Prospects for FCC Spectrum Language in CR Dim as Government Shutdown Looms
A looming federal government shutdown could hinder work on important broadband and satellite regulatory initiatives, said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson during a Wednesday Axios event. The chances Congress will include language in a continuing resolution to restore at least parts of the FCC's spectrum auction authorities continued to dim Wednesday, but officials and lobbyists we spoke with don't believe those efforts are completely dead. The Senate and House made progress into Wednesday afternoon on their respective continuing resolution proposals to prevent a shutdown that would otherwise occur this weekend, but major differences between the two measures continued to stoke widespread apprehension on Capitol Hill.
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CR language Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., filed Tuesday included neither a temporary restoration of the FCC mandate that expired in March nor the text of the narrower 5G Spectrum Authority Licensing Enforcement Act (S-2787), despite recent hopes to the contrary (see 2309220057). The Senate voted 77-19 Tuesday to invoke cloture on a motion to proceed to the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act (HR-3935), the shell bill for the chamber's CR text. That proposal would extend federal appropriations through Nov. 17.
S-2787's status was in flux as recently as Tuesday morning, but Senate leaders' desire for a relatively “clean” CR that didn't include large numbers of extraneous provisions ultimately made it difficult to attach even S-2787 to a proposal, communications sector lobbyists said. S-2787 would give the FCC authority for 90 days to issue T-Mobile and other winning bidders the licenses they bought in the 2.5 GHz band auction last year (see 2309140051). The Senate passed the measure by unanimous consent last week, but its backers believed it had a chance of faster advancement through the House if included in a CR.
“I don’t know if” the chances for FCC spectrum language to make it into a CR are “totally dead, but this is obviously not a good sign for this round,” said Senate Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee Chairman Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., in an interview. “We will definitely take another run at this” when the Senate’s proposed CR expires in mid-November “because I believe we need to extend” the FCC’s authority while negotiations on a broader spectrum bill continue. “Obviously somebody objected” to addressing the issue, he said. Van Hollen noted the Senate had already passed S-2787 and the House could still move to adopt it as a stand-alone measure.
The FCC is “doing an assessment now” of its plan for a lapse in its appropriations, as are other federal agencies, Rosenworcel said at the Axios event. She cited the FCC's work to “reorganize” its space and satellite regulatory operations in the Space Bureau (see 2309210055) as one area of potential impact. “We've done a lot to streamline our processes” and “address orbital debris,” but “I also need to hire a lot more satellite engineers, space experts, lawyers and economists," she said: That’s already “challenging because all of those people are in demand,” but it's even harder amid the shutdown threat.
NTIA is “now planning for what will happen if we're not funded next week” and the situation is “a giant distraction for our teams,” Davidson said. NTIA has “a set of people who work incredibly hard to support” its missions and “that they may not get a paycheck after next week is really upsetting and disturbing for a lot of them.” It “takes a lot of our attention away" from "the work on AI and from the work on broadband,” he said: “Every week that we're delayed is another week that people are not going to get the connections that they need to thrive online.”
The House continued debate Wednesday on its version of the FY 2024 Agriculture Department appropriations measure (HR-4368) without an amendment led by Reps. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, and Susan Davis, D-Calif., that would revise the department’s ReConnect program rules to set minimum speed requirements at 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload in areas where at least 75% of households lack access to that level of service (see 2307240063). Nunn withdrew the amendment Tuesday after the House voted 216-212 to begin debate on HR-4368 and three other appropriations bills.
Nunn said on the floor the amendment was aimed at raising “awareness” of the need to “improve” ReConnect and agreed to withdraw it after getting an agreement from House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., that he would “incorporate” changes to the program into the 2023 farm bill. “I want to make sure this is something that is enduring” to “ensure we are investing” for the long term, Nunn said. House Agriculture “worked hard to close the connectivity gap” and intends to “report a farm bill” that “will ensure that USDA broadband programs can meet the needs of rural America,” Thompson said.
The House adopted three other connectivity amendments on a voice vote as part of an en bloc package. One from Reps. Marc Molinaro, R-N.Y., and Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., would redirect $3 million from USDA’s Office of Chief Financial Officer to the Rural Utilities Service’s Distance Learning, Telemedicine and Broadband program. Two other amendments are symbolic proposals highlighting the importance of expanding rural telehealth access and broadband in “economically disadvantaged communities.”