FCC Won't Vote on 6 GHz Dec. 10; Focus Is 5G Security; May Be No Controversial Items

5G security is the major focus of the FCC’s Dec. 10 meeting, Chairman Ajit Pai blogged. Pai didn’t propose an expected order further liberalizing rules for Wi-Fi in the 6 GHz band, which had looked more in doubt in recent days (see our report here).

There were no tentative agenda items that appeared on their face to be controversial. The agency had been asked to adopt such a pencils-down tack until Joe Biden is sworn in as president and can tap his own commission chief. The FCC wasn't commenting on whether it's now following pencils' down, after commissioners voted on a controversial item on 5.9 GHz at their meeting earlier Wednesday.

Commissioners will vote on an order implementing the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019, Pai blogged. “These new rules would establish the procedures and criteria for publishing a list of the communications equipment and services that pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States,” he said: “They would then require eligible telecommunications carriers to remove and replace such equipment from their networks, and would establish the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program to subsidize smaller carriers to remove and replace such equipment.”

The FCC will also consider "two additional national security matters, which I am unable to discuss in detail at this time," Pai said. Also on the agenda: changes to equipment authorization rules and "a proposal to encourage the deployment of services using ATSC 3.0."