Bread and Butter
The FCC's June 2020 meeting agenda includes the following:
The FCC's June 2020 meeting agenda includes the following:
An FCC auction of the T-band is a bad idea. But as of today, the law mandates that we do it. It’s unfortunate that Commission resources must be dedicated to laying the groundwork for an auction that will likely fail. This is especially true at a time when we are making every effort to keep Americans safe and connected, including allowing expanded temporary use of this very spectrum to help first responders save lives.
On March 19, 2020, Sens Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to urge the FCC to take action to ensure that all K-12 students in Minnesota have access to high-speed internet so they can continue their education while schools are closed in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
On March 9, 2020, Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS), John Thune (R-SD), Roy Blunt (R-MO), Fischer (R-NE), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Todd Young (R-IN) sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai expressing concern as to having reliable underlying coverage data used to determine funding eligibility for a 5G fund for rural America. They urged the FCC to focus on ensuring that accurate data is available — including updates to the collection of coverage data as outline in the Broadband DATA Act.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced the tentatively for the agenda for the May Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 13, 2020:
On April 2, House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) asked Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to reassure broadcasters that the FCC will not revoke licenses for airing legally protected speech.
In many ways, we’re still building the plane while flying it. Recognizing that it’s hard to say anything definitive only a few weeks into a fluid situation, I’d like to walk you through the FCC’s guiding principles as we’ve approached this challenge.
On March 19, 2020, Reps Darren Soto (D-FL), Jared Huffman (D-CA), and Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ) wrote Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to urge his full consideration of policies that would protect Americans' access to communications services by ensuring that no one gets their cell phone, landline, or internet access disconnected during the COVID-19 national emergency.
As always, in times of emergency, broadcasters are stepping up to serve their communities and help keep people informed, healthy, and safe. From airing [public service announcements] on social distancing to supporting distance learning with educational programming, broadcasters are going above and beyond the call of public service. I want to especially recognize those reporters who are on the front lines, often putting themselves in harm’s way, to obtain vital information on COVID-19 to ensure their viewers and listeners have the most up-to-date and accurate information.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai issued the following statement on President Donald Trump’s Executive Order on Establishing the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the USTelecommunications Services Sector: “I applaud the President for formalizing Team Telecom review and establishing a process that will allow the Executive Branch to provide its expert input to the FCC in a timely manner. Now that this Executive Order has been issued, the FCC will move forward to conclude our own pending rulemaking on reform of the foreign ownership review process.
On March 9, 24 senators wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to express concerns about key details of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF), particularly excluding areas that are awarded funding through the US Department of Agriculture's ReConnect program and state-run broadband deployment or subsidy programs from being eligible for the RDOF.
As we continue our important work directly related to COVID-19, the Federal Communications Commission will also continue our work confronting the longer-term challenges that have been highlighted by pandemic. In particular, at our upcoming meeting on April 23, we will be voting on major initiatives to expand wireless connectivity and further close the digital divide.
On March 5 and 6, Sen Maria Cantwell (D-WA) wrote to the Federal Communications Commission to urge it to consider how the FCC's existing authority and programs, as well as temporary policies or rule waivers, may be used to secure the nation's safety and continued well-being. On March 20, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai responded by listing the steps the FCC has taken to protect its employees, monitor communications networks, and provide support to keep Americans connected.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai released the following statement after the US Senate passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which includes $200 million for the agency to support telehealth and telemedicine services:
I applaud the President for signing the Broadband DATA Act and thank the leadership of the Senate and House Commerce Committees for their bipartisan work in moving this legislation through Congress. The Act affirms the Federal Communications Commission’s approach to collecting more precise and granular broadband data through our new Digital Opportunity Data Collection program. At this point, it is vital for Congress to provide the FCC as soon as possible with the appropriations necessary to implement the Act.
It might be hard to find hand sanitizer and toilet paper, but I’m happy to report that Internet access is proving to be one of the most valuable non-medical commodities right now. I’m committed to using every legal means at the Federal Communications Commission’s disposal to help Americans deal with the coronavirus pandemic.
On Feb 23, 2020, Sen Joe Manchin (D-WV) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to urge him to "revise the aggressive timeline outline for the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) and postpone the initial auction until after the eligibility maps can be challenged and verified." Sen Manchin also wrote Chairman Pai on Dec 3, 2019 to describe specific examples in West Virginia of unreliable broadband service.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that 205 additional broadband and phone service providers have taken the Keep Americans Connected Pledge, bringing the total number of companies to 390.
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai commended broadband and telephone service providers that have responded to his call to take the Keep Americans Connected Pledge and have gone even further to enhance Americans’ connectivity during the coronavirus pandemic. The week of March 9, Chairman Pai specifically asked companies with low income broadband programs to expand and improve them and those without to adopt such programs.
On Dec 20, 2019, Sens John Thune (R-SD), Deb Fischer (R-NE), and Jerry Moran (R-KS) sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai urging the FCC to take action regarding unlicensed use of the 6 GHz band while protecting existing users of the band.
On Jan 9, 2020, Sens Joe Manchin (D-WV), James Lankford (R-OK), Jon Tester (D-MT), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and John Kennedy (R-LA) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to express reservations about the 5G Fund and the decision to focus limited mobile broadband deployment dollars on the promise of a 5G future when many places still lack 4G service or do not have any service at all.
At our March meeting, the Federal Communications Commission will therefore vote on new rules requiring implementation of STIR/SHAKEN by June 30, 2021, a deadline set forth in the TRACED Act, which was recently passed by Congress. Under my proposal, the FCC would also seek public input on additional measures to combat spoofed robocalls, including other measures to implement the TRACED Act.
This past Nov, a bipartisan majority at the Federal Communications Commission adopted a vertical, or “z-axis,” location accuracy metric of plus or minus 3 meters for wireless 911 calls. That means that in the coming years you will be able to more accurately identify the floor-level for most 911 calls and reduce emergency response time.
The Rural Digital Opportunity Fund is building on the success of the Connect America Phase II auction. But we’re also making some significant changes to our CAF II approach—changes that will mean better networks covering more Americans. We’re more than doubling the minimum speeds that the auction will support from 10/1 Mbps in CAF II to 25/3 Mbps. We’re increasing the weights on bids to favor higher speeds and lower latency.
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