Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr swiftly pointed Sunday night and Monday to enforcing broadcasters’ “public interest obligation” and ending the commission’s “promotion of” diversity, equity and inclusion policies as key parts of his agenda once he becomes chairman Jan. 20. President-elect Donald Trump announced plans Sunday night to make Carr permanent chairman when he takes office (see 2411170001). Some congressional Democrats and public interest groups criticized Carr’s agenda, while many communications policy-focused groups quickly praised the long-expected appointment (see 2407120002).

Industry groups widely opposed an FCC notice of inquiry seeking comment about the impact of broadband data caps on consumers and potential regulatory steps the agency could take. In comments posted Friday in docket 23-199 (see 2410150069), many warned the proceeding was a step toward rate regulation and potential consumer harm should the FCC limit the use of data caps. Some public interest groups urged the commission to proceed, however.

Congress gave the Commerce Department wide latitude to go after "masked" dumping, the Court of International Trade said in a decision made public Nov. 15 that upheld the agency's differential pricing analysis.

Trade attorneys continue to wait and wonder what kind of tariff changes will come next year, with one observer using a tariff slide that said "Tariff Armageddon."

House Select Committee on China Chairman Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., proposes increasing tariffs on nearly all Chinese goods to at least 35% and raising tariffs on "strategic goods" to 100%, with exceptions only for goods that are currently sourced only from China.

The Commerce Department prorated the countervailing duty set on exporter The Ancientree Cabinet Co. in the countervailing duty investigation on wooden cabinets and vanities from China to account for the percentage of its U.S. customers that failed to verify nonuse of China's Export Buyer's Credit Program (Dalian Meisen Woodworking Co. v. U.S., CIT # 20-00110).

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and other officials condemned Friday an alleged wave of hate texts following the presidential election's conclusion Tuesday night. The NAACP said Thursday it received reports of texts in multiple states, including Alabama, North Carolina, Virginia and Pennsylvania, from an unknown source, urging that recipients report to a plantation to pick cotton. The "messages represent an alarming increase in vile and abhorrent rhetoric from racist groups across the country, who now feel emboldened to spread hate and stoke the flames of fear that many of us are feeling after Tuesday's election results,” NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson said. “These messages are unacceptable,” Rosenworcel said. “That’s why our Enforcement Bureau is already investigating and looking into them alongside federal and state law enforcement.” The FBI said Thursday night it’s “aware of the offensive and racist text messages sent to individuals around the country and is in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter.” Cloud-based mobile phone service provider TextNow believes at least some of the messages came through its service in what it called “a widespread, coordinated attack.” As “soon as we became aware, our Trust & Safety team acted quickly, rapidly disabling the related accounts in less than an hour,” the company said in a statement. President-elect Donald Trump’s team sought to distance itself from the text messages amid criticism from the NAACP and others that his campaign’s rhetoric prompted the onslaught. Trump’s “campaign has absolutely nothing to do with these text messages,” a spokesperson said in a statement. The Biden administration condemned “these hateful messages and anyone targeting Americans based on their ethnicity or background.” Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown (D) and New York AG Letitia James (D) both raised alarm bells about the text messages. “These messages are horrific, unacceptable, and will not be tolerated,” Brown said. “If you have been sent one of these texts, I am asking for you to please come forward and report it.” James called the messages “disgusting and unacceptable,” and also encouraged anyone “who has received an anonymous, threatening text message to report it to my office.” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York and other congressional Democrats also condemned the texts. There “are extremists in America who feel empowered” following Trump’s election to a second term to send the “racist, vile and threatening” messages, Jeffries said Friday. “We will not be intimidated by anyone.” House Communications Subcommittee member Rep. Yvette Clarke of New York urged “a full investigation into the source of these despicable messages and call for the perpetrators of this hateful scheme to be held accountable for their actions.”

Some industry groups raised concerns about proposed amendments to Colorado privacy rules concerning children and biometric data. The Colorado attorney general’s office held a rulemaking hearing Thursday to gather public comments on proposed draft amendments to the Colorado Privacy Act Rules (see 2409160036). The draft amendments, published Sept. 13, provide updated language to align with children’s and biometric privacy bills the Colorado legislature approved this year and create a process for issuing opinion letters and interpretive guidance. The proposed rules include definitions of “child” versus “minor,” as well as requirements for notifying consumers before collecting or processing biometric identifiers. Employers must also gain consent from employees before collecting and processing biometric identifiers. State Privacy and Security Coalition lobbyist Andrew Kingman said separate obligations for biometric data and biometric identifiers could be confusing. “Our comments really focus on how to simplify this so that consumers have a single notice or are directed to a single notice where all of that information can be easily comprehended,” he said during the hearing. Additionally, Kingman suggested deleting the reference to “minors” as a part of the children’s privacy policy, saying it is “impractical” to distinguish between a 22-year-old and a 17-year-old. Kingman also asked for modifications to the consent requirement in the employment context, noting that the interaction between an employer and employee differs from the interaction between consumers and controllers. Phoebe Blessing, manager of public policy with the Colorado Hospital Association, also recommended an exception to the new biometric collection amendments on employees, such as when employers use employees' biometric information for authentication purposes. “For example, many of our hospitals require the use of fingerprints to access medication cabinets and dispense drugs,” Blessing said. She also recommended an exception for when healthcare providers use a patient’s biometric information in relation to the treatment process. Several other citizens spoke at the hearing about concerns for privacy but lacked specific input regarding the proposed amendments. The AG office also posted written comments that were due later Thursday night.

The group behind recent FCC complaints against CBS and ABC over their news coverage filed an equal time complaint against NBC and its station WNBC New York Monday over Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris’ weekend appearance on Saturday Night Live (see 2411040057). The complaint from the Center for American Rights echoes points first raised by FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr and calls for “a substantial fine” against NBC. “Broadcasters cannot abuse their licenses by airing what amounts to a free commercial promoting one candidate the weekend before the presidential election,” said CAR President Daniel Suhr in a news release. FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington backed the complaint Monday, saying “I urge Commission leadership to take these credible allegations seriously,” but multiple broadcast attorneys told us NBC appears to have satisfied the FCC’s rules.

The Court of International Trade rejected importer Retractable Technologies' bids for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction stopping the collection of Section 301 duties on its needles and syringes. However, in a decision made public Nov. 4, Judge Claire Kelly did stop liquidation of Retractable's entries during the course of the company's suit, which challenges the legality of a Section 301 rate hike on needles and syringes.