BT pressed its concern about possible FCC business data service action. "BT urged caution against precipitously writing rules regarding BDS and technology transition that would kill competition and further expand and strengthen the dominance of incumbents, highlighting that caution, scrutiny and fresh data are in order in light of the rapid concentration taking place in the telecommunications industry," said its filings Monday in docket 05-25 on meetings with aides to Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioner Mignon Clyburn (here and here). BT met earlier with an aide to Commissioner Mike O'Rielly (see 1703020048). In separate meetings with the Pai and Clyburn aides, Incompas discussed the status of BDS-related proceedings, according to filings (here and here)

BT pressed its concern about possible FCC business data service action. "BT urged caution against precipitously writing rules regarding BDS and technology transition that would kill competition and further expand and strengthen the dominance of incumbents, highlighting that caution, scrutiny and fresh data are in order in light of the rapid concentration taking place in the telecommunications industry," said its filings Monday in docket 05-25 on meetings with aides to Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioner Mignon Clyburn (here and here). BT met earlier with an aide to Commissioner Mike O'Rielly (see 1703020048). In separate meetings with the Pai and Clyburn aides, Incompas discussed the status of BDS-related proceedings, according to filings (here and here)

A court granted an FCC request to suspend review of challenges to its 2015 business data service (BDS) tariff investigation order prohibiting certain practices by AT&T, CenturyLink, Frontier Communications and Verizon (see 1604280057). The commission was directed to file a status report on 60-day intervals starting April 24, said the brief order (in Pacer) Thursday of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in AT&T v. FCC, No. 16-1145 and consolidated cases. The agency filed a motion to hold the case in abeyance to give it more time to decide on its course. The court in another order (in Pacer) granted motions to intervene filed by the Ad Hoc Telecommunications Users Committee, CenturyLink, Level 3, Sprint and Incompas.

A court granted an FCC request to suspend review of challenges to its 2015 business data service (BDS) tariff investigation order prohibiting certain practices by AT&T, CenturyLink, Frontier Communications and Verizon (see 1604280057). The commission was directed to file a status report on 60-day intervals starting April 24, said the brief order (in Pacer) Thursday of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in AT&T v. FCC, No. 16-1145 and consolidated cases. The agency filed a motion to hold the case in abeyance to give it more time to decide on its course. The court in another order (in Pacer) granted motions to intervene filed by the Ad Hoc Telecommunications Users Committee, CenturyLink, Level 3, Sprint and Incompas.

President Donald Trump seems receptive to prioritizing broadband access, potentially through his infrastructure proposal, senators who raised the issue with him told us. During last year’s presidential campaign, Trump invoked plans for an infrastructure stimulus of as much as $1 trillion, and this year several lawmakers from both chambers and parties pressed the White House to incorporate broadband funding through such a vehicle. Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., a key Trump liaison to the House, cautioned it’s too soon to say.

President Donald Trump seems receptive to prioritizing broadband access, potentially through his infrastructure proposal, senators who raised the issue with him told us. During last year’s presidential campaign, Trump invoked plans for an infrastructure stimulus of as much as $1 trillion, and this year several lawmakers from both chambers and parties pressed the White House to incorporate broadband funding through such a vehicle. Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., a key Trump liaison to the House, cautioned it’s too soon to say.

CenturyLink is hopeful the FCC will allow price-cap telcos to shift from Part 32 rules to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), said Jeff Lanning, vice president federal regulatory affairs. The Part 32 uniform system of accounts "is another part of the regulatory edifice created to deal with a monopoly, and we’re way past that. All of that framework needs to go away," he told us Tuesday. Commissioners are scheduled to vote at Thursday's meeting on a draft item to simplify price-cap carrier accounting. "We need to be treated like other providers," he said, calling potential FCC streamlining "a very positive step." Incompas backed NCTA opposition to the telco plan for ending mandatory Part 32 use in calculating pole-attachment rates as part of the proposed FCC optional shift to GAAP for price-cap carriers. "Ensuring the rates are reduced to the appropriate level -- let alone not allow for an increase -- is critical to the Chairman’s broadband build-out agenda," said an Incompas filing Friday in docket 14-130. "NCTA has demonstrated that the ILECs’ proposal risks raising these rates substantially. The Commission should not take action that results in any rate increases for pole attachments, even if temporary or transitioned over time." NCTA more recently sought to attach conditions to an ILEC-proposed transition for pole-attachment rates from Part 32 to GAAP treatment (see 1702170038). Lanning said Part 32 and GAAP accounting produce the same pole-attachment rates on average in the long run, but he said Incompas and cable advocates are trying to use "regulatory arbitrage to lock in rates" at artificially low levels.

CenturyLink is hopeful the FCC will allow price-cap telcos to shift from Part 32 rules to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), said Jeff Lanning, vice president federal regulatory affairs. The Part 32 uniform system of accounts "is another part of the regulatory edifice created to deal with a monopoly, and we’re way past that. All of that framework needs to go away," he told us Tuesday. Commissioners are scheduled to vote at Thursday's meeting on a draft item to simplify price-cap carrier accounting. "We need to be treated like other providers," he said, calling potential FCC streamlining "a very positive step." Incompas backed NCTA opposition to the telco plan for ending mandatory Part 32 use in calculating pole-attachment rates as part of the proposed FCC optional shift to GAAP for price-cap carriers. "Ensuring the rates are reduced to the appropriate level -- let alone not allow for an increase -- is critical to the Chairman’s broadband build-out agenda," said an Incompas filing Friday in docket 14-130. "NCTA has demonstrated that the ILECs’ proposal risks raising these rates substantially. The Commission should not take action that results in any rate increases for pole attachments, even if temporary or transitioned over time." NCTA more recently sought to attach conditions to an ILEC-proposed transition for pole-attachment rates from Part 32 to GAAP treatment (see 1702170038). Lanning said Part 32 and GAAP accounting produce the same pole-attachment rates on average in the long run, but he said Incompas and cable advocates are trying to use "regulatory arbitrage to lock in rates" at artificially low levels.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., sees no easy opening to continue her pay-TV scrutiny under the banner of the Homeland Security Committee, where she's the new ranking member this Congress. Last Congress, she was ranking member of the committee’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI), a perch that allowed her to press in conjunction with Subcommittee Chairman Rob Portman, R-Ohio, for a hearing that happened last summer on the topic. She had hoped to hold a follow-up hearing late last year on retransmission consent and programming costs. “Probably, it would depend on the chairman’s proclivities that way, and I’m not optimistic,” McCaskill said in an interview last week about the possibilities of continuing those activities in this new Congress. She wrote to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai this month on some of the findings of her staff on the topics, uncovered in the midst of last Congress’ PSI inquiries (see 1702080066). Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., took over as ranking member of PSI this Congress. Spokespeople for Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wis., Portman and Carper didn’t comment about their desire to continue the inquiries and perhaps hold another hearing. The Senate has rarely considered video policy issues directly in hearings in recent years, usually doing so only peripherally in Commerce Committee hearings or when Judiciary Committee senators consider acquisition proposals. Senate Commerce sought to hold a video policy hearing, with one tentatively scheduled for fall of 2015, but it never happened. During a panel at last week’s Incompas meeting in Washington, Dish Network Senior Counsel Alison Minea said satellite TV reauthorization is poised to change that. “Before the end of 2019, Congress will need to act,” she said of the next satellite reauthorization deadline, which is Dec. 31, 2019. “I assume that much like in prior years, the information gathering and hearing process will turn into a process for lots of different video competition issues to be discussed.” Those processes, which would pull in the Commerce and Judiciary committees in both chambers, would start in 2018 if not sooner, Minea said.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., sees no easy opening to continue her pay-TV scrutiny under the banner of the Homeland Security Committee, where she's the new ranking member this Congress. Last Congress, she was ranking member of the committee’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI), a perch that allowed her to press in conjunction with Subcommittee Chairman Rob Portman, R-Ohio, for a hearing that happened last summer on the topic. She had hoped to hold a follow-up hearing late last year on retransmission consent and programming costs. “Probably, it would depend on the chairman’s proclivities that way, and I’m not optimistic,” McCaskill said in an interview last week about the possibilities of continuing those activities in this new Congress. She wrote to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai this month on some of the findings of her staff on the topics, uncovered in the midst of last Congress’ PSI inquiries (see 1702080066). Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., took over as ranking member of PSI this Congress. Spokespeople for Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wis., Portman and Carper didn’t comment about their desire to continue the inquiries and perhaps hold another hearing. The Senate has rarely considered video policy issues directly in hearings in recent years, usually doing so only peripherally in Commerce Committee hearings or when Judiciary Committee senators consider acquisition proposals. Senate Commerce sought to hold a video policy hearing, with one tentatively scheduled for fall of 2015, but it never happened. During a panel at last week’s Incompas meeting in Washington, Dish Network Senior Counsel Alison Minea said satellite TV reauthorization is poised to change that. “Before the end of 2019, Congress will need to act,” she said of the next satellite reauthorization deadline, which is Dec. 31, 2019. “I assume that much like in prior years, the information gathering and hearing process will turn into a process for lots of different video competition issues to be discussed.” Those processes, which would pull in the Commerce and Judiciary committees in both chambers, would start in 2018 if not sooner, Minea said.