Communications sector-specific language in draft versions of President Donald Trump's upcoming cybersecurity executive order (EO) drew mixed reviews from industry lawyers and lobbyists. The White House has continued to revise the anticipated executive order in the weeks since officials first delayed Trump's planned late January signing of the order, several lobbyists said. Then, the order would have directed the Office of Management and Budget to assess all federal agencies' cybersecurity risks and required agencies to manage their risk using the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Cybersecurity Framework (see 1701310066).

With industry-backed wireless siting bills gaining steam in state legislatures, some local-government groups see momentum and seek to limit damage through negotiation. In an interview Tuesday, ex-NATOA President Ken Fellman urged communities to follow the example of Colorado local-government groups and hash out small-cells bills with industry rather than oppose state legislation outright. Meanwhile, industry applauded a Texas Public Utility Commission proposed decision finding that wireless infrastructure provider ExteNet need not pay access line fees to Houston.

The Senate Communications Subcommittee scheduled a spectrum hearing for Thursday, as expected earlier in February (see 1702100051). It said Friday the hearing will be at 9:30 a.m. in Dirksen G50 with the following witnesses: CTIA Vice President Scott Bergmann; Recon Analytics analyst Roger Entner; Microsoft Deputy General Counsel Dave Heiner; Raycom Media President Pat LaPlatney; and Satellite Industry Association President Tom Stroup. The hearing will "explore the future of spectrum policy and how wireless technology benefits consumers and the economy," the committee said. "It will also examine evolving market demand for licensed and unlicensed spectrum and the Federal Communications Commission’s recent spectrum auctions.”

A Vermont 911 case is raising legal and public policy questions about whether states can mandate backup-power requirements for wireless or interconnected VoIP carriers. Last week at the Public Service Board, some commented that federal statute bars states from making battery-backup mandates to either industry, and -- for wireline providers including VoIP -- that FCC existing backup power requirements make separate state rules unnecessary. A recent former California commissioner said in an interview it’s critical from a public policy standpoint for states and local governments to make their own decisions on communications network resiliency, including battery backup. A NARUC attorney disputed industry claims of federal pre-emption.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai indicated he will act to guarantee parts of ISP privacy rules don’t take effect Thursday, over the potential protest of the agency's sole Democratic member and amid concerns from Democrats overseeing the agency. Pai and fellow Republican Mike O’Rielly were critics when the rules were approved under former Chairman Tom Wheeler in October, just before the presidential election (see 1610270036), and after the election, industry officials predicted Pai would scuttle the privacy order (see 1611090034).

The FCC approved an order setting a broad range of bid weights for a planned Connect America Fund Phase II reverse auction of almost $2 billion in subsidy support for fixed broadband/voice services over 10 years. The CAF II bid weights are designed to value "high speeds, higher usage allowances and low latency," balanced with "cost efficiencies" to deploy broadband widely, said a release Thursday. Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioner Mignon Clyburn voted for the order; Commissioner Mike O'Rielly partially dissented.

The FCC Communications Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Council will meet 1-5 p.m., March 15, in the Commission Meeting Room, for the last time under the charter for its fifth iteration, the agency said in a notice set to appear in Thursday's Federal Register. The meeting will be the first since the start of FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s administration, which has raised questions about CSRIC’s future role in cybersecurity policy (see 1701250077 and 1702060059).

The Mobile Now spectrum bill (S-19) “has a good chance of being passed this year,” said Fletcher Heald attorney Laura Stefani in a blog post Tuesday. That legislation was reintroduced in January and cleared the Senate Commerce Committee without any objections. “The cellular industry and others looking to make big plays in the Internet of Things will be pushing this legislation along,” said Stefani, who represents clients on spectrum reallocation and sharing. “While Congressional Republicans are certain that they will be able to adopt much more legislation with a Republican in the White House, it is unclear what type of support this type of legislation will receive. For one, the legislation would require a good deal of work by a host of federal offices and agencies, including the Departments of Commerce and Transportation, the Federal Communications Commission, the Office of Management and Budget, and even the Government Accountability Office.” Mobile Now also would call for new regulations, Stefani said, citing uncertainty about President Donald Trump’s executive actions to curb those.

A broad group of financial services associations asked the FCC to extend the comment deadlines on a petition by Craig Moskowitz and Craig Cunningham, which the groups say would rewrite the rules they face under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). In a Feb. 8 public notice, the FCC sought comment on the petition for a rulemaking “to overturn the Commission’s improper interpretation that ‘prior express consent’ includes implied consent resulting from a party’s providing a telephone number to the caller.” The FCC sought comment by March 10, replies by March 27. “Such a dramatic change would prevent consumers from receiving important communications from our members on their mobile phones, communications that provide critical information that consumers want and need to receive,” the associations said in docket 02-278. “It would also likely require our members to make fundamental changes to their practices for obtaining consent in conformity with the TCPA’s requirements. Each day, our members make calls to millions of our customers who would be impacted in a very negative way by the change proposed in the Petition. We believe that consideration of a proposed change of this magnitude should be done through a process that affords a greater opportunity for public participation.” The deadlines are simply too tight to allow for thoughtful comment, the groups said. The American Bankers Association, ACA International, American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management, American Financial Services Association, Consumer Bankers Association, Credit Union National Association, Financial Services Roundtable, Independent Community Bankers of America, National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions, National Council of Higher Education Resources and Student Loan Servicing Alliance signed the filing.

Some states are deciding their authority over VoIP services even as federal lawmakers eye a rewrite of the 1996 Telecom Act that could resolve the debate. In a Vermont hearing Thursday, Comcast argued against a proposed Public Service Board ruling that the state may regulate VoIP as a telecom service. The previous day, Iowa published an order saying the opposite -- that retail VoIP is an information service not subject to state regulation. Last week, a West Virginia state senator introduced a bill restricting the Public Service Commission from regulating VoIP.