New York state will make $20 million available to counties for emergency communications upgrades through the interoperable communications grant targeted program, Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) said Friday. New York seeks to improve land mobile radio interoperability for public safety agencies within the state and in border states, the governor’s office said. Funding may be used for enhancing redundancy and resiliency of public safety radio systems, expanding coverage and frequency band capabilities of national interoperability channels and developing or enhancing shared radio and other systems, it said. Applications are due Sept. 8. “This grant funding will help ensure our communities across the state have the modern communication tools they need to act quickly and effectively to protect New Yorkers and save lives,” said Hochul.
The Regulatory Commission of Alaska got wide industry support for making permanent its recently adopted emergency regulations for Alaska USF. Making them permanent would extend the AUSF sunset through June 30, 2026. The RCA received supportive comments in docket R-21-001 this week from Alaska Communications, Alaska Telecom Association (ATA), Alaska Remote Carriers Coalition, GCI, Ketchikan Public Utilities (KPU) and Matanuska Telecom Association. ATA said the RCA's actions to continue AUSF “are crucial in ensuring the provision of essential telecommunications services to rural areas in Alaska.” The RCA should adopt a change proposed by the Alaska Universal Service Administrative Company (AUSAC), some industry groups said. AUSAC urged the RCA July 13 to reinstate a reporting and remittance exception for de minimis carriers, which pay up to $100 annually. "Without the de minimis exception, additional time will be spent on processing paper reports and remittances from de minimis carriers as electronic payments are cost prohibitive for a carrier to remit $8 or less,” the administrator said. “AUSAC has had past experiences with carriers, who were unaware of the de minimis exception, taping coins to mailed remittance reports." KPU supported that proposed change unless it "would create unnecessary delay in adoption or otherwise risk disapproval by the Department of Law.”
The California Public Utilities Commission set a prehearing conference Aug. 3 on AT&T’s application for relief from carrier of last resort (COLR) obligations, CPUC Administrative Law Judge Thomas Glegola ruled Wednesday in docket A.23-03-003. The virtual hearing starts at 1:30 p.m. PDT. California consumer and county groups protested AT&T’s June 30 amended request to shed COLR obligations for most of the state (see 2307110036 and 2307070040).
The $4 billion available for closing California's digital divide, including broadband equity access and deployment program funds and those allocated by the state legislature, won't be enough to bring broadband infrastructure to all unserved locations, the state Public Utilities Commission said Monday in its draft five-year BEAD action plan. The agency said it also lacks enough money to address underserved locations as well as community anchor institutions lacking 1 Gbps service. Citing CostQuest cost modeling, the PUC said fiber-to-the-premises for all unserved locations would cost $9.78 billion. The PUC California's size also could make it a challenge for some BEAD-funded subgrantees to get their work done within the required timeline. Comments are due Aug. 7, replies Aug. 11, on the action plan, which is due to NTIA by Aug. 27.
Oregon will be the 12th state with a comprehensive privacy bill. Gov. Tina Kotek (D) signed a SB-619 Tuesday. It takes effect in July 2024. It’s the first blue state to enact a privacy law in 2023 (see 2306220059). The Delaware legislature passed a privacy bill June 30 (see 2307030025).
VantagePoint asked the FCC to approve a transitional middle-mile plan in Alaska to "provide eligible Alaska Plan Phase 1 carriers the ability to commit to enhanced performance obligations with temporary transitional relief from ultra-high middle mile transport costs." It said the plan is "a logical step" to take before the FCC implements the Alaska middle-mile expense support (AMMES), per an ex parte filing posted Monday in docket 10-90. VantagePoint noted that estimates for a three-year transitional middle-mile plan would constitute 25% of the Alaska Plan's available reserve funding, "leaving 75% for AMMES in Phase 2 of the Alaska Plan."
The West Virginia Public Service Commission approved rules Wednesday to implement a 2020 law updating state emergency wireless telephone rules. The law required commercial mobile radio service providers to collect separate monthly fees from in-state two-way service subscribers for wireless enhanced 911, public safety and wireless towers. The PSC received no comments on proposed rule changes distributed in April, said the final order in docket GO 187.62.
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission delayed voting on an advance notice of proposed rulemaking to amend state USF rules until the commission’s Aug. 3 meeting. The PUC was scheduled to consider the item in docket L-2023-3040646 at Thursday's meeting.
Wisconsin will open grant applications under the state’s broadband infrastructure program Aug. 14, with a deadline sometime in November, the governor’s office said Wednesday. The program is funded by $42 million from the U.S. Treasury’s Capital Projects Fund, which was established by the American Rescue Plan Act. “These federal investments will play a critical role in helping us build upon our efforts over the last four years as we keep working to close the digital divide and ensure every kid, family, and business has access to quality, high-speed internet, no matter where they live in our state,” said Gov. Tony Evers (D). The Wisconsin Public Service Commission’s broadband office will provide more details soon, the governor’s office said. PSC Chairperson Rebecca Cameron Valcq said the "funding will allow us to focus on bringing affordable and reliable broadband to the places that the pandemic hit the hardest.”
Assessing a 5% fee on streaming TV gross annual revenue is necessary to keep community media thriving, Massachusetts state Rep. Joan Meschino (D) said Thursday at a Joint Advanced Information Technology Committee livestreamed hearing. The committee heard testimony on Meschino’s H-74 and the similar S-34. Community TV officials supported the bill, saying the fee is necessary to restore lost funding from declining cable franchise revenue. The committee’s House Chair Tricia Farley-Bouvier (D) agreed with the goal of saving community media and local news but said she sees “a lot of work to do” to decide how to do it. Senate Chair Michael Moore (D) asked if the proposed law is preempted by an FCC August 2019 order restricting local franchise regulation of non-cable services being delivered by cable networks. Mass Access President Dave Gauthier said it wouldn’t be preempted. Rep. Jeffrey Turco (D) questioned if adding a tax to consumers' streaming bills would be good policy since many people cut cable to save money. Taxing streaming companies through the bills might violate the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act, said TechNet Executive Director-Northeast Christopher Gilrein. “Beyond being an ill-timed burden on your constituents, this new tax would be duplicative and administratively burdensome.” Also at the hearing, the committee weighed a bill (H-82) by Rep. Michael Soter (R) to ban TikTok on government devices. If the federal government thinks TikTok is risky, Massachusetts should take the issue seriously, he said. New England Cable and Telecommunications Association President Tim Wilkerson raised concerns that the committee is considering several bills to expand communications regulation. He urged the state legislators to take note that the FCC should soon have five commissioners and is the body that should decide whether to make new rules.