Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

House Communications Subcommittee members are continuing to wrestle with whether and how to package legislation to reauthorize the FCC’s spectrum auction authority with other related policy matters. Witnesses at a Wednesday hearing on those issues urged Congress to quickly renew the FCC’s sales authority and cited a range of other matters lawmakers should simultaneously consider, including directing proceeds to pay for other telecom projects and addressing interagency disputes on frequency allocations (see 2203150069).

The FCC must be the decider in spectrum disputes, which was Congress’ intention when it approved the Communication Act in 1934, said Public Knowledge and the Digital Progress Institute in a paper released Wednesday. The paper notes the Commerce Department initially had authority to assign commercial spectrum licenses, but that duty was assigned to the Federal Radio Commission in 1927, and later the FCC. “Congress realized early on that giving an executive agency -- like the Department of Commerce -- the authority to regulate spectrum would create a massive conflict of interest in resolving spectrum disputes,” the paper said: “The reason is that the Executive Branch is a significant user of spectrum, and it would be difficult for a cabinet Secretary to be impartial when deciding either to grant a license to a commercial carrier or another executive agency.” Congress gave the FCC “a lot of tools to manage spectrum, as compared to the NTIA or any other agency,” the groups said: “Congress gave almost exclusive jurisdiction to the FCC to determine how commercial operators can use spectrum. … Congress had many opportunities to provide the NTIA with more spectrum allocation authority, but it did not.” The paper follows several disputes between the FCC and other agencies, most recently with the FAA over use of the C band for 5G.

The FCC needs to stand strong as its decisions reallocating spectrum bands remain “under attack” from other federal agencies, Commissioner Brendan Carr said at an event Thursday, sponsored by CTA and WifiForward. The challenge isn’t new in the Joe Biden administration, he said. The Communications Act makes clear that the FCC should decide how spectrum is allocated, he said. “As spectrum becomes more important, as connectivity becomes more important” other agencies are “effectively trying to challenge that 1930s congressional decision that experts at the FCC should call the balls and strikes here,” he said. Carr sees artificial and virtual reality, and the need for spectrum to connect AR/VR goggles to the internet, as key drivers of continuing demand for Wi-Fi. “At the FCC, we’ve tried to do our part to make sure there is plenty of” unlicensed “spectrum out there,” he said: “We’ve got to continue to stay strong” and “push back against efforts to encroach on the FCC’s expertise.” Reps. Jerry McNerney, D-Calif., and Bob Latta, R-Ohio, chairs of the Congressional Wi-Fi Caucus, said the FCC has done a good job making more spectrum available for Wi-Fi and that push needs to continue. “The value of unlicensed spectrum is absolutely undeniable,” McNerney said. Opening the 5.9 and 6 GHz bands for unlicensed was critical, he said. “We can’t rest there,” he said. We have to continue to push the commission to open up more portions of the spectrum for unlicensed use, and that will continue to push innovation,” he said. “What would have happened” without unlicensed spectrum during the COVID-19 pandemic, Latta asked. “Tele-education, telework, just people staying in touch with their loved ones, those are the things that we came to rely on,” he said. “Think where we were 10 years ago, and then five years ago” and where we are today, he said: “We have a great reliance on unlicensed technology. … It’s a necessity now.” The U.S. doesn’t want to follow other countries, “we want to be the leaders,” he said. “Unlicensed spectrum supports a wide range of innovations, from drones and [VR] headsets, to mobile payments and wearables,” said David Grossman, CTA vice president-regulatory affairs.

Communications industry companies, law firms and government agencies are looking at returning to the office, with the COVID-19 omicron variant on the wane. The shift coincides with Washington, D.C., dropping its mask mandate and the White House urging companies and agencies to return to work. “COVID-19 no longer needs to dictate how we work,” said a White House COVID-19 Preparedness Plan released Wednesday.

Democratic FCC nominee Gigi Sohn and FTC nominee Alvaro Bedoya cleared an initial confirmation hurdle Thursday after the Senate Commerce Committee voted 14-14 on both picks, but they still face a long road to floor approval, said lawmakers and other officials in interviews. Panel Democrats uniformly backed Sohn and Bedoya, but all Republicans opposed them. Six of the 14 Republicans attended the executive session, fulfilling expectations they wouldn’t boycott the meeting (see 2203020076). The committee also tied 14-14 on Consumer Product Safety Commission nominee Mary Boyle. It advanced National Institute of Standards and Technology director nominee Laurie Locascio and International Trade Administration nominee Grant Harris on voice votes.

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announces Brian Moulton, ex-office of Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., as director-Office of Legislative Affairs, and promotes Trent Harkrader to Wireline Bureau chief following Kris Monteith’s retirement … DigitalBridge names Wireless Infrastructure Association CEO and former FCC commissioner Jonathan Adelstein as managing director and head-global policy and public investment, beginning June 1 (see 2203020059) ... Open Compute Project Foundation hires George Tchaparian, ex-Accton Group, as CEO …

Media companies and organizations, including Google, DirecTV and the NAB, are taking action against Russian-sponsored content in reaction to the invasion of Ukraine. “The First Amendment protects freedom of speech; however, it does not prevent private actors from exercising sound, moral judgment,” said NAB CEO Curtis LeGeyt in a statement Tuesday, asking all broadcasters to cease airing “state-sponsored programming with ties to the Russian government or its agents.”

Democratic FCC nominee Gigi Sohn’s recent answers to Senate Commerce Committee members’ follow-up questions from a Feb. 9 confirmation hearing (see 2201280066) are unlikely to dissuade ranking member Roger Wicker of Mississippi and other panel Republicans from pursuing a boycott of a future committee vote to advance her confirmation process, Senate aides and lobbyists told us. In responses released Tuesday, Sohn sought to counter GOP claims she wasn't sufficiently candid about whether she played a role as a board member for Locast operator Sports Fans Coalition (SFC) in securing a revised $700,000 settlement of broadcasters’ lawsuit against the shuttered rebroadcaster (see 2202220066).

Regulatory reviews of Apollo's buying Lumen ILEC assets are moving forward in the states. Virginia State Corporation Commission staff plans to recommend approval soon, said Hearing Examiner Ann Berkebile at an evidentiary hearing livestreamed Thursday. The companies expect to finish getting state approvals in the first half of this year, they told the FCC this week.

Commenters on the Universal Service Fund generally agreed its funding system is unsustainable and in need of changes but disagreed on the solution, in comments posted Friday in docket 21-476 (see 2112220051) as the FCC prepares its report to Congress on the future of USF.