Citizens Against Government Waste lobbied FCC Republicans on "Restoring Internet Freedom" in recent meetings. CAGW officials urged Commissioners Mike O'Rielly and Brendan Carr and aides to undo Title II net neutrality regulation under the Communications Act, indicated filings (here, here) posted Tuesday in docket 17-108. They also discussed Lifeline USF, use of TV white spaces, vehicle-to-vehicle communications in the 5.9 GHz band and 5G issues, testimony and letters. CAGW made a similar presentation to Chairman Ajit Pai and an aide on Oct. 18. Verizon urged O'Rielly aides in a Thursday meeting to ensure a "national, light touch" broadband framework that isn't undermined by conflicting state and local regulation, a pitch it made recently to Pai advisers (see 1710190057). Also recently, ADT suggested the FCC use Title I ancillary authority to write net neutrality rules protecting alarm-monitoring companies. Akamai asked the FCC to "expressly clarify" that content delivery network services "differ from paid prioritization" by localizing traffic through data storage near users "in a way that is both neutral and reduces overall congestion," said a filing on a meeting with Wireline Bureau Chief Kris Monteith and others.

The FCC Media Bureau reached a $1.5 million settlement with commonly controlled companies that used minor modification rules to move low-power TV stations from their original communities of license to bigger markets, said a consent decree Tuesday. DTV America, Tiger Eye Broadcasting, King Forward and Tiger Eye Licensing also must relinquish more than 20 licenses and modify numerous other licenses. Several pending station applications from the broadcasters will also be dismissed.

Presentations to the FCC Advisory Committee on Diversity and Digital Empowerment and presentations by the ACDDE to the agency will be treated as exempt for ex parte purposes, said a public notice in docket 17-208 Monday. “This treatment is appropriate because presentations to the Committee will not result directly in the promulgation of new rules.” Though the ACDDE may address issues relevant to ongoing FCC proceedings, the FCC won’t use information submitted to or by the panel in considering those matters, the PN said.

Corrections: Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., told us he's interested in bringing up the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (S-1693) for a Senate Commerce Committee markup soon (see 1710270058) ... An Internet Governance Project paper is titled, "In Search of Amoral Registrars: Content Regulation and Domain Name Policy" (see 1710270001).

NTIA urged the FCC to account for federal government telecom needs in streamlining the processes for copper retirements and telecom service discontinuances under Section 214 of the Communications Act. The Commerce Department agency supports proposals in an FCC April NPRM for streamlining the process and suggested ways to "accommodate the needs" of federal agency communications customers. "The technology transition will require federal agencies -- on a possibly very short timetable -- to purchase new IP-compatible customer premises equipment (CPE) or to install new equipment to ensure that agencies’ existing CPE and systems can interoperate with IP-based services," said NTIA comments posted Monday in docket 17-84. "While the Commission should aggressively reduce or eliminate unjustified regulatory barriers to network evolution, it must also take steps to assure that before a service is discontinued or a facility is retired (1) federal customers are aware of the prospective change and its potential service implications for them, (2) carriers have acquainted themselves with their federal customers’ situation and needs, and (3) carriers have taken reasonable steps to ensure that federal users will continue to be served adequately after discontinuance." The FCC Thursday put a draft item on the tentative agenda for a Nov. 16 vote (see 1710270040).

FCC commissioners approved temporary rules providing immediate relief to schools and libraries contending with “devastation” caused by Harvey, Irma and Maria. It makes "available targeted support to schools and libraries that are forced to rebuild facilities and replace equipment damaged by the Hurricanes, and provide increased flexibility for eligible services to be restored through service substitutions,” said a Monday order in docket 02-6. “We also make additional E-rate support available for schools that are incurring additional costs for eligible services, e.g., for increased bandwidth demand, because they are serving students that have been displaced by the storms, even though they may not be contending with substantial physical damage.” The storms together caused an estimated $150 billion-$200 billion in damage to areas of Texas, Florida and Georgia “and to virtually all of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands,” the agency said. Commissioner Mike O’Rielly said the FCC should work with Congress to determine whether the USF programs could be reimbursed through funding targeted to hurricane relief. “Because of our budget limitations, providing additional funding from universal service generally comes at the expense of other recipients,” O’Rielly said.

Large internet edge providers could get drawn into common-carrier regulation along with broadband ISPs due to concerns on both sides of the political spectrum, suggested Harold Feld, Public Knowledge senior vice president, at an NTCA conference Thursday. "What we have seen is that both from the left and the right, nobody is happy; everybody believes the platform is discriminating against them -- they’re not going after the awful guys who are on the other side," Feld said on a recorded clip forwarded by an industry attendee. "So I personally think that we may be headed toward some kind of overall common carriage in this universe for not just the traditional ISPs but for some of these larger platforms as well. I frankly think that they would be much better off embracing it rather than trying to maintain a world where they maintain editorial discretion but try not to use it too much."

The FCC's enforcement procedures are in need of reform, Verizon said in comments on a Sept. 18 NPRM. The NPRM proposes (see 1709180057) creating uniform procedural rules for certain complaint proceedings "delegated to the Enforcement Bureau and currently handled by its Market Disputes Resolution Division (MDRD) and Telecommunications Consumers Division (TCD)." Verizon said the FCC should harmonize procedural rules that apply to Section 208 formal complaints, Section 224 pole attachment complaints and disability access complaints, as proposed in the NPRM, but look at other changes as well. Other commenters urged the FCC to take a more cautious approach. Additional changes are needed, Verizon said in comments filed in docket 17-245. The FCC “should discontinue its recent misapplication of the continuing violation theory,” Verizon said. “It should publish a manual with its enforcement procedures, so that all parties know how the Commission will handle enforcement matters. It should provide drafts of Notices of Apparent Liability (NAL) to investigation targets and allow those targets to respond before the Commission votes on the NAL.” The FCC also should require a vote on consent decrees at the request of any two commissioners, Verizon argued. But groups representing people with disabilities asked the FCC to act with care. “Formal complaints, along with requests for dispute assistance (47 C.F.R. §14.32), and informal complaints (47 C.F.R. §14.34), help people with disabilities gain access to telecommunications,” said the filing led by Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. NCTA said the FCC shouldn’t further limit information from utility pole owners available to companies that choose to file pole attachment complaints. Such information is “integral to the resolution of pole attachment complaints and promotes settlement, and, as the current rules recognize, is largely within the knowledge and control of the utility pole owner,” NCTA said. “The Commission should ensure that any changes provide adequate due process and do not hinder parties’ ability to fully and effectively participate in formal complaint proceedings,” NCTA said. The Edison Electric Institute, which represents electric utilities, also advised caution. The FCC “should be wary of emphasizing the speed of resolution of complaints over the fundamental fairness of the complaint resolution process,” EEI said. “The Commission’s highest priority should be ensuring that the complaint resolution process remains fundamentally fair to the parties.”

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr told Free Press the agency is committed to publishing guidelines on protecting constitutional rights of FCC meeting attendees, the group said in a filing posted Thursday to docket 17-179. The group sought "clarification" on the issue. There have been some instances of journalists and others saying they mistreatment at FCC meetings (see 1706220056). Free Press also asked for public hearings and a comprehensive report about the effects of recent hurricanes on communications networks. The agency should collect data on how restoration efforts differed by region, and on whether “restoration redlining was taking place, whereby wealthy and white neighborhoods are reconnected faster than poorer and more ethnically and racially diverse neighborhoods,” it said. Free Press also said the agency should seek public comment on net neutrality consumer complaints and asked Carr to vote against Sinclair buying Tribune and relaxing media ownership rules.

Correction: The name of Atlantic-ACM senior partner is Aaron Blazar (see 1710250041).