The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission indefinitely delayed considering an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANOPR) on amending state USF rules. The PUC was scheduled to hear the item in docket L-2023-3040646 at its July 13 meeting but postponed it to Aug. 3 (see 2307130020). But the ANOPR isn't on an agenda released Wednesday. It’s unclear when the item will return. The Pennsylvania PUC doesn’t speculate about agenda items, a spokesperson said.
Nebraska Public Service Commission staff recommend changes to state USF reverse auctions to “better incentive participation,” said Telecom Director Cullen Robbins at a partially virtual PSC hearing Wednesday (docket NUSF-131). The commission had a sound framework for conducting the first reverse auction in August 2022, said Robbins. But it makes sense to raise starting reserve prices next time, he said. “Afterall, it is a reverse auction [and] the main goal of the reserve price is to incentivize bidding -- ideally, by multiple parties -- so that the price can be lowered in successive rounds.” Staff recommends setting the reserve price two to three times higher than the model price, Robbins said. Also, the commission should reconfigure the units up for bid, said Robbins. “Since the bidding units in the last auction were census block groups, sometimes the blocks that made up the group were scattered and not contiguous,” which may have ballooned possible project costs, he said. Staff recommends allowing participation by the originally assigned price-cap carriers that returned USF funding or were withheld support, said Robbins: They might want to bid since they could get more money than they would have under the previous USF distribution mechanism, especially with the proposed higher reserve prices and smaller bidding units. Such companies are also likely to have the closest facilities and may be able to provide service for the least cost, he said. Also, staff recommends all participants have eligible telecom carrier designations to participate, which would allow carrier of last resort obligations and ongoing support to be transferred to the winning bidders, said Robbins: Bidders should commit to taking those obligations. Commissioner Tim Schram (R) suggested the Nebraska PSC at least ask applicants to say whether they will connect all the way to a customer’s location, such as in a situation where the customer has a half-mile-long driveway. Also, Schram wants to make sure winning bidders will connect customers to the state’s nearly complete next-generation 911 network. “We've spent millions ... to modernize that network and I just want to make sure that consumers have the ability to connect to it." Fixed wireless can participate if they can meet the program’s requirements for 100 Mbps symmetrical broadband, Robbins answered Commissioner Kevin Stocker (R). “I believe they can meet the speed requirements according to what I’ve seen them claim in the past.”
The Wyoming Public Service Commission won't vote at Thursday’s meeting on a staff proposal to grant a Dish Wireless application for eligible telecom carrier designation. The application in docket 60061-6-RA-23 was on the consent agenda, but Commissioner Chris Petrie said he has questions for Dish and asked to table the item until the Aug. 8 meeting at 1:30 p.m. MDT. Dish seeks “limited designation to provide Lifeline service to qualifying Wyoming consumers, including those customers residing on federally recognized Tribal lands,” said a July 24 staff memo. The company doesn’t seek access to USF high-cost support. The Utah PSC last month set a Nov. 28 hearing on a similar Dish petition (see 2307240029).
California Privacy Protection Agency enforcers will review connected vehicles and related technologies, the CPPA said Monday. The Enforcement Division will consider data privacy practices for cars’ cameras, location sharing, web-based entertainment and smartphone integration, the agency said. “Modern vehicles are effectively connected computers on wheels,” said CPPA Executive Director Ashkan Soltani. “They’re able to collect a wealth of information via built-in apps, sensors, and cameras, which can monitor people both inside and near the vehicle. Our Enforcement Division is making inquiries into the connected vehicle space to understand how these companies are complying with California law when they collect and use consumers’ data.” The agency is conducting the review under 2018’s California Consumer Privacy Act. A court recently delayed CPPA enforcement under the more recent California Privacy Rights Act (see 2307030025). California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) last month announced an "investigative sweep" into how employers are handling CCPA compliance (see 2307140051).
Florida’s landline count dipped below 1 million in 2022, the Florida Public Service Commission said Tuesday. The PSC said its annual telecom competition report found 900,000 total landlines in the state last year, down from 1.2 million reported by carriers last year (see 2208020019). Business landlines exceeded residential ones for the 12th year, though counts of each tanked last year. Residential landlines declined by 16.5%, and business landlines declined 21.3%, it said. Lumen’s CenturyLink had a 17.8% decline in residential lines during 2022, and AT&T had a 17.4% drop and Frontier 23.7%.
More telecom companies sought extensions to provide pole attachment data required by a 2021 California Public Utilities Commission decision (D.21-10-019). Consolidated Communications sought an 18-month extension Friday (see 2307310030). In Monday letters to CPUC Executive Director Rachel Peterson, Verizon sought 10 more months, T-Mobile requested six more months and ExteNet also asked an additional six months. Sonic Telecom urged the commission Sunday to change the company’s deadline to 60 days after each major pole owner shows it has implemented required security measures to handle proprietary and confidential data. “Although the Order gave pole attachers 12 months to submit attachment data after the pole owners’ advice letters were approved, Verizon and other attachers have only started to receive information from the pole owners as to the data submission process, their poles, and templates in the last two months,” wrote Verizon. “This means that attachers now have only one to two months remaining to review the poles, gather, and submit data before the current deadlines.”
Further extension of Lumen’s Oregon price plan is likely, said Oregon Public Utility Commission Administrative Law Judge Sarah Spruce Tuesday (docket UM 1908). The plan currently expires Sept. 28 (see 2307280037). Spruce said parties should file their next status report on settlement talks Sept. 1 and propose a new expiration date. If no settlement is reached by Sept. 1, the PUC will have a prehearing conference Sept. 12 to set a schedule to resume the contested case process, she said.
The California Public Utilities Commission may vote Aug. 31 on a proposal to deny a California Broadband and Video Association petition to modify a resolution on public housing, the CPUC said Friday. The state cable association raised concerns in March with a December CPUC resolution awarding $1.4 million in California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) broadband public housing account (BPHA) grants to 19 projects. While not seeking to overturn the award, CalBroadband asked the CPUC to remove language saying broadband services that are free due to ACP or other subsidies don't count as free services for purposes of determining if an application is eligible for funding (See 2303220053). The CPUC’s proposed resolution T-17796 would deny the CalBroadband petition since it “raises no new or changed facts,” and the commission addressed its issues in previous decisions, the CPUC said. “To the extent CalBroadband raises a new policy argument, a petition for modification is not the proper vehicle to raise it,” it said. “The Commission has consistently held that a petition for modification is not a second bite at the apple: it will not consider issues which are simply re-litigation of issues that it has already considered.” Consumer advocates urged CPUC denial. CalBroadband didn’t comment Monday.
Consolidated Communications wants 18 more months to provide pole attachment data required by a 2021 California Public Utilities Commission decision (D.21-10-019), the telco said in a Friday letter to CPUC Executive Director Rachel Peterson. “Validating many of Consolidated’s data point responses will require an exact understanding where each pole is located, and Consolidated relies upon the pole owner to make available that specific pole location information in the form of a database,” it said. “Databases are not yet fully available for pole location information.” Validation will require “a comprehensive field inspection of each of the approximately 30,000 poles Consolidated is attached to,” said the telco: Consolidated will have to bring in outside contractors to do inspections and collect data but lacks resources in this year’s budget “to absorb what amounts to a seven figure expense,” it said. Consolidated will budget the expense for next year, it said. An 18-month extension would give the company until March 3, 2025, to provide the data.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) signed a bill Thursday to regulate data brokers. HB-2052 passed the legislature June 22 (see 2306230026).