USDA awarded nearly $700 million in its latest round of ReConnect program support to 22 states, the agency said Monday (see 2306130042). NTCA said its members received nearly $350 million of the announced awards and will support "the delivery of 100 Mbps symmetrical speeds or better."
Nokia is expanding a program that combines in a single package several electronic products that FCC broadband equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program participants use for building and scaling network infrastructure, the company said in a news release Thursday. The expanded program will include fiber products made in the U.S. such as those produced in the Wisconsin manufacturing project announced by Nokia earlier this month (see 2308030076). Operators building networks “need to be able to source a wide range of components and networking equipment all while ensuring their quality and compatibility,” the release said. Nokia’s “network-in-a-box” can help to simplify and speed that process, the release said.
The FCC Wireline Bureau extended until Oct. 30 the invoice filing deadline for emergency connectivity fund applicants and providers with deadlines occurring before that date, it said in an order posted Tuesday in docket 21-93. T-Mobile sought a waiver in June, citing the "complexities in the emergency program related to the invoicing process." The bureau also modified its rules to allow invoices to be submitted within 60 days from the date that the Universal Service Administrative Co. issues a notification that a refund request has been processed.
An FCC order expanding tribal libraries' access to the E-rate program is effective Sept. 29, said a notice for Tuesday's Federal Register. Commissioners approved the item in July (see 2307200041).
More than 20 million households have enrolled in the FCC's affordable connectivity program to date, said a news release Monday. The commission said it has hosted or participated in more than 1,400 virtual and in-person awareness and enrollment efforts. “Enrolling more than 20 million eligible households is no small feat -- and wouldn’t be possible without the partnership of organizations in rural, suburban, and urban communities across the country who are getting the word about this powerful program," said Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel: "We’ve made too much progress in helping families get online to turn back now."
Providers participating in the FCC's affordable connectivity program must submit information required for the commission's data collection by Nov. 9, said a Wireline Bureau public notice Friday in docket 21-450. OMB completed its review of the proposed data collection Friday. Providers can begin submitting data Sept. 8.
The FCC wants comments by Sept. 25, replies by Oct. 23, in docket 02-6 on ensuring eligible tribal entities have access to the E-rate program and streamlining the application process for all applicants, per a notice in Wednesday's Federal Register. Commissioners approved the item in July (see 2307200041).
Free market-oriented groups filed an amicus brief in support of Consumers' Research's challenge of the FCC's method for funding the USF, the subject of an upcoming en banc rehearing of the group’s challenge of the USF and how it’s funded by the FCC (see 2306290074). “Only Congress has the power to lay and to collect taxes for the universal welfare of all Americans. Regardless of the public policy that it seeks to advance, Congress cannot delegate this power to the FCC or any other executive branch agency,” said an amicus brief by the Competitive Enterprise Institute, the Free State Foundation and former Commissioner Harold Furchtgott-Roth, among others. Consumers’ Research argued the statutory framework for the fund unconstitutionally delegates legislative or taxing authority, and the FCC’s use of the Universal Service Administrative Co. is an impermissible delegation of regulatory authority to a private company. A three-judge panel ruled against Consumers' Research in March (see 2303240049). Said the filing Friday in case 22-60008: “The Constitution does not permit Congress to circumvent the legislative process by allowing an independent agency (guided by a private company owned by an industry trade group) to raise and to spend however much money it wants every quarter for ‘universal service’ at the expense of every American who pays a monthly phone bill. Elected representatives of the people, not the [FCC], must be responsible for making the difficult decisions to raise the revenue that funds this program.”
Incompas and Morgan Lewis, on behalf of its clients, asked the FCC for a 30-day extension of the deadlines to file comments and replies on an NPRM on Section 214 international authorizations, approved by commissioners in April (see 2304200039). The extension would mean comments are due Sept. 30, replies Nov. 1. The NPRM “seeks comment on a host of legal and policy questions to which we are working diligently with our respective members and clients to develop input,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 23-119: “The questions posed … involve complex economic, operational, and policy issues and will require us to closely consult with our respective members and clients. Our members and clients also must coordinate internally among business units and, in many cases, with their corporate owners in the U.S. and globally to determine the potential impact of the rules proposed in the NPRM and to develop their input.”
The Competitive Carriers Association and USTelecom asked the FCC for an exemption for three more filing cycles from a requirement that broadband data collection filings be verified by a licensed professional engineer. The process under a previous waiver (see 2207080072) “has been effective, with no impact to the quality or accuracy of the BDC filings, and there remains an ongoing industry need for a waiver of the PE requirement,” said a filing posted Friday in docket 19-195: “A strict imposition of the … requirement would fail to reflect the realities of the broadband workforce and hinder broadband deployment for both mobile and fixed networks, as acknowledged by the Commission in its declaratory ruling and granting of limited waiver last year.” The current waiver expires after the next filing in September.