FCC 3-2 Proposes Fines Against 10 EBS Licensees
The FCC moved forward 3-2 on another leftover issue Thursday evening, proposing fines against 10 entities for allegedly violating educational broadband service rules. All apparently didn't "provide the educational services” required. They "apparently failed to meet their obligations to maintain local program committees to inform the use of their respective licenses in the 2.5 GHz band.” Commissioner Brendan Carr raised issues in 2019 about how some EBS licensees are using the spectrum. Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks slammed the move, with Joe Biden's administration starting Jan. 20.
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The biggest fines were proposed against the Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network (HITN), at $14 million, and the North American Catholic Educational Programming Foundation, $8.3 million. Also cited: Clarendon Foundation, $3.3 million in proposed fines; National Conference on Citizenship, $1.6 million; Northern Arizona University Foundation, $5.5 million; Rockne Educational Television and The Learning Paradigm, $4 million; Shekinah Network, $6.4 million; Views on Learning (VOL), $2.7 million; and Voqal USA, $1.7 million.
“These decisions suffer from a number of substantive and procedural infirmities,” Rosenworcel said. “Most troubling is that the fines imposed here on … non-profit entities with programs to expand educational internet access lack any appropriate sense of proportion,” she said: “They are an unfortunate commentary on the priorities of this agency.”
The FCC “proposes extraordinary penalties against organizations whose mission is to help those most in need,” said Starks. “The EBS licensees lacked sufficient notice of the legal interpretations underlying the Notices of Apparent Liability (NALs) to be subject to monetary penalties.” They lacked “fair notice of the majority’s interpretation of the now-eliminated educational use and Local Programming Committee rules,” he said.
Carr pushed the investigation, as the FCC took a broader look at the 2.5 GHz band with an eye on an eventual auction. “What my review has found is that at least some of these nonprofits are using the lion’s share of this money not for educational purposes … but putting millions of dollars in the bank and also using the money to advocate for ballot reforms, everything from campaign finance reform to the death penalty,” Carr told us in July 2019 (see 1907050034). He sent letters to EBS licensees. “The Commission’s approval of those Notices today marks an important step in the FCC’s work to hold licensees accountable for fulfilling the public interest obligations that were an integral part of their authorizations,” Carr said Thursday.
Voqal slammed the fine. “The commission’s findings ignore our exemplary record, full compliance with all FCC requirements and longstanding commitment to educational service,” a spokesperson said: “We look forward to responding in detail to the NAL.”
“We just received the letter yesterday,” an HITN spokesperson said: “We are reviewing it and the lengthy dissents.” VOL is “surprised and disappointed” by the FCC action, said a news release. “Since 1991, VOL has held EBS licenses and has provided valuable educational services to accredited schools such as educational television programming, no-cost mobile broadband devices and service, free video-conferencing equipment and access, and grants for the purchase of other much-needed technology.”