The Interagency Steering Group on Native American Voting Rights said Thursday “more could be done” by the FCC and other policymakers to promote voting on Tribal lands. The FCC auctioned off spectrum licenses and USF support “to build out broadband capacity to millions of unserved locations, but could do more to integrate Tribal governments into the process, to ensure better communication and relationships between the auction winners and the Tribal communities they serve,” the report said. To the extent states deploy federal funding or funding of their own to promote broadband in Tribal areas “it would be advisable to similarly incorporate Tribal governments into the process of assessing needs and selection procedures, as well as bid evaluation and contract approval.” When the FCC issues spectrum licenses to Tribal governments it should offer “the technical and grantmaking assistance necessary for Tribal governments to capitalize effectively on the spectrum availability,” the report said. Information designed for viewing on desktop computers “may not be effective for eligible voters who are primarily online through smartphones, no matter how robust their connectivity or capacity,” it said: State and local officials should ensure “their election-related applications and information are also optimized (and translated) for mobile, in order to reach Native American voters where they are.”
Thousands of unusual, nearly blank filings in docket 20-99 inundated the FCC’s electronic comment filing system this week, complicating routine searches. An FCC spokesperson said Thursday the agency was working to fix the issue, and it appears to have been caused by a "routine software update that impacted some files in the database.“ All the filings (here is one representative sample) are labeled as though they were submitted by individual people, and many contain blank attachments. All were filed in the docket that pertains to a Dish Network carriage dispute. Communications Daily first noticed small volumes of the errant filings on Monday, but their pace appeared to have dramatically increased by Thursday, when the docket contained more than 15,000 submissions.
New York urged the 2nd U.S. Circuit of Appeals to reject federal preemption arguments of ISP associations contesting the state’s affordable broadband law. Plaintiffs at first argued that field preemption restricts states from regulating “any aspect of the business practices of broadband providers simply because they deal in interstate communications," but they now "assert on appeal that the allegedly preempted field instead consists of regulation of the rates charged by interstate communications providers,” said AG Letitia James (D) in a Wednesday reply brief in case 21-1975. “But this reformulated argument also fails. Congress has not enacted a uniform, let alone a comprehensive, regime of rate regulation for interstate communications services -- such as telephone (Title II), radio (Title III), and cable television (Title V-A).” The various Communications Act titles “treat each type of service differently and specifically vest the FCC with differing levels of authority over rates,” James said. “And critically for this case, the FCC altogether lacks power to set broadband rates under Title I, leaving the field at issue here federally unoccupied.” Plaintiffs’ other argument that the 2018 net neutrality order "impliedly preempted" New York's law is inconsistent with D.C. Circuit and 9th Circuit appeals court rulings, said James. “If the FCC has no authority to regulate expressly, it has no authority to do so by implication either.” Four ex-FCC members from both parties urged the 2nd Circuit earlier this month to reject the New York law because they said it improperly regulates broadband rates (see 2203030042).
Presentations to the FCC Communications Equity and Diversity Council and those by the CEDC to the agency will be treated as exempt for ex parte purposes, said a public notice in docket 17-208 Tuesday. “We find that this modification of the ex parte rules is in the public interest because it will allow the CEDC to develop and shape its advice and recommendations to the Commission more efficiently and effectively,” the PN said. Though the committee may address issues relevant to ongoing FCC proceedings, the agency won’t use information submitted to or by the panel in considering those matters, the PN said.
Former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai met with Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, according to a tweet from Pai Tuesday. “A great conversation about family, the honor of public service, and reforms that will help transform government for the benefit of all Virginians,” wrote Pai, now with investment firm Searchlight Capital Partners. In an email, Pai said the two talked about family, public service and “forward-thinking reforms,” and he was “just stopping by to say hello.” Youngkin’s office described the conversation as being about “broadband.”
Dish Network will offer “a real-world example” of the benefits of building an open radio access network as it rolls out 5G, the company said in a call with FCC staff. “Because DISH is building a greenfield network, we have the flexibility to choose the best technology to enter the market,” said a filing posted Thursday in docket 21-63. “While legacy carriers built closed end-to-end networks, DISH chose O-RAN because, among other reasons, it offers lower capital and operating costs, and is more resilient, secure, and energy efficient,” the company said: “If more American carriers see the benefits of O-RAN and are able to adopt it as their networks evolve, the United States will be a stronger competitor in the global market. O-RAN is a game changer.”
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel joked about AT&T's sale of WarnerMedia and fellow commissioners, and briefly toured the agency's new headquarters during Monday's virtual FCBA Winter Celebration -- this year's iteration of the traditional Chairman's Dinner. The event was tied to Women's History Month, and had an array of female former commissioners in brief video addresses. There also was a montage of FCBA members holding up signs naming a woman who had been particularly inspirational to them, with answers ranging from Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to elementary school teachers. It's no longer the Chairman's Dinner as "you can't serve dinner over Zoom," Rosenworcel said. "Ten is the new eight," Rosenworcel said as she showed the commissioners' office on the 10th floor of the L Street NE building. She quipped that the building is relatively lonely and staffers generally unpacked, but Commissioner Brendan Carr was seen moving furniture out of his office "after noticing some of it was made in China," and he had applied for "his own rip-and-replace grant." She joked that Comcast's David Cohen being named Canadian ambassador completed the player trade that brought Commissioner Nathan Simington. With AT&T now selling WarnerMedia, DOJ "should retroactively chalk this up as a win," she said. And she joked that some say SCOTUS Justice Stephen Breyer hung on too long before announcing his retirement, but "imagine if they knew about Dick Wiley," who co-founded Wiley in 1983.
The FCC rechartered its World Radiocommunication Conference Advisory Committee and sought applications from “interested organizations, institutions, or other entities” that want to serve, in a Tuesday notice. The WAC is coordinating U.S. industry positions in preparation for the WRC meeting next year. To comply with Federal Advisory Committee Act rules, the FCC’s charter of each WAC runs two years and the current cycle expires March 30. The reconstituted WAC will run through the end of WRC, in late 2023. Applications are due March 31. The General Services Administration still must approve the new charter. WAC meetings preparing for the next conference started in August 2020.
Amazon emailed Alexa customers Friday notifying them they can make a donation to the American Red Cross to support Ukraine. When users say, “Alexa, make a donation to support Ukraine,” Alexa confirms the dollar amount. When we asked what our options were, Alexa went off track, saying she could help with morning activities, relaxation, education, entertainment, health and fitness and more, and asked which we wanted to explore. We tried again, confirmed the donation and were told the donation was sent via Amazon Pay.
A private daycare center will open in the FCC’s headquarters March 21, said the agency Thursday in a release. Called TeleTots, the center is jointly sponsored by the FCC and the General Services Administration and operated by child care company Reggio’s Treehouse, which operates similar facilities at Federal Aviation Administration offices, the release said. The center will be available for all federal employee families and the public, the release said. Matthew Berry, former chief of staff to former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, tweeted that the daycare facility’s name was determined through a staff contest before the agency’s relocation. The daycare center was an expected feature of the agency’s new HQ (see 2005010052). The agency is still on phase 2 of its re-entry plan, wherein limited numbers of employees are allowed to work from the building if they choose. FCC staff will be given 30 days' notice before the agency scales up back-to-work requirements (see 2203040052).