Agenda

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr has called for a “top-to-bottom” review of the Universal Service Fund. His best defensive move is to preserve a rare USF success that happened 15 years ago and has quietly reduced the real burden of High Cost support. His more ambitious task is to confront the political economy that blocks structural reform and leaves rural customers dependent on permanently subsidized providers.

The EU is moving to counter American dominance in technology by reaching for one of the oldest tools in its arsenal: industrial strategy. As the European Commission unveiled a plan to reduce Europe’s reliance on the foreign technology providers that underpin the modern economy, it was careful to stress that it was not picking a fight with U.S. digital giants.

The AWS-3 auction kicked off with around 200 licenses formerly owned by EchoStar on the block. But with three rounds down, it appears that the auction anticipation—particularly around SpaceX’s involvement—has proved bigger than actual operator appetites. Bids totaled $59.3 million at the end of three rounds of bidding, with that number jumping only about $5 million from $54 million at the end of round two.

As families across the country celebrate this year’s graduates, the Federal Communications Commission is advancing initiatives that will help deliver a brighter and safer future for every community. In today’s classrooms, connected devices are everywhere—nearly 90 percent of public schools now provide them—yet students are losing up to 38 minutes every hour to digital distractions. And there is a concerning trend in the data—showing that reading and math scores are plummeting across the country while screen time has been rising. This month’s agenda reflects our commitment to deploying the w

Artificial intelligence will almost certainly be the most transformational technology in the history of the world. The question is: Who will own and control that future? Who will benefit from it, and who will be hurt by it? Will A.I. be used to make life better for working families? Will it enrich our quality of life? Will it help us eliminate poverty, extend life expectancies and solve the climate crisis?

Among people of faith with strong ties to Silicon Valley, no one faces a thornier dilemma when confronting Pope Leo’s encyclical on artificial intelligence than Vice President JD Vance (R-OH).  The country’s most powerful Catholic, Vice President Vance, is also surely aware of growing AI skepticism on the religious right. At the same time, he has championed President Donald Trump’s broadly hands-off approach to AI and is a longtime Peter Thiel ally.

The Universal Service Administrative Company’s (USAC’s) estimated total Rural Health Care (RHC) Program demand for Funding Year 2026 is $911.25 million, including the gross demand estimate of $882.19 million for the Telecommunications (Telecom) and Healthcare Connect Fund (HCF) Programs and the projected USAC administrative expenses of $29.06 million.

As electric cooperatives descend upon Washington (DC) for their fifth-annual Broadband Leadership Summit, they bring with them a number of policy priorities and concerns. Among those is their growing distress at the direction of the federal government's $42 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program.