Sandwich Isles Communications (SIC) alleged FCC "procedural irregularities" and questioned agency motives since it subjected the carrier to $77 million in USF repayment duties and proposed fines for violations and apparent violations of the high-cost program in Hawaii Dec. 5 (see 1612060032). The commission recently sought comment on a Hawaii Department of Hawaiian Home Lands request for guidance on whether an exclusive DHHL license held by the company violates a Communications Act mandate for the FCC to remove telecom market entry barriers. "The putative licensing issue raised in the February 6 Public Notice was not mentioned in either of the substantive orders issued" Dec. 5, SIC replied in docket 10-90 Thursday: "One of the two public notices specified in the Notice of Apparent Liability ('NAL') was not issued until a few days AFTER the February 6 Public Notice. And, in the unseemly haste to issue the DHHL 'request', the Public Notice truncates the DHHL submission to make it appear that the issue is extremely narrow and the outcome self-evident." SIC complained the comment period was too short and its request for an extension was ignored. "There is reason for SIC to be concerned that the Commission may be, at best, uninterested in the merits of any aspect of this matter, that it regards the outcome of the proceedings as a foregone conclusion, and that its sole purpose is to force SIC to discontinue its service to the HHL so as to allow the ILECs to cherry pick the urbanized areas of the HHL without interference from an [eligible telecom carrier] such as SIC," the company wrote. Supplementing comments of its parent Waimana Enterprises (see 1702280063), SIC said its license doesn't preclude competition in the HHL and criticized how the FCC framed the issue. The agency declined comment Friday.

FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly urged a few tweaks to a law that he said otherwise could lead to big costs for tower companies. Section 2110 of the 2016 FAA Extension, Safety and Security Act requires improved physical markings and/or lighting on small- to medium-sized towers -- those between 50 and 200 feet tall, ORielly said. “If implemented literally, the provision will force expensive retrofits to potentially 50,000 existing towers, such as wireless communications and certain broadcast towers, all new towers that meet the broad definition, and raise tower prices for the next generation of wireless services -- all with little gain to air safety,” O’Rielly said in a blog post. “A few helpful tweaks to the text could be in order.” The provision's original intent may have been narrow, but “the language on its face is fairly broad, and therein lies the problem,” he said. “In essence, those structures that are not specifically carved out are captured. That means that existing and future mid-sized communications towers throughout rural America are included.” O’Rielly said he's most worried about smaller providers, including wireless ISPs. “Added cost of this new mandate could impact their ability to grow or even survive,” he said. “There are new responsibilities to map the applicable areas to which section 2110 applies, requirements to participate in and potentially fund a database of existing towers in these areas, and overall compliance costs that add to the burdens for small providers.” O’Rielly stressed he avoids critiquing or criticizing legislation but wanted to offer suggestions to highlight potential unintended consequences. “CTIA and our members share Commissioner O’Rielly’s deep concerns about the overly broad regulatory impact of the legislation,” said Brad Gillen, CTIA executive vice president. “We encourage Congress to remedy this problem to avoid imposing onerous and unnecessary burdens on the companies that build and maintain our nation’s wireless network infrastructure.” Jonathan Adelstein, president of the Wireless Infrastructure Association, said O'Rielly is right. "We deeply appreciate Commissioner O’Rielly’s attention to the importance of addressing this inadvertent provision that could end up costing the industry hundreds of millions of dollars with no discernable benefit -- all dollars that are better spent on needed broadband infrastructure like 5G deployment," he said. "There is growing recognition on Capitol Hill about the need to clarify this overbroad language."

A new spectrum auction may be wrapped into the bigger infrastructure proposal that Congress and the White House are putting together. President Donald Trump is familiar with the auctions and brought them up in the context of his $1 trillion infrastructure plan, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. House Republicans plan to put together a set of broadband proposals with that package in mind, a key staffer said.

A new spectrum auction may be wrapped into the bigger infrastructure proposal that Congress and the White House are putting together. President Donald Trump is familiar with the auctions and brought them up in the context of his $1 trillion infrastructure plan, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. House Republicans plan to put together a set of broadband proposals with that package in mind, a key staffer said.

The Computer & Communications Industry Association, Internet Association and other industry groups again focused on concerns about EU member states’ adoption of ancillary copyright laws and some countries’ failure to comply with international norms on intermediary liability protections, during testimony Wednesday on the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s 2017 Special 301 proceeding. It's aimed at identifying countries and issues that threaten enforcement of U.S. entities’ IP rights. Ancillary copyright laws, seen as a tax on use of news snippets, and less robust intermediary protections that could be barriers to U.S. platforms were issues industry groups repeatedly raised to USTR last month in comments (see 1702100044).

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai sought to stick to bipartisan ground during his first appearance as chief before Congress Wednesday. He emphasized broadband deployment and other areas of potential cooperation. Senate Commerce Committee Democrats pressed Pai on President Donald Trump and tried to box him in on a possible FCC role overseeing AT&T buying Time Warner. Pai avoided giving details on how he may address the 2015 open internet order. He did say the FCC is likely to stick with the new plan, now in test mode, of releasing some draft items when they've been given to commissioners.

The Computer & Communications Industry Association, Internet Association and other industry groups again focused on concerns about EU member states’ adoption of ancillary copyright laws and some countries’ failure to comply with international norms on intermediary liability protections, during testimony Wednesday on the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s 2017 Special 301 proceeding. It's aimed at identifying countries and issues that threaten enforcement of U.S. entities’ IP rights. Ancillary copyright laws, seen as a tax on use of news snippets, and less robust intermediary protections that could be barriers to U.S. platforms were issues industry groups repeatedly raised to USTR last month in comments (see 1702100044).

In early filings on a Mobilitie petition asking the agency to pre-empt state and local authority over rights of way (see 1703070013) the FCC is getting lots of pushback from local governments concerned about losing control over siting. FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly said Tuesday he’s hopeful the FCC will act soon to accelerate the siting process for wireless facilities, citing the Mobilitie petition (see 1703070018). Comments were due Wednesday on a December FCC Wireless Bureau notice in docket 16-421, after the FCC extended the filing deadline by a month.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai sought to stick to bipartisan ground during his first appearance as chief before Congress Wednesday. He emphasized broadband deployment and other areas of potential cooperation. Senate Commerce Committee Democrats pressed Pai on President Donald Trump and tried to box him in on a possible FCC role overseeing AT&T buying Time Warner. Pai avoided giving details on how he may address the 2015 open internet order. He did say the FCC is likely to stick with the new plan, now in test mode, of releasing some draft items when they've been given to commissioners.

Wednesday’s Senate Commerce Committee hearing comes as a referendum on the new chairmanship of FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, who received his nomination from the White House Tuesday for another five-year term at the agency following his term’s July 1, 2016, expiration. Pai met with President Donald Trump Monday (see 1703060055), and all eyes are on the administration for any information about forthcoming FCC nominations for the two open commissioner spots, one typically for a Republican and one for a Democrat.