Verizon dominated the record-setting C-band auction with $45.4 billion in bids, almost twice the $23.4 billion bid by AT&T, the FCC announced. T-Mobile was third at $9.3 billion, as it further buttressed its midband holdings. UScellular bid $1.3 billion. The auction started Dec. 8 and closed Feb. 17 at $81.2 billion after the assignment phase. That doesn’t include roughly $13 billion in accelerated clearing payments. The FCC sold all 5,684 spectrum blocks up for bid.

Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel circulated for a vote at the March 17 commissioners’ meeting a draft order launching an October auction of the 3.45-3.55 GHz band for 5G. She also circulated a draft public notice on bidding procedures.

A federal judge denied preliminary injunction for ISP associations against California’s net neutrality law at a teleconferenced Tuesday hearing at the U.S. District Court in Sacramento. The comments came following industry and government arguments. See our news report here.

Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel circulated her proposal for rules for the $3.2 billion emergency broadband benefit program, a news release said Monday afternoon. The proposal would allow "all types of broadband providers" to participate and require them to "deliver the qualifying broadband service to eligible households" to be reimbursed from the program.

Virginia could soon become the second state with a comprehensive privacy law, after California. The Senate voted 32-7 Friday for HB-2307. The House voted 89-9 Thursday for SB-1392, the Senate's same version. The Senate concurred with House changes.

The House Commerce Committee voted 31-24 along party lines Friday night to advance to the House Budget Committee language in its part of the coming COVID-19 budget reconciliation measure that would allocate $7.6 billion for E-rate remote learning funding, as expected. The section would also allocate $50 million to the Consumer Product Safety Commission that would in part be used to monitor e-commerce websites selling pandemic-related and other dangerous consumer products.

The new administration told a court overseeing the federal government's challenge to California net neutrality rules that the government wants to dismiss that case. As expected, DOJ notified U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of California Monday "of its voluntary dismissal of this case," No. 2:18-cv-2660-JAM-DB. See here in Pacer.

President Joe Biden has named Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel as the FCC’s interim chair, until a permanent chair can be confirmed later this year, said a news release. Rosenworcel is among several candidates considered to be in the running for the permanent job. “I thank the President for the opportunity to lead an agency with such a vital mission and talented staff," Rosenworcel said in the release. "It is a privilege to serve the American people and work on their behalf to expand the reach of communications opportunity in the digital age.”

President Joe Biden designated FTC Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter as acting chair, the agency announced Thursday. “I am deeply honored and grateful to lead an agency that is critical to helping the U.S. economy get back on its feet and function more fairly for all Americans,” Slaughter said.

The C-band auction, which opened Dec. 8, closed at $80.9 billion in its first phase, not including roughly $13 billion in additional accelerated clearing payments. That's according to the FCC's auction website and to an agency announcement shortly after 1 p.m. EST Friday.