The Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Huricane Katrina and other man-made and natural disasters often reveal flaws in emergency communications systems. Here we attempt to chart the effects of disasters on our telecommunications and media communications systems -- and efforts by policymakers to stregthen these systems.
Emergency Communications
FCC Announces Tentative Agenda for July 2020 Open Meeting
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that the items below are tentatively on the agenda for the July Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, July 16, 2020:
Not Alone
Items on the Federal Communications Commission's July 2020 agenda:
FCC Will Vote At July Meeting On Final Rules Designating '988' As 3-Digit Number For National Suicide Prevention Hotline
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai presented his colleagues with draft rules to establish 988 as the new, nationwide, 3-digit phone number for Americans in crisis to connect with suicide prevention and mental health crisis counselors. The rules, if adopted by the FCC at its July 16 Open Meeting, would require all phone service providers to begin directing all 988 calls to the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by July 16, 2022.
Vermont House passes $95 million broadband, connectivity, housing coronavirus recovery package
The Vermont House approved an additional $95 million of Coronavirus Relief Funds in the Broadband, Connectivity, and Housing bill (H.966). The passage of H.966 includes $43 million for broadband, connectivity, and cybersecurity initiatives and an additional $52 million for housing initiatives. Highlights of the bill include:
FirstNet Authority Board Approves Network Investments for 5G, On-Demand Coverage
The First Responder Network Authority Board approved the first set of investments for enhancing FirstNet, the nationwide public safety broadband network. Specifically, the Board approved more than $200 million for initial network upgrades to set FirstNet on the path to 5G and to expand the dedicated fleet of deployable assets. The Board approved $218 million for the FirstNet Authority to invest in:
The FirstNet Authority will post a detailed agenda for the Combined Board and Board Committees Meeting on FirstNet.gov prior to the meeting. The agenda topics are subject to change. Please note that the subjects discussed by the Board and Committees may involve commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential, or other legal matters affecting the FirstNet Authority. As such, the Board and Committee Chairs may call for a vote to close the meetings only for the time necessary to preserve the confidentiality of such information.
FCC Announces Additional Membership of Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee Disaster Response and Recovery Working Group
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has appointed members to serve on the Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC) Disaster Response and Recovery Working Group:
FCC, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Advise Governors on Importance of Communications
In joint letters Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Christopher Krebs encouraged the nation's governors to provide necessary access and resources to the communications workers helping to keep Americans connected during the COVID-19 pandemic. The FCC and CISA recommend the governors:
The Internet is Not Working for Everyone
We're all obviously aware of the unprecedented National Emergency President Donald Trump declared on March 13, 2020 and the shelter-at-home orders many have lived under in the last few months. Telework, telehealth, and distance education have all boomed during this time, testing residential broadband networks like never before. Back in the early weeks of the crisis, assessments based on data from broadband providers themselves and third-party internet traffic monitors led one policymaker to declare that surges in Internet traffic are well within the capacity of U.S.
ACA Connects Defends FCC's Net Neutrality Order
The Mozilla court remanded to the Federal Communications Commission for further consideration the impact of the Restoring Internet Freedom Order on broadband providers’ ability to obtain pole attachments.