AT&T raised legal and constitutional concerns as it protested a California Public Utilities Commission proposed decision that denies it relief of carrier of last resort (COLR) obligations. But in other comments the agency received Thursday, some local representatives strongly supported the plan to dismiss AT&T’s application. “Upholding this decision is vital to ensure residents across California … continue to have access to basic telephone service,” said San Mateo County in docket R.23-03-003.
The Senate Commerce Committee is eyeing additional changes to the Spectrum and National Security Act (S-4207) in hopes of jump-starting its prospects as a viable vehicle for resurrecting the FCC’s expired affordable connectivity program, lobbyists said in interviews. Committee leaders are hoping further revisions will allow them to raise S-4207 during a potential mid-June meeting, lobbyists told us. Senate Commerce pulled S-4207 from consideration twice last month, including fully postponing a May 16 executive meeting (see 2405160066). The Biden administration and FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel made a final call Friday for Congress to keep ACP running as the program’s time expired.
The Court of International Trade on May 28 rejected the government's motion for partial reconsideration of the court's decision finding that the government violated the "implied contractual term" of reasonableness in waiting eight years to demand payment from surety Aegis Security Insurance Co. on a customs bond.
Reject T-Mobile’s request to make it optional for California Lifeline providers to accept applications for low-income support from people who lack social security numbers, said consumer and low-income advocates in replies Friday at the California Public Utilities Commission. In comments earlier this month (see 2405130044), T-Mobile’s Assurance Wireless raised concerns about “requiring companies to process, review and collect a fluid set of unfamiliar and unverifiable ‘identity documents’ without any safe harbor.” Legal Services of Los Angeles County, the Legal Aid Association of California and other low-income advocates disagreed. "While providers may assist with collecting additional identity documents, the [third-party administrator] will make eligibility determinations based on identity documents, so the alleged basis for the need for providers to discriminate against individuals without SSNs is specious.” The Utility Reform Network and the Greenlining Institute “oppose any call for California LifeLine to discriminate against people without SSNs.” The consumer groups noted that people lacking SSNs include "some of the most vulnerable members of our communities: survivors of domestic violence, refugees, and people facing housing insecurity.” Meanwhile, AT&T urged the CPUC to slow down. That every commenter suggested revisions to the staff's proposal shows that the CPUC should take additional time to develop a plan, said the carrier: Require staff to submit a revised, more-detailed proposal and seek more comments. But the low-income advocates said it’s time to act. “Despite any lingering questions or disagreements … the Commission should immediately change the application and expand the list of acceptable identification documents ... without further undue delay,” they said. “Any other feedback on the staff proposal can be resolved later."
The Court of International Trade on May 28 rejected the government's motion for partial reconsideration of the court's decision finding that the government violated the "implied contractual term" of reasonableness in waiting eight years to demand payment from surety Aegis Security Insurance Co. on a customs bond.
World Shipping Council CEO Joe Kramek said that his trade group doesn't take a position on whether Chinese practices to support its commercial shipbuilding industry are actionable under Section 301, but it "strongly opposes" the petitioners' proposal that a $1 million fee be levied on Chinese-built ships docking in U.S. ports.
Programmatic advertising firm Direct Digital Holdings and three of its executives made false or misleading statements and failed to disclose material facts about the financial impact of a “'cookie-less’ advertising environment,” alleged a securities fraud class action Thursday (docket 4:24-cv-01940) in U.S. District Court for Southern Texas in Houston.
Despite expectations that the affordable connectivity program (ACP) will run dry in days, telecom companies continued arguing in comments last week that the California Public Utilities Commission should take its time forming its response. However, while larger ISPs slammed consumer advocates' proposal, small local exchange carriers said they would work with the advocates on a compromise that quickly expands California LifeLine support to broadband.
Frontier Communications operates “nationally in a ‘one-size fits all’ manner with no regard for state regulations or rules," Communications Workers of America (CWA) claimed in Tuesday comments at the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA). PURA received comments from Frontier and the Office of Consumer Counsel in its service-quality investigation (docket 24-01-15) on Friday (see 2405200053). CWA raised concerns about job cuts, customer service issues and employee grievances during the past several years. “While there is currently a significant effort to deploy fiber … there has been much negligence as it relates to copper plant,” the union said: “The use of contract labor has created inferior service issues resulting in the need for second and follow-up visits by skilled technicians” and fewer job openings. PURA should “act swiftly to hold Frontier accountable to … Connecticut.”
Petitioners iFixit, Public Resource and Make Community “seek to dramatically rewrite federal law and agency rules by destroying the copyright” to the standards development organizations’ standards, said 17 SDOs in an amicus brief Tuesday (docket 23-1311) in the U.S. Appeals Court for the D.C. Circuit in support of the FCC.