Former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler didn't work with Gigi Sohn when he headed NCTA (see 2303070082).

Airport and aircraft operators regulated by the Transportation Safety Administration are now required to develop an implementation plan for improving their cybersecurity resilience and preventing disruption to their infrastructure, the agency said Tuesday. It said it was issuing the cybersecurity amendment on an emergency basis due to "persistent cybersecurity threats against U.S. critical infrastructure, including the aviation sector." Affected airports and operators also must develop network segmentation policies and controls to make sure operational technology systems can continue to operate safely if an information technology system gets compromised and create access control measures to secure and prevent unauthorized access to critical cyber systems, the TSA said.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is "impatient for some real action" on diversity and inclusion in tech employment ranks, she said Monday at a Communications Equity and Diversity Council forum. Diverse workforces have been shown demonstrably to be "a win/win for businesses and workers," but employment in the tech sector doesn't look like the population overall, she said. Many employees still "know what it's like to be 'the only,'" she said, noting her own experience as the FCC's only permanent female chair. She said "upskilling" -- particularly among underrepresented populations -- could help address a tight labor market and the job disruptions of an increasingly automated future. Multiple speakers said one challenge is the perception by employers that tech careers require expensive, four-year degrees. Hector Mujica, Google.org, Americas head of economic opportunity, said degree requirements for tech jobs disproportionately exclude rural, Black and Latino workers and are largely unnecessary. Antonio Tijerino, Hispanic Heritage Foundation CEO, said there's no shortage of talent but there needs to be more work in exposing, preparing and supporting diverse communities. Given particularly low unemployment rates, Mujica said there should be "better, broader" pathways for immigration and citizenship, plus improved rural internet connectivity. Michelle Gilliard, IBM Americas corporate social responsibility leader, said the Pell Grant system needs to expand to cover such areas as short-term and online learning. She also said there's a need for a shared, verifiable "digital credentialing system" for workers' skills and training.

Ligado is partnering with Viasat and Skylo Technologies to offer direct-to-handset service via Ligado's SkyTerra satellite network (see 2303020023).

The FCC International Bureau issued a fee filing guide as a reference for identifying and describing bureau filing requirements, said a notice in Friday's Daily Digest.

A June 2020 wireless infrastructure declaratory ruling merely clarified existing rules, the FCC told a federal appeals court Wednesday. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last month resumed a long-paused case on a League of California Cities challenge to the FCC decision clarifying shot clock and substantial change rules (see 2302070041). The FCC said in a brief it made no procedural errors and reasonably interpreted its rules (case 20-71765). "Wireless communications depend on a network of antennas and equipment placed on structures including towers, buildings, and utility poles,” the FCC wrote. “Local governments often use their zoning and land use authority to delay or block the installation of such equipment because of perceived aesthetic and other impacts." Congress, the agency said, has long sought to reduce such barriers.

NAB, CCIA and CTA joined with many other trade groups and state chambers of commerce in a letter asking Congress to oppose the FTC’s proposed ban on noncompete clauses. “The FTC lacks the constitutional or statutory authority to issue such a rule and, in attempting to do so, the agency is improperly usurping the role of Congress,” said the letter, which was also signed by ACT|The App Association, the National Newspaper Association and numerous local chambers of commerce, and trade groups from various industries --including trucking, pest management, retail and insurance. “In the past, Congress curbed FTC’s excesses with appropriations riders, and we encourage Congress to revisit such tools today,” the letter said. “The FTC’s blanket ban on noncompete clauses is vastly overbroad and likely will harm both employees and employers.”

Senate Commerce Committee leaders now plan to support a House-backed proposal to extend the FCC’s spectrum auction authority through May 19, panel Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., told us Wednesday. The House passed its temporary reauthorization bill (HR-1108) Monday, but Cantwell and Senate Commerce ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, weren’t at that point certain whether they would back another renewal of just over two months. “Everybody seems to be cool” now about renewing the remit through May 19, Cantwell said: “I didn’t know” earlier in the week “if everyone had gotten comfortable with that exact date,” but that now seems to be the case. Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., remains a wild card in any bid for Senate concurrence with HR-1108 because he’s eyeing filing a bill that would instead reauthorize the FCC’s mandate until the end of FY 2023, the night of Sept. 30. Congress in December agreed to extend the auction authority through March 9 after a bid to attach a bipartisan spectrum measure to the FY23 omnibus appropriations package fell through (see 2212190069).

The FCC’s Communications Equity and Diversity Council scheduled a virtual Digital Ecosystem Forum Monday, said a public notice in Tuesday’s Daily Digest. The event, at noon EST, will feature telecom industry leaders discussing “how the U.S. can provide digital and technology upskilling” and the future of work, and will be kicked off with remarks from FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, the PN said.

The FCC and Ukraine’s National Commission for the State Regulation of Electronic Communications, Radio Frequency Spectrum and the Provision of Postal Services signed a new memorandum of understanding at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona Monday. The regulators agreed to cooperate on issues including “resilience of telecommunications infrastructure, quality of service and coverage, 5G and other new technologies and related security issues, consumer protection and regulatory best practices and institutional capacity development,” the FCC said. “Nothing can be more clear than that the United States is a friend and a partner for a strong, safe, independent and prosperous Ukraine,” Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said: “This includes communications policy, and we are committed to supporting and listening to our friends and partners in Kyiv.” Rosenworcel also signed a MOU at MWC promoting bilateral cooperation with the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore.