Don’t release state USF support to Frontier Communications until oral argument over last month's 24-day outage, the South Carolina Public Service Commission directed the Office of Regulatory Staff. Commissioners voted 5-1 Monday for the directive. The PSC clerk and parties should coordinate to schedule argument, it said. Frontier has used state USF money “for the purpose intended by law -- making affordable telephone service available to our South Carolina customers," and the company will cooperate with any audit, a spokesperson emailed Tuesday.

The FCC proposes precluding anyone or entity debarred or suspended from a government funding program such as the USF from serving on an FCC advisory committee "or comparable Commission groups or task forces," said the final NPRM on docket 19-309 and in Tuesday's Daily Digest. That's an addition from the initial draft.

Report ISPs are deploying broadband to all Americans "in a reasonable and timely fashion," industry told the FCC in comments posted through Monday in docket 19-285 on a notice of inquiry for the 15th annual Communications Act Section 706 report (see 1910230065). Critics said the last report overstated broadband deployment (see 1905290017).

The FCC approved national security supply chain rules Friday, barring equipment from Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE from networks funded by the USF and establishing rules that could block other providers (see 1910290054). Commissioner Mike O’Rielly voted yes, with reservations. Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said the FCC needs to do more and should have acted more quickly. Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said smaller carriers using USF should be reimbursed for ripping Chinese gear out of their networks. Officials acknowledged the item got late changes sought by commissioners (see 1911200030).

The FCC approved over a dissent by Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel rules requiring carriers to provide height above ellipsoid (HAE) data from wireless calls to 911, within 3 meters accuracy for 80 percent of calls, starting in the largest markets in April 2021. APCO and some others in public safety are concerned the mandate will mean an FCC retreat from dispatchable location. Such more specific location is a concept endorsed by commissioners 5-0 in January 2015 under former Chairman Tom Wheeler (see 1501290066).

FCC commissioners are seeking various changes to the national security supply chain rules set for a vote Friday. FCC officials said the email chain has been active this week, with all the commissioners seeking edits from Chairman Ajit Pai and staff. Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel laid out in detail the changes she wants in the order in a Wednesday speech at the 5G Securing Rural Engagement Initiative in Flowood, Mississippi.

FCC Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks dissented in an order released Tuesday (and adopted last Friday) that updates rules for the USF Lifeline program's minimum mobile broadband service standards. The FCC said it would waive the increase in minimum standards, but only in part, to require mobile broadband Lifeline carriers to offer more than 3 GB per month Dec. 1-Nov. 30, 2020, and the agency denied industry petitions to pause a phase-down in voice-only support from $9.25 to $7.25 per month, as expected (see 1911150062).

The FCC should take five new steps to manage fraud risks in its USF programs supporting broadband deployment in high-cost rural areas, said a GAO report released Monday. It recommended the FCC: (1) ensure it follows leading practices from a GAO fraud risk framework; (2) plan regular fraud-risk assessments tailored to the high-cost program and assess those risks; (3) design and implement an anti-fraud strategy for the high-cost program with specific control activities based upon the results of the fraud-risk assessment and a corresponding fraud risk profile; (4) assess the model-based support mechanism to determine how well it produces reliable cost estimates; and (5) consider whether to mandate the use of the model-based support mechanism depending on the results of the assessment. "Given the continuing importance of deploying telecommunications services in difficult-to-serve areas, effective oversight for rate-of-return carriers is an important component for helping ensure that the high-cost program's finite funds are used properly to meet the intent of the program," GAO said. House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said he “requested this report because it was clear FCC was failing to adequately protect the high-cost program against flagrant waste, fraud and abuse of federal funds by some rate-of-return carriers.” The GAO “agrees” with that view and FCC Chairman Ajit Pai “must heed GAO’s recommendations and implement an antifraud strategy for the program,” Pallone said. In comments attached to the public report, FCC Managing Director Mark Stephens and Wireline Bureau Chief Kris Monteith said the agency remains "committed to our statutory obligation to close the digital divide, while preventing waste, fraud, and abuse of universal service funding." They noted the FCC gave small, rural carriers the opportunity to elect model-based high-cost support "in exchange for robust broadband deployment" to help advance its objective to protect USF from waste, fraud and abuse. The FCC said it will implement the GAO's recommendations through the Office of the Managing Director.

Suspending South Carolina USF support to Frontier Communications while an audit takes place would be like handing “down a sentence before holding a trial,” and is “neither supported by law nor regulation,” Frontier said Monday in docket 2019-352-C. After a 24-day Frontier outage last month, the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff asked the Public Service Commission to freeze payments pending an audit to determine whether the carrier appropriately used the funding (see 1911140033). Frontier said it answered ORS requests for information and will cooperate with any audit, even though the carrier think it’s “unnecessary” because “even with USF support Frontier is suffering a net loss on its regulated operations in South Carolina.” Suspending support would cause Frontier irreparable harm as a carrier of last resort, it said.

FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said rural telecom providers should become active participants in challenging the accuracy of broadband maps as the FCC upgrades location data reporting in its USF programs. "You can provide a public service," she said Monday at an NTCA telecom policy summit. She wants the broadband mapping program to aim for both speed and accuracy. "Fast and right are not alternatives," she said. "We just have to do both." Rosenworcel also joked she's not "all in" with the RDOF label for the upcoming Rural Digital Opportunity Fund that would allocate up to $20 billion to deploy broadband in unserved and underserved rural markets. Applause broke out in the room when Rosenworcel asked providers to focus on audacious goals and think beyond their current plans so rural broadband customers don't fall behind during the course of the 10-year RDOF program. She asked providers to remember how fast change comes and how often they would need to rebuild their networks.