The Federal Communications Commission regained its ability to hold spectrum auctions when President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill into law on July 4. The FCC’s auction authority had lapsed since March 2023. Reinstating the FCC auction authority wasn’t the only good news for wireless.
The guessing game is over since the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has released the final rules about how the new Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) grant process will work. It’s still impossible to make any guesses about the percentage of BEAD that will be awarded to fiber or other technologies. It’s clear that a lot of State Broadband Offices (SBOs) still want to maximize the amount of awards made to fiber.
Monday, July 7, 2025
The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society and its public interest allies have reason to celebrate an unambiguous victory at the U.S. Supreme Court. On July 27, in FCC v. Consumers Research, Justice Elena Kagan, joined by five colleagues, decisively rejected arguments that the Universal Service Fund (USF) established under the Communications Act is an unconstitutional delegation of Congressional authority to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
A timely policy-focused webinar unpacking the Supreme Court’s landmark decision about the FCC’s authority to administer the Universal Service Fund (USF).
Leading experts will break down the implications of the ruling, what it means for anchor institutions, and how SHLB is working with the bipartisan Congressional USF Working Group to shape the future of broadband connectivity for schools, libraries, health centers, and the communities they serve.
Hear from the panelists:
Today's top broadband news
Most of us were watching the "Big, Beautiful Bill" get passed this week, which for the broadband world means the renewal of the Federal Communications Commission's spectrum auction authority.
© 1994-2026 Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. All Rights Reserved.
