The FAA expects to publish an NPRM for drone remote identification by September (see 1805210045), more than a year after the original deadline for issuing a final rule, said Deputy Associate Administrator-Office of Security and Hazardous Materials Angela Stubblefield. Remote ID would allow authorities to identify unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) through device registration.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who's been working for months on a compromise bill to address national security tariffs, said that an introduction won't happen until after the August recess. "We're trying to get a consensus on [Section] 232s, that isn't the easiest thing," he said. "But we're making some progress." He said, speaking to reporters on June 19, that he'd had meetings on the bill that day.
The FAA expects to publish an NPRM for drone remote identification by September (see 1805210045), more than a year after the original deadline for issuing a final rule, said Deputy Associate Administrator-Office of Security and Hazardous Materials Angela Stubblefield. Remote ID would allow authorities to identify unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) through device registration.
Expanded use of dialing code 211 for a national suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline -- as recommended by the FCC's North American Numbering Council (see 1905080020) -- got both support and criticism in docket 18-336 comments this week. The proposal doesn't have consensus in the mental health community (see 1905160054). Using 611 isn't realistic, given the amount of calls it receives annually, and 211's dual use is technically feasible and compatible, said the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems. It suggested a "press one/press two" command putting callers into one of two independent systems, or an enhanced integration. It said the veterans service line should remain separately governed, and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (NSPL) -- working with the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration -- should head the suicide prevention aspect of any joint use. It said 211 staffers today handle crisis calls for domestic abuse, child protection and homelessness on a daily basis. It said some believe there would be initial confusion about 211 as a suicide prevention number, and there were similar perceptions in the early days of 211 about possible confusion between it and 911. The 211 National Leadership Group backed a 211/NSPL collaboration, directing calls "to the best people to handle them as quickly as possible." It said expanded 211 use will necessitate more funding for operating the NSPL via 211. Some see expanded 211 as giving short shrift to suicide. The Trevor Project said expanded 211 use "would ... be inefficient and diminish the importance of the issue," and such operators aren't properly trained to handle emergency calls. It advocated a dedicated three-digit number. It suggested FCC recommendations include training of NSPL counselors in LGBTQ cultural competency and creating an integrated voice response to route calls to the group. Centerstone said expanded 211 use would likely result in insufficient coordination and delays "as people filter" through the system, and instead a sole-purpose number should be designated. It gave no recommendations. A collection of Utah United Way agencies said 211 doesn't work in some parts of the state and a suicide prevention hotline would dilute the core mission and purpose of 211.
Jane Sanchez, law librarian of Congress, becomes also deputy librarian, Library Collections and Services, a post she held in acting capacity ... Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations promotes Steve Francis to assistant director, HSI-led Global Trade Investigations Division, and director, National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center ... Perkins Coie names Eric Greenberg, ex-Paul Hastings, partner-technology transactions and privacy and mergers and acquisitions ... Monument Advocacy hires Anderson Heiman, ex-Office of Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., as principal-technology, cybersecurity and trade.
An Iranian citizen who lived for a time in Turkey was charged in two separate indictments for violating U.S. export laws, including several counts of conspiracy to export goods to Iran and to a Specially Designated National, the Department of Justice said in a June 4 press release. Peyman Amiri Larijani -- operations manager for Kral Havacilik IC VE DIS Ticaret Sirketi (Kral Aviation) -- was indicted on 34 counts of violating export laws in 2015 and four counts in 2016.
Vice President Mike Pence said the meeting with Mexico's Foreign Minister June 5 was positive, but emphasized that the Mexican efforts to stem migration from Central America -- and its proposals for future action -- "are not nearly enough." Pence, who spoke to reporters before leaving on a trip to honor the D-Day anniversary, said, "We made clear to them that President [Donald] Trump is going to continue to stand firm until we bring this crisis of illegal immigration at our southern border to an end."
Sizable private equity investing resulted in legions of startups in the small-satellite universe, but 2019 will likely be the year when "some of them start peeling off" and failing, said Quilty Analytics President Chris Quilty at an American Bar Association space law symposium Tuesday. "There's going to be a lot of roadkill in the next year or two." Most companies are "fighting over the table scraps" beyond the money that's gone to OneWeb and SpaceX, and when those smaller startups start getting to the point where they're ready for larger-scale investments, "stumbles" are likely, Quilty said, with funding if not declining at least decelerating. "It's healthy, it happens," he said.
With ACE not ready, customs bond insufficiency issues, and importers unable to take on financial responsibility for tariffs on Mexican imports, the customs brokers who work at the California-Mexico border asked CBP and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to delay implementation of 5 percent tariffs past June 10. The Pacific Coast Council of Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Associations sent a letter June 5 saying that its members are alarmed "that it will be impossible to comply, as the mechanisms for compliance are not available between now and June 10th."
Emergency alert system participants must renew their identifying information in the EAS test reporting system (ETRS) by July 3, before the planned Aug. 7 2:20 p.m. EST national EAS test, the FCC Public Safety Bureau said in a public notice Monday (see Ref:1905230030]). ETRS is open now and accepting 2019 filings, the PN said. The August test will involve only the legacy “daisy chain” system and won’t include the Integrated Public Alert Warning System, the PN said. The backup date for the test is Aug. 21, the PN said.