Agenda

25 Million homes will lose broadband discounts if Congress keeps stalling, FCC warns

A federal program that provides $30 monthly broadband discounts to people with low incomes is expected to run out of money in April 2024, potentially taking affordable Internet service plans away from well over 20 million households. For months, supporters of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) have been pushing Congress to give the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) more funding for the program.

The Affordable Connectivity Plan's funding shortage could spark legislative response

Representative Yvette Clarke (D-NY) hinted that she will introduce new legislation before the end of 2023 to address a significant funding gap for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The ACP, which offers free or discounted high-speed internet to qualifying households, is expected to run out of money in April of 2024.

Sponsor: 

Communications and Technology Subcommittee

House Commerce Committee

Date: 
Tue, 12/05/2023 - 10:30


Copyright law will shape how we use generative AI

In the year since the release of ChatGPT, generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been moving fast and breaking things, and copyright law is only beginning to catch up. Intellectual property law has shaped the internet for three decades.

Sponsor: 

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

U.S. Department of Commerce

Date: 
Tue, 12/19/2023 - 14:00 to 17:00

The planned meeting will be the last meeting of this term and will include the final reports and recommendations from the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS), 6G wireless systems, and Electromagnetic Compatibility Improvements (ECI) subcommittees.

NTIA will post a detailed agenda on its website, http:// www.ntia.gov/category/csmac, prior to the meeting.

To the extent that the meeting time and agenda permit, any member of the public may address the Committee regarding the agenda items.



Reps Salinas, Harshbarger Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Expand Telehealth Services for Rural Americans

Representatives Andrea Salinas (D-OR) and Diana Harshbarger (R-TN) introduced the bipartisan Home-Based Telemental Health Care Act, legislation that would expand access to remote mental health and substance use services in rural America, especially for individuals working in the farming, fishing, and forestry industries.

Who Had the Most Fun at the Oversight of President Biden's Broadband Takeover Hearing?

The House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Communications and Technology held a Federal Communications Commission oversight hearing that included testimony from each of the five (yes, there are five now) FCC commissioners. A partisan tone was set by the get-go as the title for the hearing was "Oversight of President Biden's Broadband Takeover." The key questions for the Republican Members of the panel going into the hearing were:

US stops helping Big Tech spot foreign meddling amid GOP legal threats

The US federal government has stopped warning some social networks about foreign disinformation campaigns on their platforms, reversing a years-long approach to preventing Russia and other actors from interfering in American politics less than a year before the US presidential elections. Meta no longer receives notifications of global influence campaigns from the Biden administration, halting a prolonged partnership between the federal government and the world’s largest social media company.

What Congress Needs to Know About Affordable Connectivity Program Funding

Roughly one in seven Americans have come to rely on the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) since it was created almost exactly two years ago by the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law (Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act). As of November 1, 2023, the ACP had roughly $4.7 billion in remaining funds. If the current rate of program uptake continues, April 2024 will be the last full month of funding for the ACP. To avoid this problem, the White House recently asked Congress for an additional $6 billion for the ACP in order to extend the program, and give Congress and the Federal Communicat

Chairwoman Rosenworcel's Response to Rep. Walberg Regarding the Safeguarding and Securing the Open Internet Proceeding

On October 6, 2023, Rep Tim Walberg (R-MI) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel to express concerns that she "misled the public and [was] not truthful" in Congressional testimony and has proposed broadband rate regulation. In her November 14 reply to Rep Walberg, Chairwoman Rosenworcel said, "I have no interest in pursuing regulation of broadband rates." She included a paragraph from the net neutrality/Title II proposal which reads:

Chairwoman Rosenworcel's Response to Members of Congress Regarding Broadband Data Collection

On May 10, 2023, 19 House Members wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel to express concerns about the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Broadband Data Collection and asking the FCC to 1) Strengthen outreach to state and local governments on technical assistance to those interested in verifying availability and location data within their jurisdiction on a consistent basis; 2) Elevate public outreach and education opportunities for members of the public who would like to participate in the individual challenge process contained within the Broadband

How ACP negotiations might shake out

The looming lapse of funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) threatens to widen the affordability and adoption gap just as the access gap is closing. The ACP, which currently provides a monthly broadband subsidy of $30 for roughly 22 million households, is projected to run out of funding by April 2024 without action from Congress.

US Affordable Connectivity Program is Closing the Digital Divide

In the wake of the Biden Administration’s request for a $6 billion extension of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), some in Congress question the program’s true impact on bringing broadband access to new users.

The Future of the Affordable Connectivity Program

A look at potential changes to the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) eligibility criteria based on participation in social benefits programs such as Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP), Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Public Assistance Income (PAP). These potential changes would have broad impacts since the National Verifier (NV) uses program participation rather than income to confirm eligibility for over 90 percent of ACP applications.

Don’t Pull the Plug on Our Veterans

In today’s world, connectivity is essential to our daily lives. For more than 750,000 veterans across the United States, this connectivity is all made possible thanks to the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP)—and unless Congress funds this essential program, those veterans will be cut off by Spring. The program has been instrumental in keeping more than 21 million households connected across the U.S. and 2.5 million veterans are eligible.

Sponsor: 

Georgetown Center for Business and Public Policy

Date: 
Wed, 12/13/2023 - 12:00

Former FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly will review the highlights, and lowlights, of 2023 for the tech and telecommunications sectors in the U.S., share insights on current policy issues dominating Beltway conversations and preview what 2024 might have in store for tech and telecom during an election year.



Sponsor: 

Gigabit Libraries Network

Date: 
Thu, 11/30/2023 - 11:00 to 12:30

Renewed legislation is in motion to address what has long been a consensus on USF: the current model is both unfair and unsustainable.

The Universal Service Fund covers some of the costs of:



Sponsor: 

New America

Date: 
Thu, 11/30/2023 - 12:00 to 13:00

At the heart of the digital economy are practices of pervasive data collection and surveillance carried out by corporations and states. Our data-intensive world is here to stay, but does that come at the cost of our humanity in terms of autonomy, community, dignity, and equality? Even though we all co-create the data fueling the digital economy, we do not share in the value of that data and  are left out of the most pressing conversations around technology, ethics, and policy.



Sponsor: 

Multicultural Media Telecom and Internet Council, ALLvanza, LGBT Tech, OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates

Date: 
Tue, 12/05/2023 - 11:30 to 13:30

A conversation on the vital role of BEAD funding as it pertains to vulnerable communities.



We need better data to truly unlock technological neutrality in broadband deployment

Every year by law the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has to “determine whether advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion.” If not, the FCC “shall take immediate action to accelerate deployment of such capability by removing barriers to infrastructure investment and by promoting competition in the telecommunications market.” While broadband data is in better shape, there are still critical gaps that mean we don’t have enough data to fully answer the question.

Net Neutrality: What It Means for Your Everyday Internet Access and Streaming Speeds

One of the longest-running debates about internet access has entered a new phase, and the way it unfolds could directly affect everything you do online. You might remember the net neutrality debate from a decade ago.

Network slicing and net neutrality

Whether network slicing complies with the net neutrality rules currently in force in Europe and previously applicable in the U.S. presents a key issue in the deployment of 5G. In many ways, both regimes frame the issues in a similar manner, with the exceptions for reasonable traffic management and specialised services likely to play the most important roles.

FCC Announces Tentative Agenda for December Open Meeting

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced that the items below are tentatively on the agenda for the December Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Wednesday, December 13, 2023: