The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted an administrative stay late Tuesday afternoon that temporarily blocked a White House OMB memo, which called for a freeze on most federal grants and loans, from going into effect. The Trump administration memo already faced an array of legal challenges, including a planned lawsuit from a coalition of Democratic attorneys general from New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island. Broadband officials and industry advocates raised questions about the memo's constitutionality and the future of certain FCC programs, such as Lifeline. Others warned the freeze could have serious implications for NTIA's BEAD program.
USTelecom urged legislative action to shore up lawmakers’ mandate for the USF amid the “existential threat” posed by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ 2024 en banc decision that the program’s contribution factor is unconstitutional (see 2407240043). The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing the 5th Circuit’s ruling (see 2501170046). In an open letter Friday, USTelecom said Congress should “reaffirm” its bipartisan will to maintain USF “and reform how the program is funded.” It added, “Reform must begin by requiring Big Tech companies that benefit massively from universal connectivity to join in contributing to this vital national commitment.” Some lawmakers and other observers believe Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, may move Congress’ USF revamp toward making the program subject to the federal appropriations process (see 2411270060). In addition, USTelecom said NTIA, under President Donald Trump, “should roll back rate regulation and other requirements” for the $42.5 billion BEAD program “that Congress never asked for, while retaining a significant role for fiber, the high-speed broadband gold standard.” Removing BEAD requirements Congress didn’t mandate in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act “would shed the unwanted baggage and accelerate what matters most -- getting the work of connecting everyone done,” USTelecom said. “Restoring a tight focus on the mission -- broadband deployment – can dramatically accelerate efforts to fill gaps in high-speed service, helping unlock economic opportunities and access to innovation throughout” the country. USTelecom also urged lawmakers to “move again” on the American Broadband Deployment Act permitting package that the House Commerce Committee approved in 2023 (see 2305240069). The measure, which groups together more than 20 GOP-led connectivity permitting bills, drew unanimous opposition from House Commerce Democrats, and local government groups continued lobbying against it last year (see 2409180052). “Congress should green light speeding up approvals for more broadband projects on federal lands,” USTelecom said: “With a third of our nation’s land under federal control, federal permitting reform would provide an immediate adrenaline shot to the capacity, sophistication, reach and security of our nation’s information infrastructure.”
The telecom industry and public interest groups supported government arguments asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ 9-7 en banc decision invalidating part of the USF program (see 2501090045). In a decision that sent shock waves through the telecom industry, judges on the conservative circuit agreed with Consumers' Research that USF violates the Constitution by improperly delegating Congress’ power to the FCC and the agency's power to a private company, the Universal Service Administrative Co. (see 2412100060).
Challenges remain for industry in its efforts remove and replace Huawei and ZTE equipment within carrier networks, even though Congress finally allocated $3.08 billion, closing the funding shortfall in the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program (see 2412240036), Summit Ridge Group President Armand Musey said in an interview. Musey's firm advises several carriers in the program.
Small and mid-sized cable operators are largely bullish about President-elect Donald Trump's incoming administration and his choice of FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr to head the agency, expecting aggressive deregulation, ACA Connects President Grant Spellmeyer said during an interview with Communications Daily. Spellmeyer discussed the industry group's 2025 priorities, growing questions surrounding BEAD, and what one does during the lame-duck weeks before inauguration and a new administration. The following transcript was edited for length and clarity.
The U.S. Supreme Court decision doing away with Chevron deference won’t grind the next FCC to a halt but could prompt congressional action on the USF, former FCC officials said during panel discussions Thursday at Broadband Breakfast’s "Broadband in the Trump Administration" event.
Many questions remain about how the U.S. Supreme Court will decide FCC v. Consumers’ Research, lawyers involved in the case said Tuesday during an FCBA webinar. The USF case is expected to be heard in the spring. SCOTUS decided last month to hear a challenge to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' 9-7 en banc decision, which found the USF contribution factor is a "misbegotten tax.” Consumers' Research challenged the contribution factor in the 5th Circuit and other courts.
Communications industry executives and former federal officials said during a Practising Law Institute event Tuesday they see a likely GOP-led budget reconciliation package next year as a potential vehicle for legislation that would reinstate the FCC’s lapsed spectrum auction authority. House Commerce Committee leaders and Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., have repeatedly attempted to reinstate the authority during this Congress only to have their efforts stall (see 2409170066).
Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, could shift the direction Congress’ USF revamp takes when he becomes the panel’s chairman in January, lawmakers and lobbyists told us. Observers believe his impact on what Congress decides will partially depend on how the U.S. Supreme Court rules when it reviews the FCC appeal of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling in favor of Consumers' Research's challenge of the USF contribution methodology (see 2411220050). A high court ruling upholding the 5th Circuit could shift momentum in favor of Cruz’s proposal that Congress make USF funding part of the appropriations process, officials said.
A plan for cutting regulations and federal institutions such as the FCC could target broadband access programs and media regulations, but it's likely that a wave of litigation will stymie it, administrative law professors and attorneys told us. Future Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) heads Vivek Ramasawamy and Space X CEO Elon Musk laid out their plans in a Wall Street Journal opinion column. “It's not to say that maybe some of these changes shouldn't be happening, but, you know, they're taking a wrecking ball to fix something that requires a little bit more finesse than that,” said University of Idaho law professor Linda Jellum. Asked about possible DOGE cuts at the FCC, incoming FCC Chairman Brendan Carr last week told reporters, “There's no question, there's tons of room for driving more efficiency at the FCC." He didn't elaborate.