Incompas CEO Chip Pickering praised House Communications Subcommittee member Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., for her longtime role in communications policymaking following the lawmaker's announcement that she won’t seek reelection in 2024 (see 2311210073). “I had the honor of serving in Congress with” Eshoo “and to say she will be missed is an understatement,” said Pickering, a Republican who served on House Communications with Eshoo. “Her time in Congress was marked by three decades of tirelessly advocating for her constituents in California, and pushing forward bipartisan policies that have shaped our telecommunications history and paved the way forward for its future. Even after my time with her in the halls of Congress, we remained friends and worked together to continue to advance America's position as the global leader in technology and work to ensure Internet for All.” Eshoo is one of seven House Commerce Committee members who have announced they won’t be seeking reelection next year. The others: Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del.; Michael Burgess, R-Texas; Tony Cardenas, D-Calif.; Bill Johnson, R-Ohio; Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz.; and John Sarbanes, D-Md. Cardenas is the only other sitting House Communications member who’s retiring.
NTIA released a conditional waiver of the broadband, equity, access and deployment program's letter of credit requirement Wednesday. More than 300 groups in September urged the agency to remove the requirement, citing potential limitations on small providers' participation (see 2309060022).
The Biden administration’s Wednesday request for Congress to appropriate an additional $6 billion to fully fund the FCC’s affordable connectivity program (ACP) through the end of 2024 (see 2310250075) is drawing initial skepticism from top telecom-focused Republicans amid their push for the commission to be more transparent about how it has been spending the program’s existing $14.2 billion allocation. Congressional Democrats enthusiastically backed the White House’s request, noting it would give Capitol Hill more breathing room to examine whether and how to tie in changes to a longer-term ACP with a push for broader USF revamp legislation. Current estimates peg ACP as likely to exhaust its funding from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act during the first half of 2024 (see 2309210060).
Broadband officials and experts raised concerns Wednesday about the role of railroad crossings in broadband deployment. Panelists during a Broadband Breakfast webinar cited delays in right-of-way application decisions from railroad owners as one of the main obstacles and backed establishing a national framework to address the issue as states prepare to dole out funding through NTIA's broadband, equity, access and deployment program and other federal funding.
FCC commissioners divided Thursday on a vote to reestablish net neutrality rules, during the agency's first open meeting with a full commission since Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel took the helm (see 2310130051). Commissioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington voted against an NPRM seeking comment on a proposal to return to 2015 rules that classified broadband as a Title II telecom service.
The FCC should reconsider proposed changes in an April NPRM on rules for Section 214 international authorizations (see 2304200039), CTIA and others said in reply comments, posted Tuesday in docket 23-119. The order authorized a one-time collection of foreign-ownership information from authorization holders and sought comment on rules requiring carriers to renew the authorizations every 10 years, “or in the alternative,” periodic updates. The FCC got pushback in the initial comment round but general support from DOJ, DOD and Department of Homeland Security, sometimes called Team Telecom (see 2309010058).
Most commenters want the FCC to use a nonexclusive licensing approach for the 42 GHz band, they said in reply comments posted Monday and last week in docket 23-158. Among the major carriers, only T-Mobile filed comments (see 2308310053). Commenters also urged the FCC to approve a similar regime for the lower 37 GHz band. Commissioners approved 4-0 an NPRM in June asking about three potential approaches in the band -- nationwide nonexclusive licensing, site-based licensing and technology-based licensing (see 2306080042).
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel defended an anticipated proceeding that will kick off the commission's efforts to reestablish net neutrality rules (see 2309260047). "We've made it a national policy to make sure broadband reaches everyone, everywhere," she said during a Wednesday Axios event: "I think we should make it a national policy to make sure it's open and not just leave this issue to the states." Rosenworcel in an FCC note also previewed the draft item to be released Thursday, saying commissioners will vote next month on a proposal to begin the process of restoring the FCC’s "overwhelmingly popular" rules.
Incompas adds Jeff Garte, Boldyn Networks president-Northeast business, to its board ... Global Satellite Operators Association names ManSat Chief Financial Officer Rachel Beattie its new treasurer ... Universal Music Group announces Vice Chair Anna Jones, former Hearst Magazines U.K. CEO, retiring from its board, effective Sept. 30 ... Live events producer ASM Global names Live Nation’s Alex Bowen vice president-live entertainment ... Instacart adds Sequoia Capital partner Ravi Gupta to its board; Gupta was Instacart’s chief financial officer and chief operating officer before leaving for Sequoia in 2019 ...
Incompas adds Jeff Garte, Boldyn Networks president-Northeast business, to its board ... Global Satellite Operators Association names ManSat Chief Financial Officer Rachel Beattie its new treasurer ... Universal Music Group announces Vice Chair Anna Jones, former Hearst Magazines U.K. CEO, retiring from its board, effective Sept. 30 ... Live events producer ASM Global names Live Nation’s Alex Bowen vice president-live entertainment ... Instacart adds Sequoia Capital partner Ravi Gupta to its board; Gupta was Instacart’s chief financial officer and chief operating officer before leaving for Sequoia in 2019.