The FCC and the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) are partnering on a trial of georouting calls to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, the commission said Thursday as commissioners approved 988 outage reporting requirements 4-0, as expected (see 2307130010). Commissioners also unanimously approved an order allowing 14 FM6 stations to broadcast analog signals as an ancillary service and an order giving tribal libraries and other E-rate participants greater access to funding.
The use of AI and other technologies in managing how spectrum is used tops the agenda for the FCC’s Aug. 3 meeting, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said Thursday (see 2307130025). The FCC also released the draft items. Commissioners will vote on proposals on power levels for digital FM radio. Also on the agenda, a draft order establishing an up to $75 monthly broadband subsidy for eligible households in high-cost areas through the affordable connectivity program.
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel circulated for a commissioner vote a proposed order that would revise FCC customer proprietary network information and local number portability rules to require wireless carriers to adopt secure authentication methods before redirecting a customer’s phone number to a new device or provider. The order would also require providers to immediately notify customers whenever a SIM change or port-out request is made on their accounts and “take additional steps to protect customers from SIM swap and port-out fraud,” said a Tuesday news release. “These new rules would set baseline requirements that establish a uniform framework across the mobile wireless industry while giving wireless providers the flexibility to deliver the most advanced and appropriate fraud protection measures available,” the FCC said. An accompanying Further NPRM would seek comment on “ways to further harmonize these rules with existing CPNI rules and additional steps the Commission can take to harmonize government efforts to address SIM swap and port-out fraud.” Announcing launch of a Privacy and Data Protection Task Force in June, Rosenworcel said one item would be following up on a SIM swap and port-out fraud notice released last year (see 2111160036). “Every consumer has a right to expect that their mobile phone service providers keep their accounts secure and their data private,” Rosenworcel said: “These updated rules will help protect consumers from ugly new frauds while maintaining their well-established freedom to pick their preferred device and provider.” A CTIA spokesperson emailed, “The wireless industry is committed to working with other stakeholders, including the FCC, to stay ahead of bad actors, while protecting the ability of legitimate customers to transfer their phone number to a new device or wireless provider.”
The FCC will consider additional steps to ensure tribal communities have access to E-rate funding during the agency's July 20 meeting, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a note Wednesday. Rosenworcel circulated a proposal last week to allow the use of E-rate funds for Wi-Fi hot spots (see 2306260029). Also on the agenda are an order addressing local programming and proposed rules on reporting and notice requirements for 988 outages.
NTIA announced funding allocations for its broadband, equity, access, and deployment program Monday. All entities will receive a formal notice of their allocations Friday, the agency said. The $42.5 billion program will be used for broadband deployment efforts, adoption and workforce development. Initial proposals may be submitted from July 1 through Dec. 1. States and territories will have access to 20% of their allocated funds once their proposal is approved by NTIA. Texas is receiving by far the largest BEAD award, at more than $3.3 billion.
More than three years after a 6 GHz Further NPRM was approved in April 2020 (see 2004230059), the FCC hasn't acted. Speculation in 2020 was that the agency could act before the end of the Trump administration (see 2012180057). The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit largely upheld the 2020 6 GHz order 18 months ago (see 2112280047).
The FCC’s administration of its affordable connectivity program and other broadband initiatives won’t be the sole focus of a Wednesday House Communications Subcommittee hearing with commission Chair Jessica Rosenworcel and other commissioners, but it’s likely to be the item with the most bearing on future policymaking, observers said in interviews. The panel is happening a day before two of the commissioners -- Republican Brendan Carr and Democrat Geoffrey Starks -- appear before the Senate Commerce Committee for a joint confirmation hearing with new FCC nominee Anna Gomez (see 2306150068). The House Communications hearing will begin at 10:30 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn.
The FCC is getting more aggressive on data and cybersecurity, with Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel on Friday announcing a July 31 hearing on improving the security of the border gateway protocol (BGP). Rosenworcel also said she circulated a notice of inquiry for a commissioner vote about how broadband providers use data caps as part of subscriber plans. Earlier in the week, Rosenworcel said the FCC was taking a closer look at data privacy, launching a Privacy and Data Protection Task Force (see 230615004).
The FCC’s final 42 GHz NPRM, released Friday, got few changes from the draft proposed by Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, as expected (see 2306020048). Commissioners approved the 42 GHz item 4-0 Thursday (see 2306080042). The final version of the next-generation 911 NPRM adds numerous questions to the draft and got the most tweaks among the items approved Thursday. No major changes were made to the final NPRM on robocalls and robotexts, which were also approved unanimously (see 2306080043).
The Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCCA) remains concerned about harmful interference in the 6 GHz band and asked the FCC to take steps asked for by APCO and others (see 2304030032) to protect band incumbents, said a letter to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, posted Wednesday in docket 18-295. “In MCCA member cities,” the band “supports radio towers, emergency communications centers, and cross-jurisdictional communications,” MCCA said: “Given the importance of these functions, the FCC must ensure that the operations of public safety entities and other incumbent users of the 6 GHz band are adequately protected from potential interference stemming from unlicensed use of the spectrum.”