The combined FY 2021 appropriations and COVID-19 aid omnibus bill (HR-133) that Congress passed Monday got further praise from lawmakers and other observers Monday and Tuesday for its broadband funding and other telecom and tech policy provisions (see 2012210055). HR-133’s approval got a far more mixed reception from within the copyright community because it includes text from the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement (Case) Act (HR-2426/S-1273) and Protecting Lawful Streaming Act. Both chambers passed HR-133 by overwhelming margins, sending the measure to President Donald Trump.
The FCC’s C-band auction appears likely to become the largest FCC spectrum auction in history, surpassing the AWS-3 auction five years ago, which brought in $41.3 billion in provisionally winning bids (see 1501300051). The rising numbers likely indicate AT&T and Dish Network are joining Verizon as major bidders in the auction, experts said Monday. The auction hit $50.84 billion Monday after 38 rounds.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is expected to tee up several items for a busy Jan. 13 open meeting, his last on the commission, industry and FCC officials said. The meeting is expected to be 5G heavy, including a notice on a 2.5 GHz auction and possibly a 3.45-3.55 GHz and 12 GHz item. Also likely, Pai could use the meeting to complete action on the latest Communications Act Section 706 report (see 2012160051) and other items he wants to finalize as chairman. Pai’s blog on the meeting is due Tuesday, with draft items to be posted Wednesday.
Both houses of Congress were expected to vote Monday night on the combined FY 2021 appropriations and COVID-19 aid omnibus bill (HR-133), after Hill leaders reached a deal on the measure, which includes $6.82 billion for broadband and a raft of other tech and telecom policy provisions. HR-133 also includes increases in annual funding for the FCC, FTC, NTIA and other agencies compared with FY 2020. The Senate was, meanwhile, set to hold a revote on invoking cloture on FCC inspector general nominee Chase Johnson after failing a first try Saturday.
Privacy rules for companies like Zoom are “becoming clearer,” though work remains, said Josh Kallmer, head-global public policy. “Privacy is an incredibly complex subject, and there are some very complex pieces of the law out there around the world and a very interesting debate happening” in the U.S., he said on C-SPAN's The Communicators. The show was to have been telecast over this weekend.
The FCC Enforcement Bureau is cracking down on what it calls overly broad confidentiality requests that ask for confidential treatment of material that needn't be secret, bureau Chief Rosemary Harold said at an FCBA event Friday. She said the bureau started addressing confidentiality requests in an earlier stage of investigations than in the past.
Telecom policy observers are awaiting a final decision on House Commerce Committee Republicans’ leadership and membership roster after Democrats selected five members Thursday to join the committee’s ranks next Congress. Selected by the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee are: Angie Craig of Minnesota, Lizzie Fletcher of Texas, Kathleen Rice of New York, Kim Schrier of Washington and Lori Trahan of Massachusetts. Four House Commerce Democrats and six Republicans chose not to seek reelection this year, including ranking member Greg Walden, R-Ore.
Fox isn't getting its requested permanent waiver of the newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership rule (see 2010060032) that some critics feared the media company would receive in the waning days of the Trump administration. Instead, it got a temporary waiver to continue cross-ownership of WWOR-TV Secaucus, New Jersey, and the New York Post. The FCC Media Bureau order was issued late Friday afternoon (see 2012180069).
Further changes to rules for the 6 GHz band could wait for the next administration, some speculated in interviews last week. Chairman Ajit Pai declined to seek a vote at the Dec. 10 commissioners' meeting and it's unclear if he will do more before he leaves Jan. 20 (see 2011180065).
President-elect Joe Biden's transition ethics rules governing the FCC, FTC and other agency review teams are relatively weak, some observers said in recent interviews. They pointed to the rules' relatively lax limits on "revolving door" movement of industry officials into the temporary roles that could influence the incoming administration's actions. The landing teams have been working with the FCC, FTC (see 2011250059) and other agencies since late November, when the General Services Administration began allowing the federal government to begin the transition process.