Facing a growing number of partnerships that would meld satellite and terrestrial mobile coverage, the FCC is likely to continue to take an ad hoc approach with applications rather than instituting a proceeding on satellite use of terrestrial spectrum, satellite and spectrum experts told us. Hughes repeatedly pressed the agency to start such a proceeding and reject pending applications from AST SpaceMobile and Lynk Global (see 2206290004). The commission, AST and Lynk didn't comment.
The FCC will tackle the growing problem of low-orbit space debris, legacy analog TV rules, inmate calling and rules for emergency alerts at the commissioners' Sept. 29 meeting, the agency said Thursday. Unlike for other meetings, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel was traveling Wednesday and didn’t preview the drafts released.
The "slow and cumbersome approach" of the DOD and intelligence community to incorporating commercial satellite imaging capabilities means the U.S. could lose a technological advantage over emerging competitors like China, the GAO said Wednesday. It urged the defense secretary and director of national intelligence to set out clear roles and responsibilities in the various agencies for acquisition of commercial satellite imagery and that they assess different approaches for incorporating and scaling commercial satellite capabilities into operational support contracts.
The FCC will revisit wireless emergency alerts and the emergency alert system in an NPRM teed up for a vote by commissioners, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said Wednesday. “It is critical that these public safety systems are secure against cyber threats, which means that we must be proactive,” Rosenworcel said of EAS: “The draft proposals shared today will help ensure that our national alerting systems work as intended during emergencies and the public can trust the warnings they receive.” Among the issues teed up are the amount of time EAS participants “may operate before repairing defective EAS equipment,” the need for participants to report compromises of their equipment and the need for security requirements and annual certification of cybersecurity risk management plans. The NPRM also asks about requirements that carriers “take steps to ensure that only valid alerts are displayed on consumer devices.” The FCC said last week 42 state and local government agencies will conduct local WEA tests Monday and Tuesday (see 2208300046).
Facing a growing number of partnerships that would meld satellite and terrestrial mobile coverage, the FCC is likely to continue to take an ad hoc approach with applications rather than instituting a proceeding on satellite use of terrestrial spectrum, satellite and spectrum experts told us. Hughes repeatedly pressed the agency to start such a proceeding and reject pending applications from AST SpaceMobile and Lynk Global (see 2206290004). The commission, AST and Lynk didn't comment.
With the comment cycle complete, proponents of a December waiver request seeking permission to start using the 5.9 GHz band for cellular-vehicle-to-everything technology expect a relatively quick order from the FCC. Other requests have followed. But industry observers also note that FCC staff still must wade through all the comments, and the timing of agency decisions on such issues can be difficult to handicap.
The National Association of State 911 Administrators “has strong and urgent concerns” about language in the House-passed Spectrum Innovation Act (HR-7624) and “potential amendments” to the unaltered Senate companion S-4117 that “will unnecessarily detract from and delay” next-generation 911 tech upgrades, the group said in an open letter to senators posted Tuesday. The House passed HR-7624 in July with language allocating up to $10 billion in proceeds from a proposed auction of spectrum on the 3.1-3.45 GHz band for NG-911 implementation (see 2207280052). NASNA “supported” initial language funding NG-911 via HR-7624 that the House Communications Subcommittee advanced in June (see 2206140077) “and we still support the premise of federal assistance” for NG-911, said Executive Director Harriet Rennie-Brown in the letter. “However, we believe now is the time to voice our strong and urgent concern about” other NG-911 language in the measure that mirrors the group’s past qualms with language in the Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s America Act (HR-1848), including interoperability requirements and language on “commonly accepted standards” (see 2104080003). NASNA is “fully aware that there have been matters raised by other public safety groups and we are concerned that these other interests will unnecessarily detract from and delay NG911 implementation,” Rennie-Brown said: The existing proposed language supports the National Emergency Number Association’s i3 standard “that is already in use and is saving lives today. While we support innovation and competition, we do not support any amended language that would give preference to an alternative standard. Every state, regional, and local agency that is implementing NG911 is based on the NENA i3 standard.” The group opposes a proposed Nationwide Next Generation 911 Cybersecurity Center as “redundant and unnecessary” and is concerned by HR-7624’s language to end the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s involvement in NG-911 implementation, she said. “Leaving the joint implementation and coordination office between NHTSA and NTIA in place for the present time is not only feasible, but HR 7624 language should allow for an objective evaluation of the proper federal ‘home’ for the resources to assist the states with 911 and coordinate federal 911 activities.” NASNA believes “the overly prescriptive conditions written into” HR-7624 “for the states’ NG911 plan are redundant, unnecessary, and create burdensome requirements for the states' 911 systems,” Rennie-Brown said: “The NG911 plan requirements are best suited to the grant rulemaking process, not congressional mandates.”
The FCC Public Safety Bureau granted 42 alert originator waivers Tuesday to do tests of the wireless emergency alert system. The tests will be Sept. 12 and 13, with alternate dates of Sept. 19 and 20. “Promoting the effectiveness of the nation’s emergency alerting systems is an important priority for the Commission and granting this waiver will enable” the bureau “in partnership with 42 alert originators, to gather critical data regarding WEA performance from geographically targeted areas across the United States.” This information collected “will help address a gap in alert originators’ understanding of WEA’s end-to-end performance,” the order said: The bureau “received reports that emergency management agencies are declining to use WEA in situations where it could save lives because they lack information about, and confidence in, how WEA works in practice.” The system wasn't used during the Marshall fire in Boulder “due to ‘concerns about its reliability and delivery,’” the bureau said. “The alert will sound and appear on compatible mobile devices using participating wireless networks in that area,” the FCC said in a news release: “The alert message will make clear that it is only a test and contain a link for the recipient to complete a survey about their receipt of the alert. Each agency will have a control group of volunteers in the targeted geographic area complete the survey, and members of the public may also do so. The tests are intended to assess the geographic accuracy of the alerts in addition to other performance factors, including reliability and speed.” The FCC also sent letters to AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon with questions they're asked to answer as the FCC does a broader assessment of the tests. WEAs “are a life-saving tool, but emergency managers tell us that they need more information on the geographic accuracy of these alerts in order to use them with confidence,” said Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel.
The FCC Consumer Advisory Committee approved a report on robotexts Tuesday, during what is scheduled to be the last meeting of the group's current iteration. The vote was unanimous with only AARP abstaining. AARP didn’t comment on why it abstained. The committee turned down an Incompas amendment on the difficulty some public interest groups are reporting gaining access to 10-digit long codes (10DLCs) (see 2208160054). CAC meetings have been virtual since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Canadian mental health advocates and telcos expect that country will act on establishing a three-digit suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline, with 988 being the likely number. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) should issue recommendations within weeks in its open proceeding about the feasibility of a three-digit suicide prevention number, Chairman Ian Scott emailed us. The U.S. 988 system went live nationwide in July (see 2207150036), and a variety of other nations have had similar three- and four-digit mental health hotline systems for years.