Operators of tolling systems won't be affected by NextNav's proposal to reconfigure the 902-928 MHz band to allow a “terrestrial complement” to GPS for positioning, navigation and timing services, according to a study that the company filed at the FCC. It supplements a Brattle Group report that NextNav filed previously (see 2507180034).
CPB said Friday it has begun an “orderly wind-down of its operations,” given enactment of the 2025 Rescissions Act to claw back $1.1 billion of its advance funding for FY 2026 and FY 2027 and the Senate Appropriations Committee’s advancement Thursday of its FY26 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee spending bill, which didn’t allocate money to the public broadcasting entity (see 2507310062). Meanwhile, the FCC didn’t comment on whether the Enforcement Bureau will continue investigating PBS and NPR stations for possible violations of underwriting rules (see 2501300065) after the commission released a set of April letters from Chairman Brendan Carr to House lawmakers indicating that the probe “remains ongoing.”
Debate is intensifying at the California Public Utilities Commission over how to define “facilities-based” VoIP providers, which could expand regulatory obligations (see 2410160044), according to reply comments posted Thursday (No. 22-08-008).
Communications Daily is tracking the lawsuits below involving appeals of FCC actions.
Trade groups are urging federal agencies to treat deliberate damage to communications networks, such as fiber-optic cable cuts, as domestic terrorism in some instances and increase investigative and enforcement resources in regions with more incidents. Widespread, organized attacks on communications networks represent "a significant and rapidly growing threat demanding urgent, coordinated federal, state, and local action," the groups said in a letter Wednesday to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and FBI Director Kash Patel.
The California Public Utilities Commission approved $1.2 million in digital literacy and broadband grants during an agency meeting Thursday. The grants, backed by the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) and CASF Broadband Public Housing Account, will support 10 initiatives. Building Skills Partnership received $211,895 to expand its digital literacy and AI program. Digital Equity West received $793,081 to launch eight digital literacy projects across Los Angeles County. EveryoneOn received $175,564 for its digital connections program throughout Los Angeles. The projects are expected to provide training to 1,831 people in underserved communities, said a news release.
Communications Daily is tracking the lawsuits below involving appeals of FCC actions.
The Trump administration's AI action plan specifies a limited role for the FCC. Released Wednesday, the 28-page blueprint focuses on accelerating innovation, building infrastructure and leading the world in AI diplomacy and security. Its priority is eliminating barriers and allowing AI to flourish.
House Communications Subcommittee ranking member Doris Matsui of California and 21 other Democratic lawmakers told Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Tuesday that they have “deep concerns” about NTIA’s updated policy notice for the $42.5 billion BEAD program, which reversed much of what the Biden administration developed in the initiative’s initial rules (see 2506060052). NTIA said Monday it had approved updated BEAD plans for all 56 states and territories, setting up a Sept. 4 deadline for governments to submit a final proposal with the results of at least one round of a mandated “Benefit of the Bargain” subgrantee section process (see 2507210061).
New York will soon be the latest state to make incarcerated individuals' phone calls free in an effort to increase communication accessibility and improve prison safety. Five states -- California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Minnesota -- have already made phone calls free in their facilities. The New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) announced Tuesday that the change will take effect Aug. 1.