Some 800 ISPs suspended broadband data caps during the FCC's Keep Americans Connected pledge. In many cases, they'll be back after KAC expires at month's end, experts said in interviews. Data caps aren't directly part of the commitment. The agency did urge ISPs to "relax" them. Providers including AT&T and Comcast opted to provide unlimited data through the pledge. Asked what happens after June 30, they and numerous other major providers, plus the FCC, didn't comment Thursday.

A California proposal to require 72-hour backup power at many cellsites would help in wildfires and public safety power shutoffs, local government officials told us this week. The California Public Utilities Commission may vote July 16 on a proposed decision giving wireless providers 12 months to deploy generators in tier 2 and 3 high-fire-threat districts (see 2006110071). Generators that last days are better than batteries that last hours, and localities don't mind giving some leeway to industry in places where deploying is difficult, the local officials said.

National 911 groups will explore how operators could field calls from home, heads of the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) and National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA) said in interviews last week. Operators began working remotely in Alexandria, Virginia, when the coronavirus struck the U.S. Most public safety answering points (PSAPs) don’t allow that, despite widespread safety concerns of having call takers working near each other indoors (see 2003180033).

Municipal broadband networks see a spike in subscribers and users upgrading speeds amid the coronavirus, said executives in recent interviews. The pandemic supports allowing muni broadband, they and other local advocates said. Skeptics countered that a short-term boom doesn’t set aside questionable economics. A North Carolina bill allowing public-private partnerships but keeping other limits has bipartisan support, but ISPs remain staunchly opposed, said state Rep. Josh Dobson (R).

U.S. carriers have kept up with unprecedented demand under COVID-19, American Tower CEO Tom Bartlett told the Wireless Infrastructure Association’s ConnectX virtual conference Tuesday. The conference's goal is to help explain what’s happening “on the ground” during the pandemic, said WIA President Jonathan Adelstein. “Everybody recognizes how essential having reliable wireless service is.”

Despite the Covid-19 surge in the use of residential landline phones, stakeholders don't expect a reversal in the long-term trend toward mobile-only households. Residential landline voice traffic rose dramatically this spring as Americans sheltered in place, with volume reaching traditional Mother's Day levels in March.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is circulating an NPRM to “take the next statutorily required step to implement” the 2012 spectrum law's mandate for public safety to move off the 470-512 MHz T band by 2021. Pai on Friday also repeated his call for Congress to repeal the rule. Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., again urged Congress to undo the T-band mandate. The House was expected Friday night to have voted on the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (Heroes) Act (HR-6800), which includes language from the Don’t Break Up the T-Band Act (HR-451) to undo the statute (see 2005130059).

A second phase of comments on 911 grant program information collection requirements starts Friday, says Friday's Federal Register. The comments will be due June 15, after a 30-day period while OMB reviews the collection instrument. It follows a 60-day comment period announced in March 6's FR.

Nevada doesn’t seem to adequately oversee counties’ use of 911 fees, FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly alleged in a letter released Thursday to Division of Emergency Management Chief Justin Luna. O’Rielly followed up on the FCC’s 2019 report that at least one Nevada county diverted the revenue in 2018 (see 1912190077). “States have flexibility in how they structure their 9-1-1 systems, and while Nevada has implemented a relatively decentralized 9-1-1 system, there needs to be some semblance of cohesion throughout such a system to ensure emergency call centers are being properly funded and that Nevada consumers are not being deceived or ripped off by their government(s),” said the commissioner. “Such cohesion seems to be lacking in Nevada.” O’Rielly asked why the state didn’t submit fuller information about counties’ practices and if it could improve for the next report. Luna didn't comment.

The pandemic is making the case for next-generation 911 while complicating some deployments, state emergency number officials and others told us this month. “Our migration schedule is completely destroyed,” said Colorado State 911 Program Manager Daryl Branson. COVID-19 hot spot New York City plans to roll out text-to-911 next month and is still targeting 2024 to complete a NG-911 project proposed three years ago.