The FCC is maintaining pressure against unwanted robocalls under new Chairman Ajit Pai, with the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau to host a webinar on the topic Feb. 16 starting at 1 p.m. EST. “The webinar, which is free and intended for all consumers, will provide information about consumers’ rights and the steps they can take to prevent robocalls,” the FCC said in a Thursday public notice. “Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the FCC plays a crucial role in helping consumers stop unwanted calls, text messages and faxes, particularly when they involve unwanted marketing or scams.” Earlier this week, Pai called robocalls a “scourge” the FCC could attack through its Enforcement Bureau (see 1701310056). Former Chairman Ton Wheeler made curbing robocalls an FCC priority (see 1608190034).

The next NARUC Telecom Committee chairman is Paul Kjellander from the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, he told us Thursday. The Republican state commissioner was already a committee member and replaces departing Chairman Chris Nelson from South Dakota. Kjellander sponsored a resolution on 10-digital dialing at NARUC's meeting last summer (see 1611080012). Earlier this week, NARUC released draft resolutions for its Feb. 12-15 meeting in Washington (see 1701310048).

Microsoft is asking Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to create a system to grant exceptions for specific foreign nationals to enter the U.S. while still protecting national security. In a Thursday letter to the cabinet officials, Brad Smith, the company's chief legal officer, said 76 Microsoft employees and their 41 dependents who live and work in the U.S. possess nonimmigrant visas and were affected by President Donald Trump's order last week that temporarily prevents entry of people from seven predominantly Muslim nations (see 1701300023). As a result, some parents outside the U.S. were separated from their children and one employee can't visit a critically ill parent abroad, said Smith, who also penned a blog post explaining the request. Smith outlined criteria that the government could follow to create case-by-case exceptions for people, who would be given a "Responsible Known Traveler with Pressing Needs" classification. "These individuals are 'known quantities' in their communities: their character, personalities, conduct, and behavior is understood by their colleagues, employers, friends, and neighbors" and they also fill critical roles in their organizations, Smith wrote in the post. Foreign students also should be considered within the exception process, he said. The departments of Homeland Security and State didn't comment. But Smith said the proposal shouldn't end the larger debate about the order. Recode Wednesday reported Microsoft is among several tech and other types of companies, including Alphabet/Google, Apple, Facebook and Uber, planning to send a joint letter to Trump opposing the travel ban.

There seems to be "growing consensus that the FCC's structure is outdated" and should be modernized, said American Enterprise Institute scholar Mark Jamison, who was a member of the Trump transition team for the agency. The commission should "implement a structure that moves away from antiquated silos -- wireline, wireless, and media -- to one that reflects the dynamic digital ecosystem and that empowers sound analytical work," he wrote in a blog post Thursday, noting he was speaking for himself not the team. "The existing structure limits how people think, encourages regulations that limit innovation, and facilitates industry capture." The FCC's regulation, bureaucracy, reports and analysis "still reflect old wireline, wireless, and media structure. Unsurprisingly, the staff and commissioners often think in these silos," he wrote. Consumers "are not so stuck in the past" and prefer "technology-neutral broadband," with mobility key to many applications, but the U.S. "is far behind even many developing countries when it comes to laws and rules reflecting convergence," he wrote, citing policies in Tanzania, El Salvador and Guatemala. "A new structure would be up to the FCC and Congress, but one that would satisfy my criteria would include a bureau of economics that analyzes markets and conducts regulatory impact assessments, a bureau of engineering that assesses technologies and is responsible for radio spectrum and equipment licensing, a competition bureau that enforces rules that protect liberal markets, and a consumer protection bureau," he wrote. "The first two bureaus are all about analysis, and the latter two are all about enforcement, with the engineering bureau also playing a significant enforcement role with respect to radio spectrum and equipment." The transition team apparently discussed restructuring the FCC along the lines that Jamison backed (see 1701310062).

The Media Bureau set aside a reconsideration order it issued on delegated authority early last month denying a recon petition by numerous noncommercial education stations of rules around FCC registration numbers (FRNs). "We conclude that these petitions for reconsideration are more appropriately handled at the Commission level," said an order signed by acting Media Bureau Chief Michelle Carey. The previous recon order had been signed by then-Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake, who left the commission Tuesday. "On our own motion and pursuant to our existing authority under Section 1.113 of the Commission’s rules, we hereby set aside the Order on Reconsideration," Thursday's order said. "The public, in all its diversity, 'owns' our stations, and station directors serve as volunteers without remuneration or any other financial interest," said America's Public Television Stations CEO Patrick Butler in a released statement. "We applaud the new Commission majority’s understanding of this fundamental fact of public television, and we appreciate its swift action to overturn a well-intentioned but misbegotten order." The reversal came the same day the NCE stations filed an appeal of the Media Bureau's action on delegated authority, asking the FCC to reverse the decision rejecting their appeal of restricted use FCC reporting number (RUFRN) rules designed to gather ownership data on broadcast licenses. The RUFRN requires NCE governing board members to submit personal information to obtain FCC registration numbers. NCE stations have said that will discourage otherwise qualified people from sitting on NCE governing boards. Pai and Commissioner Mike O'Rielly indicated in January the Media Bureau decision could be overturned, saying, “The good news is that today’s decision need not be the final word” (see 1701040069). Legislation to revoke the rule was also introduced in Congress (see 1701170061). “The Commission should review and rescind the Bureau’s order,” the NCE stations said in Thursday's application for review.

The Department of Homeland Security’s National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) is generally performing the 11 cybersecurity functions required under the 2014 National Cybersecurity Protection Act (NCPA) but must fully establish metrics and a method for evaluating its performance, GAO reported Wednesday. NCCIC is charged under NCPA and the 2015 Cybersecurity Act with acting as the main federal civilian portal for cybersecurity-related information sharing and manages a range of programs related to monitoring and mitigating for cybersecurity vulnerabilities (see 1412100052 and 1512160068). NCCIC hasn't “determined the applicability” of NCPA-required implementation principles to all of its required cybersecurity functions nor “established metrics and methods by which to evaluate its performance against the principles,” GAO said. “Until NCCIC determines the applicability of the principles to its functions and develops metrics and methods to evaluate its performance against the principles, the center cannot ensure that it is effectively meeting its statutory requirements.” GAO also said a range of factors is impeding NCCIC from “efficiently” performing its role, including an inability to “completely track and consolidate cyber incidents reported to the center.” NCCIC doesn’t have “ready access” to the contact information for all owners and operators of cyber-dependent critical infrastructure entities, GAO said. DHS agreed to GAO recommendations.

The Wireless ISP Association objected to the broadband subsidy bidding proposals of a rural electric/telco coalition (see 1701230060) and New Shoreham, Rhode Island. WISPA said the proposed Connect America Fund Phase II bid-weighting tiers are at odds with the "cost-effective, technology-neutral" approach it advanced. It said the rural coalition's plan "contravenes" the view of now-Chairman Ajit Pai, who said in a May statement the aim was "to maximize the broadband bang we get for our universal service buck by establishing a flexible weighting system that should incentivize carriers to deploy faster service to rural America at the lowest possible price to the taxpayer." The rural coalition plan has two basic flaws, said a WISPA filing Wednesday in docket 10-90: It would prioritize a gigabit performance tier, and it based biding weights on reserve prices, not on the percentage of the bid, "which further exacerbates the one-sided nature of its thinly-veiled fiber-biased approach." "The Rural Coalition also inappropriately seeks to re-litigate application requirements and eligibility criteria that the Commission adopted ... for which reconsideration has not been sought," WISPA wrote. "New Shoreham’s ex parte letter suggests how the Commission can allocate CAF II support to those states where price cap carriers declined the model-based offer, an approach with which WISPA disagrees." An American Cable Association filing Tuesday proposed bid weights that would give a 60 percent discount -- the biggest in the reverse auction -- to the "Above Baseline" speed tier (more than 100/20 Mbps), and a 15 percent discount to the gigabit tier (more than 1 Gbps/500 Mbps). "ACA’s methodology reflects the fact that, based on market data and industry trends, the Minimum and Baseline tiers either do not or will not meet consumer needs, most urban consumers will be subscribing to the Above-Baseline tier in the next five years, and the Gigabit tier provides additional 'future-proof' value over a 10 year period," it wrote.

Neustar asked the FCC to approve the company's planned sale to Aerial Investors, a company formed by Golden Gate Private Equity. The privatization should be approved "because the nature of Neustar’s business and its day-to-day management will not change, and Neustar will remain impartial and neutral after the change to new ownership," said a filing Wednesday in docket 92-237, noting the company is administrator of the North American numbering plan, local number portability (LNP), pooling and telecom relay service numbering. "To ensure that Neustar remains impartial and neutral, its new ownership has agreed to implement the Neutrality Plan ... pursuant to which the entire ownership interest in Neustar will be placed in a voting trust controlled by Golden Gate Capital, which is unaffiliated with any U.S. telecommunications service provider, interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol provider, or internet-based TRS provider." The sale, which already received antitrust clearance and could be reviewed by the executive branch's "Team Telecom," isn't expected to slow the LNP administrator transition to iconectiv (see 1612140062). Meanwhile, North American Portability Management filed its latest monthly status report on the LNP administrator transition in docket 09-109. NAPM said it, PwC and iconectiv had executed a draft four-way nondisclosure agreement provided by Neustar that will facilitate transition meetings (see 1701180049). Neustar asked the FCC to reverse a bureau letter siding with NAPM in a dispute over those terms (see 1701190030).

The Telecommunications Industry Association, which has undergone major management changes since 2014, Wednesday announced the hiring of four industry veterans to senior positions. Cinnamon Rogers, formerly of Time Warner and Time Warner Cable, Discovery Communications and NCTA, is the new senior vice president-government affairs. James Reid had been doing that job, after he was hired in 2015 from Capitol Hill, where he worked for ex-Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va. Reid left Tuesday, a TIA spokeswoman told us Wednesday. Another TIA senior vice president also hired around the same time as Reid, Patty Higginbotham, also left this week, the spokeswoman said. Higginbotham had been general counsel. In other personnel news at the group, Brenda Boehm, who has worked for a long list of companies, including Nokia, Alcatel-Lucent and Cisco, is now chief strategy officer, TIA said in a news release. Susan Medick, who spent two decades as the top financial executive at the Auto Care Association, is now chief financial officer. Susan Schramm, formerly at Viavi Solutions, was named chief marketing officer and senior vice president-membership. In October 2014, TIA got a new CEO, Scott Belcher, the former CEO of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (see 1410090071). Former TIA President Grant Seiffert subsequently left the association. Belcher also left at the end of 2016, replaced by interim CEO David Heard, TIA chairman. TIA is searching for a new permanent CEO (see 1611140021). “These four new executives bring proven leadership, diverse experience and fresh ideas to the TIA management team,” Heard said. “They have been in the trenches delivering results for business and government, and they understand how TIA can help drive revenue opportunities and get things done for our members.”

AT&T is testing smart lighting in Atlanta with Georgia Power and General Electric’s Current, the company said in a Tuesday news release. The city and power company will pilot Current’s IoT sensor platform for cities and install 1,000 wirelessly controlled LED lights. The companies plan to test the smart lighting in five areas of Atlanta, including the North Avenue Corridor where AT&T is testing other smart city technologies, the Buckhead Loop, a major business, retail and entertainment area, and near Atlanta’s football stadium. Meanwhile, AT&T is talking to power companies and others about trials of a broadband-over-power-lines (BPL) technology called Project AirGig, the carrier said in a news release Tuesday. AT&T plans trials in at least two locations by this fall of the technology that combines BPL and millimeter wave wireless, the carrier said. “One location will be in the United States with others to be determined in the coming months.”