NTIA approved New York’s application to access $36 million to implement the state’s digital equity plan, the federal agency said Thursday. The money comes from the $1.44 billion state digital equity capacity grant program. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) said, “These funds will empower our communities with the skills, devices, and connectivity they need to thrive in today’s digital world -- whether it’s accessing critical health care resources, expanding job opportunities, or enhancing educational tools for our students.”

Telecom companies balked at consumer advocates’ call to apply California carrier of last resort (COLR) obligations to broadband. The California Public Utilities Commission posted reply comments Thursday in a rulemaking about how to update the state’s 30-year-old COLR rules (docket R.24-06-012). In initial comments last month, carriers subject to COLR requirements asked that the CPUC shed those obligations in many parts of the state, while consumer advocates said COLR obligations remain necessary and should be updated to include high-speed internet service, not just voice (see 2410020037). Frontier Communications replied Wednesday that it opposes expanding the proceeding to do “a complex, controversial evaluation of legal and policy matters pertaining to the Commission’s potential regulation of broadband services.” Likewise, Consolidated Communications said the CPUC should "decline the invitation to undertake a substantial review of its regulatory jurisdiction over broadband services.” TDS protested that the consumer groups "seek to greatly expand this OIR beyond its intended purpose” without providing factual or legal reasons. Don’t let public advocates "transform this … into a generic telecommunications industry reexamination docket,” said a coalition of small rural local exchange carriers. Representing cable companies, the California Broadband and Video Association warned that adding broadband to the definition of a basic service or extending COLR obligations to broadband providers would be federally preempted. Meanwhile, the CPUC’s independent Public Advocates Office pushed back on companies that said COLR obligations are outdated and should be eliminated. "In reality, the COLR concept remains essential to the guarantee of universal service, but must be updated to reflect the state’s transformed telecommunications landscape,” PAO said. AT&T disagreed. "Maintaining COLR obligations where they are superfluous would divert resources from vital broadband investments to outdated [time division multiplexed] networks, which are increasingly unwanted by consumers,” the carrier said. “It would not only stifle competition by arbitrarily constraining ILECs alone but also result in unnecessary operational costs and increased environmental harm due to prolonged use of copper networks.”

Florida urged a federal court to quickly issue a permanent injunction against Smartbiz Telecom to stop scam calls. Attorney General Ashley Moody (R) filed the motion Wednesday at the U.S. District Court for Southern Florida in case 1:22-cv-23945. Last month, the court partly granted Florida’s request for summary judgment, ruling that Smartbiz may be held liable for illegal robocalls transmitted over its network under the Truth in Caller ID Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule (see 2409200034). However, the court said it would move to trial on the state’s additional counts alleging Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) violations. “Defendant is actively transmitting high volumes of fraudulent and otherwise illegal robocalls into the United States,” said Moody. “Entry of a permanent injunction as soon as possible and prior to the final disposition of this action will prevent avoidable fraud losses caused by the scam calls Defendant continues to transmit to consumers.” Enjoining Smartbiz would be appropriate regardless of whether the AG succeeds in trial on the TCPA counts, added the Florida AG. Given the company’s “intentional, repeated illegal conduct and dishonesty,” the court should “cut Defendant off from the United States telephone network,” said Moody: That would be “the least restrictive measure that will still end Defendant’s dangerous and illegal conduct.”

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) signed a bill reauthorizing the state’s call-before-you-dig law on Tuesday. The legislature passed SB-1237 last week (see 2410230015). During a September hearing, Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission Chairman Stephen DeFrank supported reauthorizing the 811 law because of an expected influx of broadband work and other reasons (see 2409170004). NARUC plans to vote in November on a proposed resolution on 811 cost sharing (see 2410290041).

The California Privacy Protection Agency will conduct an investigative sweep of data broker registration compliance under the state’s Delete Act, the CPPA said Wednesday. The law requires data brokers to register with the CPPA and pay an annual fee. Starting in 2026, data brokers must honor consumer requests to delete all their personal information.

New England next year might become the first U.S. region where all states have comprehensive privacy laws, a Computer & Communications Industry Association official said Wednesday as CCIA released a report on state privacy. “Much of the activity around new privacy protections took place in northeastern states this year with New Hampshire and Rhode Island passing privacy bills, while Maine and Vermont failed to get data privacy laws across the finish line,” said Alex Spyropoulos, CCIA Northeast regional policy manager. CCIA will be watching the latter two states and Massachusetts to pass bills next year, he said. “Some of the conflicts within states that didn’t ultimately pass bills were due to disagreements over standards or definitions and trying to match those with Europe’s privacy laws.” CCIA State Policy Manager Jordan Rodell urges states considering comprehensive privacy bills in 2025 to prioritize aligning their policies with other states’ laws. The CCIA report noted that many states have harmonized definitions and business requirements, but Maryland last year diverged from the pack with strict data minimization rules. “This approach could inadvertently stifle innovation and business activity within the state by limiting the flexibility of covered entities to leverage collected data for new and potentially beneficial purposes.”

NTIA approved more than $12 million in Digital Equity Act state digital equity capacity grant program funding to Minnesota Wednesday. The state plans to use the funding for launching a digital opportunity leaders network pilot program and exploring potential models for a program similar to the FCC's affordable connectivity program. "For the first time, every state in the nation has a digital equity plan in place to promote widespread adoption of high-speed internet services," said NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson: "Minnesota can now request access to the funds to put its digital equity plan into action." The agency also approved more than $9 million for Connecticut. That award "comes at a perfect time" to further the state's existing initiatives addressing the digital divide, said Gov. Ned Lamont (D): "We are grateful for this investment." Connecticut plans to use the funding to create an urban and rural digital navigator pilot program and build digital literacy and equity resources.

The U.S. Supreme Court distributed for the justices’ Nov. 15 conference a petition for writ of certiorari by ISP groups challenging the New York Affordable Broadband Act, said a text-only docket entry Wednesday (docket 24-161). In a reply brief the same day, the New York State Telecommunications Association and other telecom industry petitioners argued the court should take the case. Litigation has kept New York state from enforcing the 2021 law requiring $15 monthly plans with 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload speeds for qualifying low-income households. Uncertainty over whether broadband is a Title I or Title II service under the Communications Act has complicated the case, with some arguing for delaying the New York case until the courts resolve that issue (see 2410160036). NYSTA and the other ISP groups argued that SCOTUS should take the case because it “presents questions of national importance … and requires review to remedy serious legal error.” If the high court has any doubts, it should ask the U.S. solicitor general to weigh in, they added.

The Nebraska Public Service Commission will investigate service quality issues of price-cap telecom carriers in separate, company-specific proceedings, the PSC decided Tuesday. The commission voted 5-0 at a livestreamed meeting for an order closing a 3-year-old docket (C-5303) that had tried to investigate Lumen, Windstream and Frontier Communications in a single proceeding. The PSC said it remains concerned about reported service-quality issues including lengthy outages, deteriorating equipment, inadequate staffing and poor customer service. However, it found “the specific challenges and solutions needed to address those challenges are unique to each carrier.” The carriers weren’t sufficiently forthcoming in the combined docket, noted the PSC. “The Commission hopes that future efforts to improve service quality for Nebraskans are met with a cooperative spirit.”

NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) asked a federal court for a preliminary injunction of a Florida law that restricts kids’ access to social media and pornography websites. The groups filed the motion Tuesday at the U.S. District Court for Northern Florida, following up on a complaint they submitted Monday (see 2410280021). Granting the motion would stop the Florida law from taking effect Jan. 1. The court should rule on a preliminary injunction before that date because the law “will have a substantial impact upon the First Amendment rights of members of CCIA and NetChoice, and upon the rights of users of those members’ services,” wrote the plaintiffs, who also requested oral argument before a decision is made. The law requires parental consent before children ages 14 and 15 can use social media, while prohibiting parents from overriding a ban on children 13 and younger.