A bill introduced last week in the Wyoming Senate would require the state Transportation Department to conduct a study by Sept. 1, 2027, about transitioning to next-generation 911. SB-0032 would also direct DOT to provide grants to cover any shortfall in funding needed to operate the current 911 system.
The timing of the White House's AI executive order, which seeks to preempt state regulation of the technology (see 2512110068), targets AI laws that took effect Thursday, according to King & Spalding technology lawyers. They wrote this week that such state laws include California’s Transparency in Frontier AI Act and Texas’ Responsible AI Governance Act. Courts will have to determine if and how the order affects state AI laws, they added.
A Virginia bill prefiled Monday would require the chief judges of the state's general district courts, juvenile and domestic relations district courts, and circuit courts to set a policy about the use and possession of portable electronic devices in court. SB-83, which was introduced by state Sen. Saddam Salim (D) and referred to the Senate Courts of Justice Committee, would also require that the policy be conspicuously posted at the courthouse entrance and on court or local government websites.
NTIA’s reshaping of the BEAD program “illustrates how the Biden combination of spending and regulation created market distortions and raised costs,” said the Wall Street Journal editorial board in an op-ed Sunday. “It would be better if Congress let markets allocate capital, but the Trump Administration is ensuring taxpayer funds are spent in a more cost-effective way that does less economic harm.”
Internet censorship "is now a four-season sport in state legislatures," with few state lawmakers of either party being against it, wrote Eric Goldman, co-director of Santa Clara University's High Tech Law Institute, in a blog post Sunday. Many efforts revolve around requiring publishers to authenticate the ages of all readers, whether they're minors or not, and to restrict minors’ access to online content or resources, Goldman said.
Verizon and Frontier Communications executives warned the leaders of the California Public Utilities Commission last week that the proposed decision approving the companies' merger (see 2512150008) on the condition of delivering 100/20 Mbps broadband to particularly remote areas could be a problem.
The FCC's revoking California's waiver from using the National Lifeline Accountability Database (NLAD) and federal eligibility determination will ultimately hurt the 1.77 million Californians receiving federal Lifeline support, the California Public Utilities Commission said. In a docket 11-42 filing Tuesday, the CPUC said the FCC's move also will hurt the 39 Lifeline providers designated as eligible telecommunications carriers serving those Californians. The FCC in November stopped the state from doing its own Lifeline subscriber verifications (see 2511200031).
Missouri would update its rules on unwanted telephone solicitation to include a ban on call spoofing, under HB-2546, a prefiled bill submitted Monday by state Rep. Mitch Boggs (R). The bill would also expand the state attorney general's database of phone numbers for those who don't want to receive telephone solicitations to include business subscribers, not just residential subscribers.
Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson has asked Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) to opine on whether, under the state's expanded telemarketing law, businesses that send marketing texts to consumers who agree to the messages are subject to state registration and disclosure requirements and potential liability under those provisions.
NTIA has approved North Carolina's BEAD final proposal, Gov. Josh Stein (D) said Monday. While the state was allocated $1.53 billion, its final proposal is for more than $300 million in deployment spending, he said. BEAD-funded projects should launch in mid-2026, he said, adding that $670 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding for broadband will bring connectivity to more than 250,000 locations by the end of next year.