Senate Consumer Protection Subcommittee Chair Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Communications Subcommittee ranking member Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., filed an upper chamber companion Thursday to the House Communications Subcommittee-cleared Broadband and Telecommunications Rail Act (HR-6046), Blackburn’s office told us Thursday night.

AARP remains concerned about older adults having an “uninterrupted ability” to reach 911 as the FCC considers proposals to speed up copper retirements and other network changes (see 2509300039), the group said in reply comments Tuesday in docket 25-208. “Because the transition will not occur overnight, it is important to establish a robust consumer-friendly roadmap to guide the nation’s modernization of its telecommunications network such that the transition is seamless for consumers and important consumer protections are retained.”

USTelecom plans to file at the FCC this week a fact sheet urging the commission to cut red tape for wireline builds, a spokesperson said Friday. In response to a notice of inquiry that commissioners approved in September (see 2509300063), the fact sheet offers real-world examples of the impediments faced by carriers.

Congress, and the FCC, may face reduced pressure to reform the USF with an expected drop in its contribution factor, but calls for change won’t go away, experts said Monday. The USF contribution factor is expected to decline from 38.1% in Q4 to 30.9% in Q1, as projected demand decreases, analyst Billy Jack Gregg said Saturday in an email. That’s based on new numbers from the Universal Service Administrative Co.

The FCC would seek comments on options for the upper C band, including an auction of up to 180 MHz of it, in an NPRM to be voted on at the agency's Nov. 20 meeting. Congress has directed the FCC to auction at least 100 MHz of upper C band by July 2027. "We have no time to spare," agency Chairman Brendan Carr said Wednesday. "So it is now time to start making important decisions on how best to unleash new wireless services quickly in the band."

With one of the FCC's largest monthly agendas in recent years -- nine items -- the commissioners on Tuesday unanimously approved everything from a major revamp of the agency's satellite and earth station approvals process to a proposal to end simulcast requirements for the ATSC 3.0 broadcast standard. But three items were adopted Tuesday over the dissents of minority Commissioner Anna Gomez. She said the broadband labels further NPRM was "one of the most anti-consumer items I have ever seen." She also dissented on the prison-calling order and NPRM (see 2510280045) and the wireless direct final rule.

USTelecom elects Jeff England, Silver Star Communications, as board chair; Jennifer Prather, Totelcom Communications, as vice chair; Melissa Mann, Lumen, as secretary; Russell Moore, BBT, as treasurer; Josh Descant, REV, as leadership committee chair; Brad Welch, CentraCom, as committee vice chair; and Kristi Westbrock, CTC, as committee secretary; new to the committee are: Ed McKay, Shentel; John Nelson, Hamilton Communications; and Heath Simpson, Ritter Communications.

The FCC is expected to hold its open meeting Tuesday as scheduled, despite the government shutdown, said Chairman Brendan Carr and other agency officials in interviews. “The plan is to move forward with an in-person October open meeting as scheduled,” an FCC spokesperson told us.

The FCC should rescind the post-Salt Typhoon cyberattack declaratory ruling it made in January, which requires carriers to secure their networks against unlawful access and interception, said CTIA, NCTA and USTelecom in an ex parte filing posted Thursday. The trade groups filed a petition for reconsideration of the ruling in February (see 2502190081).

The suspension of most FCC functions as part of the broader government shutdown (see 2509300060) is already generating “a fair number of negative consequences” for the agency, and the gridlock will worsen the longer the closing lasts, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said Thursday during a USTelecom event. Meanwhile, Senate Communications Subcommittee Chair Deb Fischer, R-Neb., and Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., raised continued concerns about how NTIA’s June 6 policy restructuring notice for its $42.5 billion BEAD program (see 2506060052) is affecting their respective states’ plans for their allocation of the connectivity money.