, to ensure better communication and relationships between the auction winners and the Tribal communities they serve,” the report said. To the extent states deploy federal funding or funding of their own to promote broadband in Tribal areas “it would be advisable to similarly incorporate Tribal governments into the process of assessing needs and selection procedures, as well as bid evaluation and contract approval.” When the FCC issues spectrum licenses to Tribal governments it should offer “the technical and grantmaking assistance necessary for Tribal governments to capitalize effectively on the spectrum availability,” the report said. Information designed for viewing on desktop computers “may not be effective for eligible voters who are primarily online through smartphones, no matter how robust their connectivity or capacity,” it said: State and local officials should ensure “their election-related applications and information are also optimized (and translated) for mobile, in order to reach Native American voters where they are.”
Demand for the FCC’s next round of Emergency Connectivity Fund support will likely exceed the funding that will be available, E-rate stakeholders and public interest organizations told us. The third round will make at least $1 billion available and is expected to be the program’s final round for applications.
Clamping down on unwanted and illegal robocalls remains the top priority of the FCC Enforcement Bureau, bureau officials said during an FCBA webinar Tuesday. “The top priority is robocall, robocall, robocall, robocall,” said Kristi Thompson, chief of the Telecommunications Consumers Division. That’s “not surprising” because unwanted calls “have been the top of the pop charts on the FCC’s compliance databases for several years running now,” she said. “Because it is such a hot consumer issue it’s also one that is politically neutral and therefore bipartisan,” she said. A “collective hatred for all things robocalls and our desire to see more and more done against them” unites Americans, Thompson said. Her division also spends a lot of time on privacy and data security, she said. “I sort of read with dread headlines today suggesting that Russia was talking about increasing cyberattacks” on U.S. infrastructure, she said: “For me, communications networks … seem like a prime target.” The Fraud Division is looking into allegations of fraud in the emergency broadband benefit program, said Chief Rakesh Patel. USF programs are always a focus, he said. The amounts of dollars involved can “be quite significant,” he said. “Where ever the commission’s focus is at any given point in time the Enforcement Bureau tends to follow,” said Jeffrey Gee, chief of the Investigations and Hearings Division.
The Arizona Corporation Commission should cancel state USF, cable and wireless companies said in comments Friday on a March 4 notice of inquiry on possibly sweeping changes. The ACC had asked about expanding Arizona USF support to broadband -- or eliminating the fund altogether (see 2203070031). Wireline companies disagreed with ending AUSF, with Lumen favoring making it a broadband fund.
It might be safest to let Alaska USF die, said Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA) Common Carrier Specialist David Parrish at virtual technical conference Friday. Alaska’s public advocate and telecom industry officials disagreed. AUSF, set to sunset mid-2023, "has been really hobbling along for years," said Parrish: If the commission wants to continue the fund, RCA staff thinks the “only equitable solution” is its proposal to target AUSF support to areas where voice remains the primary form of telecom (see 2203140056), especially because much federal infrastructure money is coming and since pursuing state USF reform could increase the likelihood the RCA is sued, Parrish said. Just because it’s easiest to let AUSF die “doesn't mean it's the right thing to do,” responded Alaska Chief Assistant Attorney General Jeff Waller of the Regulatory Affairs & Public Advocacy division. The Matanuska Telephone Association also disagreed with killing AUSF. "This is not the time for AUSF to go away," said MTA counsel Dean Thompson of Kemppel Huffman. "What do you do about access charges?" It would leave "a big hole of lawfully recovered rate recovery,” he said. MTA had submitted an alternative proposal to switch to connections-based contribution. Alaska Communications sees a remaining need for AUSF, said Manager-Regulatory Affairs Lisa Phillips. GCI Senior Director-Regulatory Affairs Juliana Wayman cautioned the RCA that coming federal funding will do nothing for ongoing operating costs.
Industry disagreed whether the FCC should pause some of its high-cost Universal Service Fund programs amid the recent $65 billion federal broadband support from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, in reply comments posted Friday in docket 21-476 (see 2202180046). Others debated whether to expand the fund's contribution base or turn to direct congressional appropriations. The FCC sought comments on USF's future as part of its report to Congress due by Aug. 12.
Industry and advocates asked the FCC for some flexibility in its affordable connectivity program outreach grants and to prioritize nonprofit organizations, in comments posted Thursday in docket 21-450. The FCC also sought comments on its proposed pilot program to boost enrollment among households in public housing communities and on how to determine eligibility for an up to $75 monthly benefit for households living in high-cost areas.
Staff at state commissions pushed forward USF update efforts. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission is seeking comment and plans a meeting soon on draft legislation to update Oklahoma USF (OUSF) into a broadband-focused subsidy, the OCC emailed stakeholders Monday. The Regulatory Commission of Alaska (RCA) posted a staff proposal Friday to use Alaska USF (AUSF) to close the digital divide in places where voice remains the primary form of telecom access. The Oregon Public Utility Commission plans to post a state USF proposal within a week, it said Monday.
The Arizona Corporation Commission is seeking state USF comments by March 18 on possibly sweeping changes, including expanding support to broadband, the agency said in a Friday notice of inquiry. Arizona commissioners required staff to open the rulemaking in January in docket T-00000A-20-0336 (see 2201120035). The NOI asks questions including what the original purpose of AUSF was, if it still furthers that goal and what else could it be used for. The commission asked if AUSF policy objectives are "technology agnostic and living/evolving" or "static and tied to" landlines, and if those objectives should be updated. Specifically, it asked if the commission should consider repurposing the fund "to include 'advanced telecommunications capacity' or funding to help remove 'barriers to infrastructure investment'?" The agency asked if it should consider expanding AUSF contribution to VoIP, internet or broadband providers, and if an entity should have to contribute to AUSF to receive support. It asked if the commission should expand support to non-telcos including nonprofits, state agencies and local and tribal governments, and if it should expand allowed support uses. The commission asked if it can -- or should -- eliminate state USF or the charge on customer bills. And it asked how coming federal funding should affect its decisions.
The FCC repeated its request that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit hold Consumers' Research's challenge to the Q4 USF contribution factor in abeyance, after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit's decision to proceed with a similar challenge, said a letter Friday in case 21-3886 (see 2203020033). The agency said the parties can "suggest how the case in this court should proceed" after the 5th Circuit's ruling and the FCC's USF report. It also asked the court to reject Consumers' Research's request that the FCC respond to the group's agency comment within 30 days, saying Consumers' Research "effectively seek[s] a writ of mandamus" without attempting to "justify such extraordinary relief" or providing a basis to "override the FCC's broad discretion to order its proceedings."