Monday, November 3, 2025
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FCC Proposes Changes to Prison Phone Rules
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FCC Commissioner Gomez Calls for Stronger Efforts to Close the Digital Divide
State Broadband Leaders Frustrated by Federal Changes to BEAD Program
Advocates Warn Broadband Gains at Risk Without Sustainable Consumer Subsidy
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Federal Communications Commissioner Anna Gomez said she was “heartbroken” by the loss of the Wi-Fi Hotspot program, the Affordable Connectivity Program, and other programs recently cut. “These are all methods to reach the unconnected and to provide connectivity to the members of the community that cannot access it on their own, but need it in order to participate in just about everything we do in today’s society,” Commissioner Gomez said. “Whether it’s for students to be able to do their homework, whether it’s for teachers to be able to teach their students, whether it’s for people at home who need to apply for jobs or need to do their jobs, veterans who can get their health care remotely.”
State broadband representatives expressed frustration about the many recent changes made to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. “This is an infrastructure project, and renting space on satellite is not,” said Christine Hallquist, executive director of the Vermont Community Broadband Board, speaking at the AnchorNets2025 conference hosted by the Schools, Health and Libraries Broadband Coalition. Hallquist said her team has spent long nights fielding repeated questions about Vermont’s BEAD application and facing pressure from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to include satellite coverage.
Digital equity advocates warned that inconsistent federal financing threatened to erase broadband adoption gains, and urged Congress to replace the lapsed Affordable Connectivity Program with a stable, long-term consumer subsidy. Moderated by Revati Prasad, executive director of the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, the panel said high monthly costs remained the main reason families lose or forgo internet service. Any replacement for the ACP must function as a permanent affordability support, not a short-term emergency program, argued Prasad.
I cringe every time I see the term “technology neutral”. Over the last few years, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has morphed the phrase into a euphemism to mean we should favor the cheapest technology over the best technology. And it clearly is a euphemism meant to disguise the true nature of the broadband policy discussion from those not involved in the topic every day. Governments have gotten so good at developing such phrases that the euphemisms replace the right language and become common usage. We routinely hear phrases like revenue enhancement instead of tax increase, or negative growth instead of losses without fully realizing what is not being said. It seems pretty clear that the term was tossed into the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act legislation as a bone for wireless internet service providers. They badly wanted to participate in the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program, and used the term technology-neutral to plant the idea that all technologies that could deliver speeds of 100/20 Megabits per second were all equivalent. Until Tarana came out with much faster radios, the fixed wireless technology at the time didn’t deserve to be considered for long-term grants—and sure enough, five years later, the older radios have already joined DSL and other older technologies in the obsolete technology trash bin.
Two unfolding forces will shape significantly the short-term future of the Democratic Party:
- The popularity of socialist candidates and ideas, especially among grassroots Democrats.
- AI increasing energy costs, joblessness and inequality.
This future was captured vividly recently when Sen Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Zohran Mamdani, and democratic socialist allies electrified a jam-packed stadium in Queens (NY) for a mayoral race. Chants of "Tax the rich!" roared at the "New York Is Not for Sale" rally. Young people cheered wildly. It was a stunning socialist celebration. It's not just a New York thing. Or a Mamdani thing. It's a where-the-energy-in-a-demoralized-party-reigns thing. Sen Sanders and many others see AI as the next big fight in American politics—one ripe for a heavy focus on protecting workers and spreading tech wealth to others.
Charter Communications released financial results for the third quarter of 2025. Highlights include:
- Third quarter total Internet customers decreased by 109,000, compared to a decline of 110,000 during the third quarter of 2024.
- During the third quarter of 2025, Charter added 493,000 total mobile lines, compared to growth of 545,000 during the third quarter of 2024.
- During the third quarter of 2025, total wireline voice customers declined by 200,000, compared to a decline of 288,000 in the third quarter of 2024.
- Charter continues to work with federal, state, and local governments to bring Spectrum Internet to unserved and underserved communities. During the third quarter of 2025, Charter activated 124,000 subsidized rural passings.
Leaders across the United States share a common concern: how to ensure that workers have the skills they need to find quality jobs and that businesses have the talented workforce they need to thrive. In response, policymakers and education and workforce leaders have been exploring new ways for workers to demonstrate their competencies. One example is the growing adoption of “skills-based hiring”—an approach that prioritizes applicants’ skills, competencies, and experience over bachelor’s degree requirements. This approach has the potential to remove barriers for people without traditional degrees and widen talent pools for employers. Policymakers are also focusing on short-term, quality non-degree credentials as a way for people to certify that they have industry-validated skills. States have made significant investments in these credentials, and the federal government recently expanded its own investments via Workforce Pell. As public investment grows, policymakers and skills advocates are working to ensure that these efforts lead to strong outcomes—but business perspectives are rarely researched. To fill that gap, Business Leaders United for Workforce Partnerships interviewed 75 small and mid-sized businesses—primarily in manufacturing and construction—about their hiring and skills assessment processes.
Benton (www.benton.org) provides the only free, reliable, and non-partisan daily digest that curates and distributes news related to universal broadband, while connecting communications, democracy, and public interest issues. Posted Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are factually accurate, their sometimes informal tone may not always represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang (headlines AT benton DOT org), Grace Tepper (grace AT benton DOT org), and Zoe Walker (zwalker AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
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Kevin Taglang
Executive Editor, Communications-related Headlines
Benton Institute
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