Jimm Phillips

FCC Public Safety Bureau Chief Debra Jordan and lawmakers voiced optimism during a Wednesday night CTA event about the trajectory of the commission’s work on its August NPRM on a voluntary Cyber Trust Mark cybersecurity labeling program for smart devices (see 2308100032). Jordan offered few updates on the FCC’s progress in developing the NPRM’s record but emphasized that replies to comments filed earlier this month (see 2310100034) are due Nov. 10. “Smart devices make our lives easier” and “more efficient” including via “remotely monitoring the thermostat, knowing when your oven is preheated or the health of our kids,” Jordan said. “But increased interconnection also means increased opportunity for bad things to happen with regard to security and privacy.” Cyber Trust Mark will help consumers “get clear information about the devices that they’re considering buying based on” NIST’s “widely accepted” cybersecurity standards and other “industry research,” she said: “We envision a strong partnership” with the private sector “to make this happen,” similar to the joint Energy Department-Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star program. House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Bob Latta, R-Ohio, said he and other lawmakers are “carefully following” the FCC’s work on the cybersecurity labeling program, which “has the potential to be a good first step in educating consumers.” He cautioned that “we must also make sure the FCC relies on cybersecurity and industry experts to get this right.” Ranking member Doris Matsui, D-Calif., and Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., also praised the proposed program. It “will provide consumers with better cybersecurity,” invoking the “Good Housekeeping seal of approval” as a model. “Anything that helps somebody understand whether or not what they’re purchasing” meets cybersecurity standards is a good thing, she said.

Senate Communications Subcommittee Chairman Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., and subpanel members from both parties voiced growing frustration during a Tuesday hearing with DOJ’s perceived reticence in enforcing existing anti-robocall statutes and eyed the FCC’s Further NPRM giving consumers more choice on the robocalls and robotexts they will receive (see 2306080043). There was more uneven interest among Senate Communications members and witnesses at the hearing in pursuing additional legislation to address ongoing robocall problems amid those enforcement shortcomings.

The Biden administration is expected to seek about $4 billion in additional money for the FCC’s affordable connectivity program as part of a second part of the supplemental federal funding request it will send to Congress this week, communications sector lobbyists told us. House Democratic leaders are already highlighting the to-be-announced money as a priority alongside the stalled regular FY 2024 appropriations process once the chamber can elect someone to replace ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

The Commerce and Defense departments postponed briefings for the Senate Armed Services and Commerce committees originally expected to happen next week on the Pentagon's report on its study on repurposing the 3.1-3.45 GHz band for commercial 5G use (see 2309280087), lawmakers and communications lobbyists told us. There has been no clear explanation why, but word of the delay circulated in conjunction with chatter that the two federal departments are disagreeing on what the report’s conclusions mean for bids to sell or share parts of the lower 3 GHz band.

House Commerce Committee Republicans renewed their concerns Tuesday with FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel’s draft net neutrality NPRM reclassifying broadband as a Communications Act Title II service (see 2309280084), but no one is expecting GOP members of that panel or elsewhere on Capitol Hill to make a strong push for now on legislation to halt the expected rewrite. Net neutrality legislation would be even more unlikely to pass now amid divided control of Congress than it was last year when Democrats had majorities in both chambers (see 2207280063), lawmakers and lobbyists told us. Lawmakers are less enthusiastic about even pushing a pure messaging bill on the issue amid the current stasis, lobbyists said.

Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Ted Cruz of Texas, Communications Subcommittee ranking member John Thune of South Dakota and 41 other chamber Republicans urged FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel Thursday to “end this charade and shelve” her draft net neutrality NPRM aimed at largely reinstating the commission’s rescinded 2015 rules and reclassification of broadband as a Communications Act Title II service (see 2309280084). Republicans have given the proposal an almost uniformly negative reception since Rosenworcel first announced it last week (see 2309260047).

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo publicly committed Wednesday to brief Senate Commerce Committee members on the DOD study on repurposing the 3.1-3.45 GHz band for commercial 5G use sent to the Commerce Department last week (see 2309280087). Panel ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and several other members raised questions about the DOD study during a hearing on implementing the 2022 Chips and Science Act.

A looming federal government shutdown could hinder work on important broadband and satellite regulatory initiatives, said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson during a Wednesday Axios event. The chances Congress will include language in a continuing resolution to restore at least parts of the FCC's spectrum auction authorities continued to dim Wednesday, but officials and lobbyists we spoke with don't believe those efforts are completely dead. The Senate and House made progress into Wednesday afternoon on their respective continuing resolution proposals to prevent a shutdown that would otherwise occur this weekend, but major differences between the two measures continued to stoke widespread apprehension on Capitol Hill.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., plans to register concerns Monday with the State Department over the Biden administration naming Steve Lang, deputy assistant secretary of state-international information and communications policy, to replace FCC Commissioner-designate Anna Gomez as head of the U.S. delegation to the upcoming World Radiocommunication Conference in Dubai, as expected (see 2309120074). "On multiple occasions during" Gomez's confirmation process, "I emphasized the importance of thoughtfully proceeding ... to ensure the U.S. remains well positioned for the WRC," which begins Nov. 20, Blackburn said in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken we obtained ahead of its release. "Ideally, the Senate would have delayed Gomez's confirmation vote until after" the conference's conclusion and State "would have been more transparent in its contingency planning and execution." That transition "was handled irresponsibly," Blackburn said: The administration "has shown little regard for the ramifications of its actions on global spectrum policy or the need to protect U.S. leadership in telecommunications." Blackburn pressed for Lang to "brief me and my staff" before Oct. 13 "on his priorities for the WRC and the continued role -- if any" that Gomez will play in the conference. "It is important for members of Congress to be informed about this transition and how it will affect our representation before" the ITU, Blackburn said. State didn't comment.

Interest is still high in both the House and Senate in including a temporary restoration of the FCC’s auction authority in a continuing resolution to extend federal appropriations past the end of FY 2023 Sept. 30 (see 2309190001), but some on and off Capitol Hill now believe attaching the narrower 5G Spectrum Authority Licensing Enforcement Act (S-2787) is a more viable option for breaking the mandate logjam. Lobbyists believe the chances S-2787 will appear in a Senate-side CR improved considerably after the chamber passed the measure Thursday via unanimous consent.