The Biden administration asked Congress Wednesday afternoon to allocate $6 billion in stopgap funding for the FCC’s affordable connectivity program, more than communications sector officials anticipated last week (see 2310200067). The White House also urged Capitol Hill appropriate an additional $3.08 billion to close the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program funding shortfall (see 2310120067). The additional ACP money would “strengthen” ACP "by extending free and discounted high-speed internet for eligible households through December 2024,” the White House said in a fact sheet. ACP “is already helping over 21 million households save over $500 million per month on their monthly internet bills.” The program is “critical for the Administration’s high-speed internet deployment programs for rural, remote, and Tribal communities,” the administration said: “Without this funding, tens of millions of people would lose this benefit and would no longer be able to afford high-speed internet service without sacrificing other necessities.” USTelecom CEO Jonathan Spalter hailed the administration for seeking the ACP stopgap, saying the program “is a critical part of reaching our shared goal of universal connectivity” and “has already enabled more than 21 million low-income households to participate in our digital economy. We urge Congress to find a long-term solution to sustain this vital program.”

Senate Communications Subcommittee Chairman Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., and subpanel members from both parties voiced growing frustration during a Tuesday hearing with DOJ’s perceived reticence in enforcing existing anti-robocall statutes and eyed the FCC’s Further NPRM giving consumers more choice on the robocalls and robotexts they will receive (see 2306080043). There was more uneven interest among Senate Communications members and witnesses at the hearing in pursuing additional legislation to address ongoing robocall problems amid those enforcement shortcomings.

Industry welcomed the FCC's efforts to establish a sustainability framework as part of its review of the future of its USF high-cost programs. Comments posted Tuesday in docket 10-90 showed widespread support for a contribution revamp and ensuring ongoing support for operational expenses remains available.

Tech9 software development company names DataBased’s Nate Richard, also ex-Qualtrics, chief revenue officer … BAI Connect, hybrid fiber/wireless internet services provider, names BroadVoice’s Kevin Connor chief financial officer ... Graybar, data networking products distributor, promotes Brad Lee to district vice president-California ... USTelecom announces newly elected officers and board members: Chair Jason Williams, Blackfoot Communications; Vice Chair Jeff England, Silver Star Communications; Secretary Melissa Mann, Lumen; Treasurer Rusty Moore, BBT; directors Tom Maguire, Brightspeed and Harold Zeitz, Ziply Fiber; Leadership Committee Chair Jennifer Prather, Totelcom Communications; Vice Chair Becky Scott, Epic Touch; and Secretary Josh Descant, REV Broadband.

The Biden administration is expected to seek about $4 billion in additional money for the FCC’s affordable connectivity program as part of a second part of the supplemental federal funding request it will send to Congress this week, communications sector lobbyists told us. House Democratic leaders are already highlighting the to-be-announced money as a priority alongside the stalled regular FY 2024 appropriations process once the chamber can elect someone to replace ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

FCC commissioners divided Thursday on a vote to reestablish net neutrality rules, during the agency's first open meeting with a full commission since Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel took the helm (see 2310130051). Commissioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington voted against an NPRM seeking comment on a proposal to return to 2015 rules that classified broadband as a Title II telecom service.

The Senate Communications Subcommittee rescheduled an anti-robocall hearing for Oct. 24, the Commerce Committee said Tuesday. The hearing will “examine how robocallers are evading enforcement, consider public-private efforts to combat illegal robocalls and investigate what next steps are needed to protect Americans from fraudulent and illegal text messages and calls,” Senate Commerce said. The panel postponed the hearing, originally planned for Oct. 3, amid reshuffling to accommodate senators who wanted to attend the funeral for former Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. USTelecom Vice President-Policy and Advocacy Josh Bercu and YouMail Chief Technology Officer Mike Rudolph are among those set to testify. Also on the witness list: Wiley’s Megan Brown on behalf of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Consumer Law Center Senior Attorney Margot Saunders. The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. in 253 Russell.

The FCC disagreed with a letter from USTelecom CEO Jonathan Spalter urging the House and Senate Intelligence committees’ leaders to “pay special attention to the FCC’s mission creep into the cybersecurity space” because of the draft NPRM (see 2310160062). Although the commission “is already actively involved in federal interagency cybersecurity planning, coordination, and response activities, it has limited authority to incorporate updated cybersecurity standards into its network policies,” a spokesperson emailed us Monday. “A clear example of this is” the FCC’s Communications Act Section 214 authority, “which provides the agency with the ability to monitor and mitigate the existence of bad actors in telecommunication systems. That authority currently extends only to phone networks, not broadband. Similarly, the FCC has been closely working with other federal agencies on the best way to identify Broadband Gateway Protocol (BGP) vulnerabilities and mitigate risks, a process that would be strengthened through Title II reclassification by providing the agency with the clear and direct authority to act in close coordination with other agencies.”

USTelecom CEO Jonathan Spalter urged the House and Senate intelligence committees' leaders Monday to “pay special attention to the FCC’s mission creep into the cybersecurity space” because of the draft net neutrality NPRM reclassifying broadband as a Communications Act Title II service (see 2309280084). Further FCC involvement in cybersecurity “will lead to confusion and conflicts over which committee and agency has jurisdiction in specific cyber-related matters,” Spalter said in a letter to Senate Intelligence Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., House Intelligence Chairman Mike Turner, R-Ohio, and the panels’ ranking members. “This will create legal and regulatory uncertainty, hampering effective national security oversight and cooperation. It could also lead to redundancy and fragmentation of efforts, making it harder to coordinate and implement a cohesive security strategy and respond quickly to emerging threats.” There’s “nothing in the Communications Act or any other statute that gives the FCC general authority to impose prescriptive cybersecurity regulations on ISPs,” Spalter said.

California Assemblymember Jim Patterson (R) will try again next session on a vetoed bill that would have expanded eligibility for federal broadband grants administered by the California Public Utilities Commission, a Patterson spokesperson told us Wednesday. Wireless industry groups lamented Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Sunday veto of AB-1065, though they applauded the Democrat for signing AB-965, a bill meant to streamline the broadband permitting process.