Allow tribal households that qualified as Lifeline subscribers for the FCC emergency broadband benefit program to participate in the affordable connectivity program without needing to opt in, Smith Bagley urged Wireline Bureau staff, said an ex parte letter posted Tuesday in docket 21-450. Those households "will see no change in their benefit, nor their service offering, when [EBB] transitions to ACP" and "would find it much more difficult to execute an opt-in requirement than most others in the nation," Smith Bagley said. It also asked that "no fundamental changes" be made to the National Lifeline Accountability Database because providers can adjust discounts within NLAD and remove households that no longer qualify.
Senate Commerce Committee members’ treatment of Democratic FCC nominee Gigi Sohn during her Wednesday confirmation hearing is likely to sharply divide along party lines, in sharp contrast to a potential overwhelming bipartisan panel vote to advance commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel’s reconfirmation to the full chamber (see 2111300064), lawmakers and lobbyists said in interviews. NTIA administrator nominee Alan Davidson may also get some senators’ attention during the hearing but is likely to avoid harsh questioning due to expectation that Sohn will be the main focus. The hearing will immediately follow the 10:15 a.m. Senate Commerce executive meeting in 253 Russell.
The U.S. has “repeatedly stretched the national security concept and abused state power to hobble Chinese companies,” a Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson said last week. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security on Nov. 26 added 27 foreign organizations and individuals to its Entity List, including eight technology entities based in China, to prevent U.S. emerging technologies from being used for Beijing’s “quantum computing efforts that support military applications" (see 2111240014). The BIS action “severely hurts the interests of Chinese companies, recklessly undermines the international trade order and free trade rules, and gravely threatens global industrial and supply chains,” the ministry spokesperson said. “China reserves the right to take necessary countermeasures,” he said. “We will firmly defend Chinese companies’ legitimate rights and interests with all necessary measures.”
The U.S. “repeatedly stretched the national security concept and abused state power to hobble Chinese companies,” said a Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Thursday. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security said a day earlier it added 27 foreign organizations and individuals to its Entity List, including eight technology entities based in China, to prevent U.S. emerging technologies from being used for Beijing’s “quantum computing efforts that support military applications.” The BIS action “severely hurts the interests of Chinese companies, recklessly undermines the international trade order and free trade rules, and gravely threatens global industrial and supply chains,” said the ministry spokesperson. “China reserves the right to take necessary countermeasures,” he said. “We will firmly defend Chinese companies’ legitimate rights and interests with all necessary measures.”
State broadband leaders see opportunity for transformational change with at least $100 million coming to each state from the infrastructure law’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. States are in planning stages as NTIA prepares to distribute funding, said officials and other experts in interviews after President Joe Biden signed the bill Nov. 15 (see 2111150074).
The FCC is likely to face minimal implementation obstacles as it transitions from the $3.1 billion emergency broadband benefit program to the $14.2 billion affordable connectivity program, advocacy and industry groups told us (see 2111180067). A central concern is ensuring EBB-enrolled households can switch to the new program with minimal hiccups once eligibility and subsidy amount changes take effect. That could be mitigated with education and outreach efforts, stakeholders said.
The Bureau of Industry and Security added 27 entities to the Entity List for illegally selling technology to China, North Korea and other sanctioned countries, for supporting China’s military modernization efforts or for contributing to Pakistan’s nuclear and missile programs, the agency said Nov. 24. The Entity List additions include a range of laboratories and companies operating in the semiconductor, microelectronics and machinery sectors in China, Japan, Pakistan and Singapore, including several major Chinese chip companies.
Comments are due Jan. 31 for a National Institute of Standards and Technology study on advancing a “more productive tech economy,” said a Federal Register notice Monday. NIST is seeking input about “public and private sector marketplace trends, supply chain risks, and the legislative, policy and future investment needs of eight emerging technology areas.” That includes AI, IoT, quantum computing, blockchain technology and unmanned delivery services. The study was directed by the American Competitiveness of a More Productive Emerging Tech Economy (Compete) Act (HR-8132).
National Emergency Number Association CEO Brian Fontes urged the Senate Monday to restore “full funding” for next-generation 911 tech upgrades when it takes up the House-passed Build Back Better Act budget reconciliation package. The HR-5376 version passed last week (see 2111190042) includes $490 million for NG-911. That’s less than 5% of the $10 billion the House Commerce Committee proposed in September (see 2109140063); $470 million would go to tech upgrades and $20 million for NTIA to administer the program. The measure also allocates $1 million for NTIA to set up a Public Safety NG-911 Advisory Board. That money would represent “the largest federal investment in 9-1-1 in history” and “we appreciate that,” Fontes said in a statement. “However, it is less than” what House Commerce sought and “less than 4% of the $12 billion” NTIA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommended in 2018.
House Democratic leaders were optimistic Thursday they were on the cusp of holding a final vote that night or Friday on the Build Back Better Act budget reconciliation package (HR-5376) amid expectations that the Congressional Budget Office would publish a final cost estimate that afternoon. The CBO released its estimate earlier in the day for the House Commerce Committee’s portion of HR-5376, which includes $500 million for a new FTC data privacy and security bureau, $500 million for NTIA connected device vouchers, $490 million for next-generation 911 tech upgrades and $300 million for the FCC Emergency Connectivity Fund.