Rules requiring emergency alert system participants to report to the FCC about any efforts to provide non-English emergency alerts took effect Thursday, said the agency in that day's Federal Register. That means participants have a deadline of Nov. 3, 2017, to provide such information to State Emergency Communications committees to be included in their state EAS plans, said Fletcher Heald broadcast attorney Harry Cole in a blog post Thursday. “Thus far there does not appear to be any officially-endorsed template for the required 'description', but it’s possible the Commission may flesh that out sometime in the next year.” The rules don't require participants to offer foreign-language alerts, and explicitly say participants can report they took no such steps, Cole said. At their March meeting, commissioners approved the rules 4-1 (see 1603300064).
The FCC is seeking broad comment on its telecom regulations as part of the so-called biennial review. “We seek input from the public as to what rules should be modified or repealed as part of the 2016 biennial review,” said a public notice released Thursday in docket 16-149. “Submissions should identify with as much specificity as possible the rule or rules that the commenting party believes should be modified or repealed, and explain why and how the rule or rules should be modified or repealed.” Commissioner Ajit Pai said he’s not impressed with the FCC’s version of a review. “This is a time of widespread dissatisfaction with and distrust of government,” Pai said in an accompanying statement. “Many Americans perceive that government agencies don’t bother following the law or, at best, make a half-hearted attempt to comply.” The agency shares some of the responsibility, he said. The commission treats the law the same way “the Dude” handles bowling taunts in The Big Lebowski, Pai said: “Yeah, well, you know, that’s just, like, your opinion, man.” Section 11 is a “simple and powerful tool for scrubbing outdated regulations from our books and promoting private sector innovation and investment,” Pai said. “In a sense, it ties the Communications Act together. Or at least could be, if the FCC took this task seriously.” Two years ago, the agency “simply ignored this duty entirely," he said. “This time around, it promises a few desultory efforts at paging through the Code of Federal Regulations -- efforts certain to result in many staff hours being wasted and nothing meaningful being done.” Commissioner Mike O’Rielly said he wants a thorough review. “Every rock should be turned over and every rule should be thoroughly reviewed to generate the best Section 11 NPRM ever imagined,” he said. “With hundreds of applicable pages in the Code of Federal Regulations, there is much material to review and likely a good portion that can be eliminated given the vast changes in the communications marketplace since the 2012 review. We owe the American people, and their duly elected representatives, nothing less.” Comments are due Dec. 5, replies Jan. 3.
Government must do more to remove barriers to deployment of broadband and digital services, said FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai Wednesday at a Smart Cities Expo showcasing internet-connected technology and devices, according to his posted remarks. Pai recommended "five concrete steps," starting with aggressive FCC use of its statutory authority under Section 253 of the Communications Act to ensure local governments don't hold up broadband deployment, with Section 332(c)(7) of the Communications Act and Section 6409 of the Spectrum Act providing further mandates to remove infrastructure barriers. Second, he said the FCC needs "to take a fresh look at our pole attachment rates" and Congress needs to give the commission broader related authority. Third, to help cities and towns wanting more deployment and competition, he urged the FCC to create a Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee to draft a model code on "local franchising, zoning, permitting and rights-of-way regulations" that balances municipal interests and broadband needs. Fourth, the federal government should speed broadband deployment on federal lands, including through agency distribution of mapping information and "reasonable internal shot clocks for processing applications and negotiating leases," he said, seeking a hard one-year deadline on decisions no matter how many agencies are involved. Finally, "We must make 'dig once' a central tenet of our nation's transportation policy. ... Every road and highway construction project should include the installation of the conduit that can carry fiber optic cables," he said. "With these five steps, policymakers can do their part to ensure that next-generation broadband networks -- and the smart cities they support -- will become a reality."
Two state commissions diverged on whether they should regulate fixed interconnected VoIP. Tuesday at U.S. District Court in St. Paul, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission defended its treatment of interconnected VoIP as a telecom service and sought summary judgment. Wednesday, the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) proposed a revised definition of phone utilities that explicitly would exclude IP and VoIP services. The VON Coalition, which represents VoIP providers and opposed the Minnesota PUC as an intervenor, praised the direction of the Iowa proposal. Industry also last week supported state legislation to codify VoIP deregulation in Idaho.
Missouri’s tightening Senate race could decide control of the chamber next Congress, and a telecom policy conflict of interest charge has hounded its GOP incumbent all year. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., faced repeated attacks for his connections to lobbyists, which include a telecom industry official at the helm of his re-election campaign -- his son Andy, executive director of the Missouri Cable Telecommunications Association since January. Observers told us they see no illegality but perhaps causes for concern and real potential for exerting industry influence.
Charter Communications hires for Government Affairs team based in Washington, D.C.: Maureen O’Connell, ex-O’Connell Strategies and before that 21st Century Fox, as vice president-regulatory affairs, and Robert Kenny, ex-Mercury, as director-policy communications ... Viacom said board names Bob Bakish, who was president-CEO of Viacom International Media Networks, as acting president-CEO, effective Nov. 15; he succeeds Tom Dooley, leaving the company (see 1609210014); Bakish also was named president-CEO, Viacom Global Entertainment Group ... Lockheed Martin International hires David Trulio, ex-Raytheon and former corporate transactional lawyer, as vice president-international government affairs, operations, and regional executive, Latin America.
California wants another year to align its state LifeLine program with the updated federal low-income program, the California Public Utilities Commission said Friday. In a petition in docket 11-42, the CPUC said California, like some other states, won’t make the FCC’s Dec. 2 deadline for implementing parts of its order adding broadband internet access service as a supported service in the program (see 1610210046). The CPUC asked for a temporary waiver to implement rules and processes by Oct. 31, 2017. The California LifeLine administrator and providers “have informed the CPUC that they need 11 to 18 months to make these changes to their systems,” the CPUC said: “Because so many California Lifeline subscribers will be affected by the changes to the federal rules, the CPUC, the Administrator, and service providers must carefully plan, implement, and test the changes before rolling them out.” Cox Communications supported the CPUC petition last week (see 1610240024). Some states have sued the FCC over the Lifeline order (see 1610120050). Earlier last week, the CPUC OK’d an order allowing uncertified fixed VoIP carriers to voluntarily participate in California LifeLine. The companies will be able to participate even if they don’t have a certificate of public convenience and necessity to operate in California, the CPUC said in the proposal (see 1609280017). “By adding fixed-VoIP services to the LifeLine Program, we are furthering our goal of achieving technological neutrality across platforms and providing more choices for consumers,” CPUC President Michael Picker said in a news release Thursday. “We also adopted service elements that will preserve essential consumer protections and ensure that minimum voice communication needs are met, regardless of income.” Meanwhile, the Arizona Corporation Commission OK’d three wireless companies to receive federal funds for providing or expanding Lifeline service for low-income residents, the ACC said in a Friday news release. Under its authority to designate eligible telecom carriers, the state commission signed off on an application by Tag Mobile to be designated as an ETC for mostly rural areas of Arizona, and applications by i-Wireless and Telrite to expand services deeper into rural areas, the ACC said.
Revised rules on wireless emergency alerts are to take effect 60 days from Tuesday, after expected publication in the Federal Register. “By this action, the Commission adopts rules that will improve Alert Message content in order to help communities communicate clearly and effectively about imminent threats and local crises,” an FCC notice said. “It also adopts rules to meet alert originators’ needs for the delivery of the Alert Messages they transmit and creates a framework that will allow emergency managers to test, exercise, and raise public awareness about WEA.” FCC members approved the revised rules in September over a partial dissent by Commissioner Mike O’Rielly (see 1609290060).
The FCC supported one-touch, make-ready pole attachment rules in local jurisdictions, saying they're consistent with federal policies. In a letter Monday to U.S. District Court in Louisville, the commission rejected an AT&T argument that federal rules preclude the one-touch ordinance. The FCC statement could deal a blow to incumbents seeking to keep Google Fiber and other new entrants off the poles, a community broadband advocate said.
A likely incoming senator next Congress is poised to be a proponent for broadcast political ad disclosure and a backer of the broadband infrastructure funding package that Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton touted. Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., pressed for broadband infrastructure during a debate Wednesday with Republican Maryland State Delegate Kathy Szeliga in their contest for the open Senate seat representing Maryland, and a campaign official pledged Van Hollen would press the FCC on disclosure as a senator. His record also shows ongoing attention to telecom issues, from net neutrality to robocalls to spoofing.