The FCC invited further input on the definition of "automatic telephone dialing systems" covered by Telephone Consumer Protection Act restrictions, after a recent 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruling interpreted ATDS broadly, siding with a consumer's text-messaging complaint in Jordan Marks v. Crunch San Diego, No. 14-56834 (see 1809210029). Comments are due Oct. 17, replies Oct. 24, said a Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau public notice Wednesday in docket 18-152. The 9th Circuit panel "interpreted the statutory language expansively so that an 'automatic telephone dialing system' is 'not limited to devices with the capacity to call numbers produced by a random or sequential number generator, but also includes devices with the capacity to store numbers and to dial stored numbers automatically,” said the PN. But it noted the D.C. Circuit's ACA International March ruling, overturning key parts of a 2015 FCC order, held that "the TCPA unambiguously foreclosed any interpretation that 'would appear to subject ordinary calls from any conventional smartphone to the Act’s coverage'" (see 1803160053). Industry parties generally seek a narrow ATDS definition, while consumer groups urge a broad definition with a carve-out for ordinary smartphone use.

The Lifeline national verifier fully launches Nov. 2 in the first six participating states: Colorado, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming, the FCC said in a Tuesday public notice in docket 11-42. Starting that day, eligible telecom carriers in those states will be required to use the national verifier and consumers can check eligibility on CheckLifeline.org, the agency said. Consumers and providers can mail Lifeline forms and documents to Universal Service Administrative Co. for manual review, it said. Reverification of existing Lifeline subscribers began June 18 at the start of the soft launch (see 1806180054) and will continue after Nov. 2, the FCC said. The national verifier is now doing annual recertification for all Lifeline consumers in the six states, it said.

It’s premature for the FCC to adopt a Z-axis metric for accurate vertical location of wireless calls, commented CTIA and the National Emergency Number Association this week on an August report by carriers in docket 07-114 (see 1809100037). “Rather than adopting ±5 meters as the Z-Axis metric, we suggest that further testing is a better course to advance vertical location solutions that will help to provide ‘floor level’ accuracy,” CTIA commented. NENA agreed the FCC should delay adopting a Z-axis metric until a more accurate one can be validated and supported by test results: “Assuming a modest extension of the Commission’s deadline is possible, NENA hopes that the Test Bed will recognize the exceptional circumstances and allow the additional Stage Z testing to occur as quickly as is practicable for the involved parties.” Citizens and public safety need a z-axis accuracy benchmark of plus-or-minus 3 meters, NENA said. Carriers’ proposal for 5-meter metric “fails the American public and the dedicated public safety professionals who need actionable, accurate location information to find 9-1-1 callers during emergencies,” APCO commented. The National Public Safety Telecommunications Council agreed: “A vertical z-axis metric providing floor level accuracy is needed and can be accomplished with available technology, especially within the generous implementation timeframe established in the rules adopted in 2015.” NextNav technology can achieve accuracy within 2 meters, said NextNav and the Boulder Regional Emergency Telephone Service Authority. NextNav supported a 3-meter metric, while BRETSA said it should be 2 meters.

Wednesday’s wireless emergency alert test “will not adversely affect your service or device,” Verizon General Counsel Craig Silliman said Tuesday. Silliman posted information about the test due to "controversy on social media” about the alert (see 1809210032). The alerts are “really critical, lifesaving information” that citizens should want to receive, a Federal Emergency Management Agency official said Tuesday on a media call with FCC and FEMA officials who spoke on background, not allowing their names to be used. A journalist and two small-business owners in New York City sued (in Pacer) the government last week at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, claiming the presidential alerts violate First and Fourth Amendment rights to be free from government-compelled listening and warrantless trespass into cellular devices. People mightn't get the alert if their device is configured incorrectly or if they are on a phone call or have an active data session ongoing throughout the 30-minute window, the official said. The wireless industry is working on standards to address those issues, said another FEMA official. The first nationwide WEA test will start at 2:18 p.m. EDT and last 30 minutes, and the fourth nationwide emergency alert system exercise starts at 2:20 p.m., the agencies said. The WEA message will carry the header “Presidential Alert” and read, “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.” The EAS simulation will read: “THIS IS A TEST of the National Emergency Alert System. This system was developed by broadcast and cable operators in voluntary cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Federal Communication Commission, and local authorities to keep you informed in the event of an emergency. If this had been an actual emergency an official message would have followed the tone alert you heard at the start of this message. A similar wireless emergency alert test message has been sent to all cell phones in the nation. Some cell phones will receive the message. Others will not. No action is required.” The FCC looks forward to more dialogue and lesson sharing with stakeholders after the test, Public Safety Bureau Chief Lisa Fowlkes blogged Tuesday. The agency plans to engage with FEMA and wireless providers, and welcomes public feedback, she said. D.C. text alert subscribers received a notice about the WEA and EAS tests Tuesday. The test was previously postponed due to response efforts to Hurricane Florence.

More work remains to further narrow the digital divide, a Cox Communications event heard Monday, even as speakers praised the cable ISP's stepped-up efforts. "Bridging the digital divide should be, in my view, a national mission," said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. He seeks "a kick-starter for a national conversation" and said Cox's Connect2Compete low-cost broadband for the poor helps: It's "a bold initiative that is tackling the issue of broadband affordability." More than 400,000 low-income Americans at one point have been or still are connected via the plan. That's "almost two Topekas," the Kansas native said of the city there, to laughter. Cox's promise to spend $20 million over the next year on Connect2Compete is "going to make a ton of difference," said Zach Leverenz, founder-chair of EveryoneOn, which helps administer the program. "There’s more still to be done." He noted many millions of Americans can't afford broadband, and they are mostly minorities. Connect2Compete has boosted speeds and added digital literacy tools and has tech centers in boys and girls clubs, with the product targeting low-income families with school-age kids, said Cox President Pat Esser. "It's that multitiered access that is critical" to help close the broadband gap, he said. Cox's Connect2Compete and a similar product, Comcast's Internet Essentials, cost users about $10 monthly, spokespeople for the companies told us. Connect2Compete is in about 70,000 households, the Cox spokesman said. IE has connected 6 million low-income people from 1.5 million households to broadband, Comcast's representative noted, citing figures released in August. That makes it the top such U.S. program.

Edward Parkinson will lead FirstNet as acting CEO, replacing Mike Poth, FirstNet said Monday. Poth announced his resignation last month after holding the post for about three years; some officials called for quick action to maintain stability (see 1809270049). Parkinson is an internal hire who recently led state outreach efforts as executive director-external affairs. He joined in 2013 after helping to write legislation to establish FirstNet while on the House Homeland Security Committee staff. “His understanding of the history of the FirstNet project and his leadership roles throughout its maturation make him uniquely qualified to lead the FirstNet organization into its operational phase,” said NTIA Administrator David Redl. APCO Executive Director Derek Poarch said Parkinson was one of the authority’s “key early staff members” who “helped shepherd FirstNet through its formation and into the advanced communications option it is today.”

House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., was the only lawmaker to argue during a Thursday House Communications Subcommittee hearing that the 1992 Cable Act is too outdated to still be effectual (see 1809270062). ... The interference limit contour proposed by the FCC is 54 dBu (see 1809270059).

The FCC Wireless Bureau cited three auctions targeted for FY 2019 which begins Monday. Auction 100 will address any remaining mutually exclusive applications by AM broadcasters seeking new cross-service FM translators to retransmit their stations, said a public notice Friday. It said Auction 101, which is to begin Nov. 14, "will offer 3,072 Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service (UMFUS) licenses in the 28 GHz band on a county basis," to be followed by Auction 102 offering "2,912 UMFUS licenses in the 24 GHz band on a Partial Economic Area (PEA) basis." Chairman Ajit Pai also indicated the FCC will "move forward with a single auction of the 37 GHz, 39 GHz, and 47 GHz bands in the second half of 2019, subject to the outcome of certain pending issues in GN Docket No. 14-177," the PN said.

If there's a government shutdown, 243 of 1,450 FCC employees will continue working under an updated commission plan for an orderly shutdown if there's a lapse in appropriations. "The remaining 1,207 employees, or 83 percent of those on board before the plan was implemented, will have been furloughed and sent home," said the plan issued Thursday. A December plan anticipated 227 of the 1,492 FCC employees (15 percent) would continue working.

The FCC released an NPRM seeking to improve 911 calling and location accuracy, which was adopted 4-0 at commissioners' meeting Wednesday to begin implementing Kari's Law and Ray Baum's Act requirements (see 1809260047). The notice proposes to ensure 911 direct dialing from multiline telephone systems in larger buildings and complexes, and to ensure "dispatchable location" information is conveyed with calls to emergency responders. Comments will be due 45 days and replies 75 days after Federal Register publication, said the text in Thursday's Daily Digest.