Sandwich Isles Communications won't get a rehearing with the full court (see 1906030035) to appeal its case against the FCC regarding fines the agency said stemmed from improper USF payments it received between 2002 and 2015 (see 1903280036), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ordered (in Pacer) in docket 19-1056 Wednesday. The three judges who heard the case also won't rehear it. SIC didn't immediately comment.

Consolidated Communications Networks spoke with FCC Wireline Bureau staff on what it could provide the FCC to bolster a petition, so it "can be granted expeditiously," a consultant reported. JSI noted the rural broadband experiment participating telco seeks waiver from certifying that it built out all locations derived from the Connect America model to not keep open an irrevocable letter of credit. Consolidated gets such money for 171 North Dakota extremely high-cost locations where it's "confident" it deployed broadband to all locations in funded census blocks. It "could only find a total of 162 locations after extensive searching in the sparsely populated census blocks" and there's "no mechanism ... for dealing with location discrepancies," said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 10-90. The company fears "it will face penalties for not certifying a completed buildout to 171 locations at the end of the funding period." This telco is separate from the bigger and better-known Northeast U.S. phone-services provider Consolidated Communications Holdings, JSI and Consolidated Communications Holdings representatives emailed us. JSI is that bigger company's USF consultant.

Incumbent rural broadband carriers and competitors disagreed in response to a petition from Texas carriers asking the FCC to prohibit the use of E-rate dollars from the USF to overbuild fiber networks for schools and libraries (see 1905230005). In comments posted to docket 13-184 through Tuesday, incumbents said current competitive bidding rules for E-rate funding can favor large, regional providers over local rural carriers and lead to inefficient use of government dollars when they support the builds of redundant broadband networks at the expense of unserved institutions. Those opposing the petition wrote that the proposals could stifle broadband competition, raise prices for rural schools and libraries, and drive up costs to the USF.

A polygon shapefile approach to submitting provider broadband data, endorsed by NCTA, and a location fabric proposal backed by USTelecom both add valuable data to inform updated national broadband maps from the FCC and aren't mutually exclusive, said cable and telco representatives. Congress asked the FCC to develop more-granular broadband maps to better pinpoint where service is available to consumers and at what speeds. The agency is expected to address the topic at its August meeting (see 1906200048).

The South Carolina Public Service Commission unanimously supported a staff recommendation to combine USF and Lifeline administrative expenses into one general USF expense account. It will have $319,741, the sum of the two previous accounts, the PSC said in the order posted Thursday in docket 1997-239-C. Staff made “a reasonable and practical request involving no additional funds,” the commission said.

Several groups asked the FCC for extra time for comments and replies on the NPRM on a budget cap for the four USF programs (see 1905310069). In a docket 06-122 motion Thursday, they said the complexity of the issues and the potential impact on the USF programs warranted setting deadlines of Sept. 30 and Oct. 30 so as to better ensure a full record. The deadlines currently are July 15 and Aug. 12. Among the 35 signers of the motion are the National Consumer Law Center, Common Cause, the NAACP, Public Knowledge, Alaska and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The telecom industry is eager to help mitigate national security threats stemming from equipment installed on its networks that could be compromised by vendors' ties to the Chinese government, executives said Thursday. Stakeholders wanted to reassure Commissioner Geoffrey Starks at an FCC workshop on his "find it, fix it, fund it" proposal to address vulnerabilities in communications networks (see 1906190050). But carriers, especially those with small, rural subscriber bases, said "rip-and-replace" missions for companies that have Huawei or ZTE equipment installed on their wireless, wireline or broadband networks would be neither quick nor inexpensive. Some estimates place the cost to remove and replace the compromised equipment at well over $1 billion.

The House passed the FY 2020 budget bill containing funding for the FCC and FTC (HR-3351) Wednesday on a 224-196 vote after clearing several telecom and privacy-related amendments (see 1906240061) on voice votes. The measure would give the FTC $349.7 million and the FCC $339 million (see 1906030040). Approved amendments included language from Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., to prohibit the FCC from instituting an overall USF budget cap (see 1905310069). An amendment from Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif., would bar the FCC from using FY 2020 funds to implement “any report, order, or ruling that prevents, prohibits, or preempts a State or locality from mandating the sharing of a building owner’s wiring for communications services in multiple tenant environments.” One from House Republican Conference Chairwoman Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, aims to reallocate $1 million of the FCC funding to prioritize the agency's work to combat robocalls aimed at scamming senior citizens. Rep. Lori Trahan, D-Mass., proposes reallocating $1 in FCC funding to “highlight the importance of completing its investigation” into wireless carriers' location tracking practices, including the sale of customer location tracking data allegedly accessed by bounty hunters (see 1805240073). Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., wants to reallocate $3 million of the FTC funding to encourage the agency to take enforcement action against companies that “fail to protect children's privacy.” Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., ultimately didn't offer her amendment that would have barred the FCC from using new funding to collect further broadband coverage data via Form 477.

Universal Service Administrative Co. wants to hire a contractor to review and update the business process and systems requirements for its rural healthcare application systems within the USF program. USAC wants to know whether the program could be handled more efficiently through outsourcing. Solicitations to the request for proposals are due June 28.

The Oregon House passed and sent to the Senate two broadband bills Monday. Members voted 37-22 for a state USF bill (HB-2184) to establish a broadband fund and expand the definition of retail telecom service to include wireless and VoIP (see 1904030038), and 54-5 for HB-2173 to create a state broadband office and to declare a statewide emergency. Senate President Peter Courtney (D) that day signed a bill ordering a probe into possible RF dangers. After unanimous Senate support (see 1906140050), the House last week voted 50-8 for SB-283 directing the state Health Authority to examine peer-reviewed, independently funded scientific studies about exposure to microwave radiation, including wireless network technologies in schools, and report back by Jan. 2, 2021. The RF bill needs the governor’s signature.