The Senate is likely to consider its own version of the House-passed FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (HR-4350) this week via a substitute version of the legislation from Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, D-R.I., and “may add” the chamber-passed U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (S-1260) to the measure, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told senators Sunday. The House passed HR-4350 in September (see 2109240067) with language from the 911 Supporting Accurate Views of Emergency Services Act (HR-2351) and Promoting U.S. Wireless Leadership Act (HR-3003). Senators are vying to attach some other tech and telecom amendments to the measure, including dueling amendments on Ligado’s L-band plans.

House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., told us he’s going to continue to press for progress on major tech and telecom legislation during the remainder of this Congress rather than coast toward retirement, after his October announcement he won’t run for re-election (see 2110180043). Doyle concedes progress on net neutrality legislation, a top issue since he became lead Communications Democrat in 2017, may not happen before he retires. Communications Vice Chair Doris Matsui of California and two other members -- Reps. G.K. Butterfield of North Carolina and Yvette Clarke of New York -- confirmed to us they’re considering whether they would like to succeed Doyle as the subpanel’s lead Democrat.

Dish Network said T-Mobile delaying its CDMA shutdown by three months isn’t reason to deny Dish’s petition asking the California Public Utilities Commission to require the wireless carrier adhere to a three-year migration timeline. “While additional time is welcome, three months is not nearly sufficient to protect Boost consumers in California -- many of whom are low income -- who are expected to still be using the CDMA network beyond March 31,” Dish wrote Wednesday in A.18-07-011. Dish said similar last week after T-Mobile's announcement (see 2110250042). Dish will still have well over a million customers on the CDMA network by the cutoff, Chairman Charlie Ergen said on a quarterly call Thursday. “If T-Mobile has their way, those customers will lose service,” he said. “Based on T-Mobile’s testimony in California, they won’t even be able to make 911 calls.” Dish doesn’t oppose the shutdown, said Ergen. “Technology needs to advance, but you can’t do it on the back of customers.” T-Mobile will have to “live with the fact that they’re anti-consumer,” he said. T-Mobile didn’t comment.

Funding for next-generation 911 is the “biggest challenge and would make the biggest difference,” said Public Safety Bureau Deputy Chief David Furth during an FCBA CLE webinar. “It’s not something the FCC can make happen.” Others agreed about the importance of funding. Congress is considering NG-911 money via the Build Back Better Act budget reconciliation package (HR-5376), but the measure's prospects remain unclear.

Backers of two bills aimed at mandating improvements to spectrum policy coordination between the FCC and other federal agencies are hopeful President Joe Biden’s recent FCC and NTIA nominations (see 2110260076) will mean a clearer path to those measures’ enactment. The House Communications Subcommittee unanimously advanced one of the measures, the Spectrum Coordination Act (HR-2501), during a Wednesday markup. The subpanel also unanimously cleared the Data Mapping to Save Moms’ Lives Act (HR-1218).

Some House Homeland Security Emergency Preparedness Subcommittee members signaled interest during a Tuesday virtual hearing in beefing up first responders’ communications infrastructure around the National Mall, the Capitol Building and other federal facilities in Washington, in response to the Jan. 6 insurrection. Other members cited the need for improving foreign language speakers’ access to wireless emergency alerts and other public safety communications platforms, and pressed Federal Emergency Management Agency Director-Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Antwane Johnson on how that entity has implemented fixes to prevent a repeat of the 2018 false missile alert in Hawaii (see 1801160054). The Tuesday hearing was a follow-up to an October one that highlighted communications issues first responders continue to face 20 years after the Sept. 11 attacks (see 2110070059).

A revised draft of the Build Back Better Act budget reconciliation bill (HR-5376) released Thursday retains funding for next-generation 911, the FCC Emergency Connectivity Fund and other telecom programs included in a House Commerce Committee-approved proposal, albeit with less money than first proposed and as expected (see 2110010001). The $1.75 trillion measure also includes reduced amounts of broadband affordability and some other telecom money Senate Democrats sought (see 2109020072).

Congress didn’t intend for VoIP customers to pay more for 911 than landline users, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday. The court denied Autauga County and other Alabama 911 districts’ challenge to an FCC order restricting state, local and tribal governments in Alabama from charging higher 911 calling fees for VoIP than traditional telecom services (see 1910250063). The 911 districts argued Congress’ 911 fee parity rule allowed them to charge VoIP and non-VoIP providers using a different unit of measure for each if they applied the same base fee for each unit. “We independently arrive at the same conclusion as the FCC,” wrote Judge Robin Rosenbaum (in Pacer). “We base our determination on congressional intent as expressed in the statutory text, structure, and purpose of the NET 911 Act.” Congress’ 911 fee parity rule “precludes any unit of measurement that results in higher total fees for VoIP subscribers than for non-VoIP subscribers with the same outbound concurrent call capacity,” said Rosenbaum: The point “is to ensure that VoIP and non-VoIP subscribers financially support 911 facilities to the same extent that they burden the hotline service.” The Alabama group’s reading “would create a financial disincentive to potential VoIP providers and subscribers alike to invest in VoIP services,” contrary to Congress’ desire to encourage a rapid VoIP transition, she said. Judges Robert Luck and Lanier Anderson joined the opinion. The Alabama districts, FCC and intervenors USTelecom, NCTA and AT&T didn’t comment by our deadline.

Ohio should pass a bill to fund and construct a next-generation 911 network by extending a wireless-only 911 fee to other voice services, said Republican and Democratic state representatives at a livestreamed Tuesday hearing. The bill would ensure "reliable, accurate, equitable, and state-of-the-art access to emergency services regardless of location,” HB-445 sponsor Rep. Rick Carfagna (R) told the Transportation and Public Safety Committee. Committee members who asked questions mostly supported the effort, though some asked about costs.

Verizon Senior Vice President-Chief Privacy Officer Karen Zacharia plans to retire from the carrier in 2022; Donna Epps moves up to senior vice president-public policy and strategic alliances and Sue Vinci ascends to vice president-chief privacy officer, reporting to Epps, to whom Global Public Policy teams that are led by Director-International Public Policy Fiona Taylor also report ... Continental Automated Buildings Association names Greg Walker CEO, succeeding Ron Zimmer, retired after 23 years with the organization.