The Alaska Connect Fund is critical to improving mobile service in the state, the Alaska Telecom Association said in a series of meetings at the FCC. “We urged the Commission to quickly move forward” on the fund “to provide needed certainty to carriers and the consumers they serve in the state,” a filing posted Tuesday in docket 10-90 said: “Universal service support is essential to make service available and affordable in Alaska and the Alaska Connect Fund can build on past successes.” The group met with aides to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and Commissioners Geoffrey Starks and Anna Gomez, and with staff at the Wireless and Wireline bureaus and the Office of Economics and Analytics.
The House Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee rescheduled a postponed Wednesday hearing on the FCC's FY 2025 federal funding request (see 2405030068) for May 16, the panel said Monday. The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. in 2359 Rayburn. The House Commerce Committee confirmed Monday a postponed Tuesday hearing on the FCC’s FY25 budget request would happen at “a later date.”
The FCC's ongoing, contested L-band regulatory proceeding is the proper place for addressing Ligado's concerns regarding its use of the spectrum, especially as the FCC could provide Ligado with adequate relief, DOJ told the U.S. Court of Federal Claims Monday. In a docket in support of the defendant U.S. government's motion to dismiss, Justice said FCC licenses aren't property for purposes of the takings clause, and Ligado hasn't pleaded an authorized taking of its license anyway. DOJ said Ligado's "grab-bag of takings theories" is rife with deficiencies. Ligado is alleging its L-band rights, worth tens of billions, were rendered valueless by U.S. taking of Ligado's property (see 2310130003). The U.S. is seeking dismissal (see 2401260003). DOJ on Monday said that Ligado is ignoring that the FCC's 2020 Ligado order faces eight reconsideration petitions that are pending. It said Ligado is asking the federal court to usurp FCC decision-making and the judicial review process "by depriving the FCC of the opportunity to adjudicate any takings claims and by awarding Ligado billions in compensation for the alleged taking of supposed property -- the modified license -- that the FCC or court of appeals may later abrogate."
The expiration of FCC auction authority was a problem that could have been avoided, House Communications ranking member Doris Matsui, D-Calif., said during CTIA’s 5G Summit Monday (see 2405060051). Congress should strike a deal now that restores auction authority, she said. “With a hamstrung FCC, we're going to be limited in what we can achieve,” Matsui said. “I don't think we can afford to wait any longer.” The U.S. is at a “crossroads,” Matsui said: “Networks are converging, consumer demand is skyrocketing, and global competition is heating up. In short, the stakes couldn't be higher.” The lapse of auction authority more than a year ago was “an avoidable failure,” she said. Matsui called for “a more nimble and predictable spectrum governance regime” and for flexibility from government and industry. “Vital federal missions cannot be jeopardized -- we all agree on that -- but uncompromising rigidity in defining the tools needed for those missions can result in federal paralysis,” she said. The government’s study of the lower 3 GHz band, the national spectrum strategy's requirement, must be “driven by engineering and science” and the Commerce Committee will make sure that happens, Matsui said. In addition, she stressed the importance of Congress funding an extension of the affordability connectivity program (see 2405020072). Despite all the money spent on deploying broadband, without "affordability we can't have the connectivity we need,” she said. For House Communications Subcommittee Chair Bob Latta, R-Ohio, the challenge of crafting legislation on 5G issues and the future of communications is avoiding anything that slows progress. “A lot of times when I talk to the industry, they're way past us,” Latta said. “The last thing we want to do is pass legislation where [we’re] looking in the rearview mirror,” he said. Latta said he keeps an open door and wants industry input. “You got ideas, suggestions, you've got problems, let us know what they are,” he said. Latta remains concerned about the broadband equity, access and deployment program and other spending initiatives. “The federal government should not be out there picking winners and losers,” he said. In addition, Latta is concerned about overbuilding current networks. He said fellow lawmakers find it difficult "to believe and understand that we have over 130 different broadband programs spread across 15 departments and agencies … administering billions of dollars.”
The FCC released the final text of an order restoring net neutrality and reclassifying broadband internet access service as a Communications Act Title II telecom service Tuesday. Commissioners approved the item during their April open meeting in a 3-2 vote. An initial comparison between the final text and the draft shows several changes, including "no rate regulation, no tariffing, no unbundling of last-mile facilities, and no cost accounting rules" as part of the Title II reclassification (see 2404250004). The order also clarified that "we have not determined that regulation of zero-rating and interconnection is detrimental, leaving room for states to experiment and explore their own approaches within the bounds of our overarching federal framework." The FCC added to the state preemption section that “the mere existence of a state affordability program is not rate regulation.” The commission won’t “address any particular program here,” it said. “Nevertheless, we find that states have a critical role to play in promoting broadband affordability and ensuring connectivity for low-income consumers.” The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld New York state’s affordable broadband law one day after the FCC adopted the Title II decision (see 2404260051).
The Universal Service Administrative Co's. (USAC) role in administering the FCC's Universal Service Fund programs "is purely administrative," the FCC told the U.S. Supreme Court in response to Consumers' Research's challenge of how the commission determines quarterly contribution factors (see 2401100044). USAC "must comply with detailed regulations issued by the FCC" and "helps the FCC compute the amount of each quarterly payment" carriers must contribute, the agency said in an opposition brief filed in docket 23-456.
Most comments support an Enterprise Wireless Alliance petition at the FCC seeking modifications to Part 90 rules to eliminate the assignment of frequencies within the band's 809-816/854-861 MHz portion to specific pools of eligible entities (see 2402280033). Public safety groups opposed the change.
Adell Broadcasting will bring legal action against Nexstar and Mission Broadcasting if Mission doesn’t accept the FCC’s conditions for approving Mission’s proposed $75 million buy of Adell’s WADL Mount Clemens, Michigan (see 2404240070), Adell CEO Kevin Adell told us in an interview Tuesday.
NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson announced on Tuesday the agency is making available $420 million in funding to build radio equipment needed to spur open radio access networks in the U.S. and abroad, under Phase 2 of the Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund. Plans are to make the first grants in the fall, he said. Applications are due July 10. Davidson spoke during a Center for Strategic and International Studies event.
Comments are due June 6, replies July 8, on the FCC's proposed prohibition of most-favored nation and alternative distribution method provisions in carriage agreements between independent programmers and multichannel video programming distributors, said a notice for Tuesday's Federal Register (docket 24-115). The FCC commissioners approved 3-2 an NPRM last month regarding indie programmers that proposed the restriction on carriage agreement terms and sought comment on bundling practices broadly (see 2404190063).