Wednesday, December 23, 2020
Headlines Daily Digest
Local Priorities for a National Broadband Stimulus: A Survey of Local Governments and Non-Profits
Don't Miss:
Broadband and Connectivity Provisions in the House Passed Omnibus Package
COVID-19 and Defense Spending Bills Target USAGM Powers
Rural Broadband Carriers Urge FCC To Define Broadband As 100 Mbps
COVID Response
More Broadband/Internet
Wireless
Education
Telecom
Platforms
Security
Ownership
Policymakers
Stories From Abroad
COVID Response
The House of Representatives’ end of the year omnibus includes:
More than $7 billion in broadband funding as part of COVID-19 relief to:
- Establishes the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) based on the Emergency Broadband Connections Act introduced by Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX). Under the Program, eligible households may receive a discount of up to $50, or up to $75 on Tribal lands, off the cost of internet service and a subsidy for low-cost devices such as computers and tablets. $3.2 billion is appropriated for the Program.
- Establishes two grant programs at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The first, funded at $1 billion, is directed to tribal governments to be used not only for broadband deployment on tribal lands, but also telehealth, distance learning, broadband affordability, and digital inclusion. The second is a $300 million broadband deployment program to support broadband infrastructure deployment to areas lacking broadband, especially rural areas.
- Expands eligibility for the Secure and Trusted Reimbursement Program at the FCC that compensates providers for the cost of removing and replacing certain unsecure equipment from their networks, which will help protect our nation’s communications networks from foreign adversaries. This is appropriated at $1.9 billion.
- Establishes an Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives at the NTIA to focus on broadband access and adoption at Historically Black colleges or universities, Tribal colleges and universities, and other Minority-serving institutions, including the students, faculty, and staff of such institutions and their surrounding communities. It also appropriates $285 million for a Pilot Program to award grants to these institutions, including to help students of these institutions afford broadband service.
- Appropriates an additional $250 million to the FCC for its COVID-19 Telehealth Program authorized under the CARES Act.
- Appropriates $65 million to the FCC to create broadband data maps required under the Broadband DATA Act.
- Appropriates $1.9 billion for the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Reimbursement Program.
The Don’t Break Up the T-Band Act of 2020, which was introduced as H.R. 451 by Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY), repeals the requirement for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to clear and auction critical public safety spectrum in the 470 to 512 megahertz band, commonly referred to as the T-band. It also directs the FCC to take steps to end 9-1-1 fee diversion.
The Advancing Critical Connectivity Expands Service, Small Business Resources, Opportunities, Access, and Data Based on Assessed Need and Demand (ACCESS BROADBAND) Act, which was introduced as H.R. 1328 by Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY), establishes the Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth (Office) at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). This Office would be tasked with performing certain responsibilities related to broadband access, adoption, and deployment, such as performing public outreach to promote access and adoption of high-speed broadband service, and standardizing the process for applying for Federal broadband support. It also establishes coordination requirements between agencies that offer broadband deployment funding programs, to ensure Federal funds are spent efficiently and effectively.
The Broadband Interagency Coordination Act requires the FCC, the NTIA, and the Department of Agriculture to enter into an interagency agreement to coordinate the distribution of federal funds for broadband programs, to prevent duplication of support, and ensure stewardship of taxpayer dollars.
The Beat CHINA for 5G Act of 2020 directs the President, acting through the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information, to withdraw or modify federal spectrum assignments in the 3450 to 3550 megahertz band. It also directs the FCC to revise the non-Federal allocation of the band to permit flexible-use services and to begin a system of competitive bidding for a portion or all of the band no later than December 31, 2021.
The $900 billion coronavirus package and $1.4 trillion government funding deal are full of technology and telecommunications priorities that will help Americans stay connected amid a darkening pandemic and keep issues from antitrust to artificial intelligence policy front-and-center heading into 2021. Both the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice's antitrust division get a bump in funding. They’ll get $351 million and $184.5 million, respectively, which is vital for the cash-crunched FTC as the agency takes on Facebook. The agreement invests $7 billion in broadband funding, including $250 million for telehealth and $1.9 billion to fund the “rip and replace” of telecommunications gear deemed a national security risk (like equipment from Chinese firms Huawei and ZTE) from US infrastructure.
Two bills approved by Congress awaiting President Donald Trump’s signature would limit the powers of Michael Pack, the president’s pick to lead the US Agency for Global Media, which oversees Voice of America and four other international media organizations. The legislation includes changes limiting the powers of the USAGM and its chief executive, but in different ways. The two bills taken together could restrict Pack’s actions between now and January 20, when Democratic President-elect Joe Biden takes office. And if Biden decides to replace Pack, it would provide that person with more leeway in making personnel changes for the first three months. For example, the spending measures approved by the House and Senate on Monday include a provision that would give the Open Technology Fund more time to respond to a USAGM letter proposing that the internet freedom fund be denied additional federal funding.
The Federal Communications Commission should define broadband as internet speeds of at least 100 Mbps in both directions, up from the current benchmark of 25 Mbps downstream and 3 Mbps upstream, trade groups for rural broadband carriers and fiber carriers argue in a new regulatory filing. The current standard “does not reflect what American consumers need today, let alone tomorrow,” NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association and the Fiber Broadband Association told the FCC. “As we look back, the Commission has significantly and repeatedly underestimated consumers’ need for robust broadband service, opting for 'here and now' short-term metrics that could not conflict more squarely with long-term objectives and the long-term nature of infrastructure deployment,” the organizations add. “Based on the record in this proceeding, the 25/3 Mbps speed metric does not reflect today’s reality.”
As Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai prepares to step down on Jan. 20, there are more than a few lessons the incoming Biden administration could learn from his tenure at the agency. Perhaps the most important lesson is that each of the new administration's goals for internet infrastructure — bridging the digital divide, universal broadband, rapid deployment of 5G — is best pursued using a regulatory approach that emphasizes economic incentives over heavy-handed directives. As the transition team prepares for a new FCC Chair, they must remember that the United States built a robust and innovative digital economy by limiting government interference. It would be foolish to abandon that strategy now.
[Douglas Holtz-Eakin is president of the American Action Forum and former director of the Congressional Budget Office]
Education
Minority Broadband Initiative Helps Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Tribal Colleges and Universities Navigate Distance Learning Regulations
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration's Minority Broadband Initiative (MBI), in partnership with the United States Distance Learning Association and the Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education, recently held a teleconference(link is external) to brief Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) on new Department of Education distance learning regulations due to be implemented July 1, 2021. Participants included 256 representatives of 63 HBCUs and 24 TCUs, including distance learning coordinators, chief academic officers, chief information officers and faculty. In addition, the presidents of several institutions attended the teleconference. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges also described how the accreditation process is adapting to challenges facing schools during the pandemic. A representative from the Center for Higher Education Transformation stressed that these changes should be made consistently and that our regulatory system should help promote innovation in higher education rather than make it more difficult.
The telecommunications ecosystem is broken, but there's a move underway by the Telecom Ecosystem Group to rectify, if not completely reset, some of those problems. The Telecom Ecosystem Group was formed last year as a means to, among other tasks, make it easier for start-ups to survive in the telecommunications sector while also fueling innovation. Some of the issues the group is addressing include onerous Request For Proposals processes, which can be up to 50 pages long, funding, which includes not requiring startups to pay for proof-concept trials, procurement, and innovation processes. For funding, telecommunications investment cycles can take years, which makes it difficult for startups to get a return on their investments. The length of time for small vendors to bring a product or solution to bear at a telco, or the market in general, has led to a lack of interest by venture capitalists to fund startups, according to the Telecom Ecosystem Group. There's also a lack of competition between small and large vendors. Large vendors have bigger R&D teams, more capital, and existing relationships with telcos, which creates a barrier of entry for startups.
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) and Robbie McBeath (rmcbeath AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
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