States want to extend temporary relaxations of telehealth restrictions made on an emergency basis during the pandemic, legislators and experts said in interviews. Nearly every state is “trying to grapple with what just happened with COVID and telehealth,” said American Telemedicine Association Director-Public Policy Kyle Zebley, citing 550 telehealth bills in 49 states this year.
An EU-backed cloud industry code could help ease data transfer woes caused by Privacy Shield's rejection by the European Court of Justice in Schrems II (see 2007160002), its developers said. The Cloud Code of Conduct, developed by the European Commission and the cloud computing community, is expecting final approval soon, and work is underway on a "Third Country Module" of the CoC that could be an alternative to PS, said K&L Gates data protection attorney Thomas Nietsch.
U.S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia Circuit judges questioned a settlement in principle (in Pacer) that Aureon and AT&T agreed to for a tariff dispute, during oral argument (see 2103190067). Whether a settlement had been reached or if the court had standing to hear the case were issues Friday.
Congressional aides and FCC officials emphasized appetite for bipartisan telecom cooperation, at a Friday FCBA event. Aides to the House and Senate Commerce committees noted lawmakers' work to reach a compromise on infrastructure spending including broadband. FCC members’ chiefs of staff said commissioners learned to work together amid the 2-2 split.
Staying 4.9 GHz band rules as proposed by acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel isn't a slam dunk. Rosenworcel appears close to lining up a third vote to support the stay, FCC and public safety officials said in interviews last week. The order made broad changes, giving control to states. Few of them have engaged. A Louisiana bill to reallocate the band per the FCC order got unanimous House approval last month and could pass the Senate Monday.
The Senate intends to take up the Endless Frontier Act next week in a package of legislation, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the floor Thursday. He’s hopeful for a Senate vote this month.
Satellite regulatory experts said SpaceX's license modification approved last month (see 2104270027) could point to how the FCC is thinking about collision risk in its orbital debris proceeding. An official said it’s not clear when acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel might act on that docket, or if she will wait until there’s a full roster of commissioners. The official said the rules update item doesn’t seem very controversial since SpaceX and Kuiper, which would be the biggest mega constellations, haven’t lodged big objections.
The regulatory patchwork of federal agencies covering emerging space operators got a mixed report card during an FCBA panel discussion Wednesday. Many applauded recent changes while saying the slow pace of licensing approvals is a challenge, and innovations often don't fit into the regulatory status quo. “It's not exactly enabling companies to move fast,” said Spire regulatory lawyer Michelle McClure.
Some inmate calling services providers and advocates back FCC-proposed interim rate caps for interstate and international ICS calls (see 2104280084), said those who spoke with us recently. Some said the commission didn’t go far enough and needs to clarify how site commission payments factor into the new rates. Don't look for big changes between the proposal released April 29 and what commissioners vote for at their May 20 meeting, one official said.
The Senate Commerce Committee advanced Lina Khan’s FTC nomination to the Senate floor, with four Republicans opposed (see 2105070062). The committee also approved the Endless Frontier Act (S-1260) 24-4 during Wednesday’s markup.