Nebraska legislators were skeptical during a livestreamed hearing Monday about a bill transferring state broadband grant duties to the Nebraska Broadband Office from the Public Service Commission (see 2401180020). The legislature’s Telecom Committee heard testimony on LB-1336. “I do not expect this bill to go anywhere," conceded sponsor Sen. Barry DeKay (R). But he said he wanted to start a discussion about whether there could be efficiencies moving the Nebraska Broadband Bridge Program to the office that is handling the broadband, equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program, he said. Legislators last year required the PSC to transfer BEAD authority to the broadband office, which was created in January 2023. Sen. Michaela Cavanaugh (D) is concerned that LB-1336 would erode the PSC, an agency that is far more transparent than the broadband office, she said. Sen. Tom Brandt (R) asked, "What do we as a state gain by moving this over to the broadband office?" While officially neutral on the bill, Nebraska PSC Commissioner Tim Schram (R) said his agency has “a proven record of three grant cycles” administering the broadband bridge program transparently and at a low cost. The bill isn’t clear on how the transition would occur, added Schram. The Nebraska Telecommunications Association opposed the bill since it is “generally pleased” with PSC administration of the bridge program, said President Tip O’Neill: And the broadband office is busy getting BEAD off the ground. The Nebraska Association of County Officials thinks it’s a good idea to eliminate redundancies, said Elaine Menzel, Nebraska Association of County Officials legal counsel. Also at the hearing, county and municipal officials opposed a bill that would expand state preemption of local government authority. The state already has a law limiting local fees and timelines for small-cell wireless deployments; LB-1112 would cover other broadband equipment on poles and towers. A single state policy isn’t appropriate for circumstances that vary locality by locality, said Lash Chaffin, League of Nebraska Municipalities utilities section director. The bill would restrict cities’ ability to ensure equipment and installations don’t harm health and safety, said Valerie Grimes, planning and development director for Norfolk, Nebraska. LB-1112 sponsor Sen. Robert Clements (R) said his bill would speed broadband deployment by lowering fees and delays.

The California Chamber of Commerce “is considering its options,” said a CalChamber spokesperson after a state appeals court on Friday reversed a lower court’s decision to delay a state agency’s enforcement of California Privacy Rights Act regulations (see 2402090078). In June, the California Superior Court in Sacramento had granted a CalChamber petition and stayed any California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) rules for 12 months after they become final (see 2307030025). The privacy agency could have started enforcing CPRA rules July 1, but the lower court’s decision meant rules adopted March 29, wouldn’t take effect for one year. “Because there is no ‘explicit and forceful language’ mandating that the Agency is prohibited from enforcing the Act until (at least) one year after the Agency approves final regulations, the trial court erred in concluding otherwise,” wrote 3rd District Justice Elena Duarte wrote. CalChamber praised the court for noting that the agency “failed to comply with the express terms of the statutory provision regarding the adoption of final regulations,” said the business group’s spokesperson: But CalChamber is disappointed that the appeals court didn’t “agree on a remedy for the Agency’s failure to comply.” The CPPA applauded the decision. “The California voters didn’t intend for businesses to pick and choose which privacy rights to honor,” said CPPA Enforcement Deputy Director Michael Macko: Agency enforcers stand “ready to take it from here.”

Virginia senators voted 40-0 to pass a children’s privacy bill Friday. SB-361 would add children-specific protections to the state’s comprehensive consumer privacy law. In addition, it would prohibit data controllers from selling a child’s information or using it for targeted advertising or profiling. The Senate amended the bill to match the text of HB-707, which passed the House last week (see 2402070063).

Emergency communications bills advanced in multiple states last week. Thursday in Wisconsin, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 5-2 to approve SB-890 with a slight wording change. The full Senate could soon vote on the bill, which would require wireless providers to provide device location information to law enforcement without a warrant if the subscriber consents, if the provider believes disclosure could prevent a person’s death or injury or if the provider receives a written law enforcement request stating that disclosure is needed to respond to an emergency call or situation involving possible death or serious physical injury. The bill would give wireless providers immunity from criminal liability for such disclosures. Providers already have immunity from civil liability. In Hawaii, the Senate Government Operations Committee voted 3-0 Thursday to approve a bill (SB-3028) that would remove the term “enhanced” from state 911 law so that Hawaii can fund future 911 technologies. The Senate bill next needs approval from the Commerce and Ways and Means committees. The South Dakota Senate scheduled a second reading for Monday on the House-passed HB-1092, which would increase the state 911 fee on monthly phone bills to $2, from $1.25. The Senate Judiciary Committee cleared it Thursday (see 2402080071). In Washington state, the Senate voted 48-0 Thursday for SB-6308 to extend timelines for implementing the 988 mental health hotline, including providing the state health department 18 additional months to develop the technology platform (see 2402050049). The Senate also voted 31-18 that day for SB-5838, establishing an AI task force. Both Washington bills will go to the House.

The Oregon Public Utility Commission conditionally approved a settlement between Lumen’s CenturyLink and PUC staff on a successor price plan. Chair Megan Decker and Commissioner Letha Tawney, the PUC’s only members, signed the order Friday in docket UM 1908. While largely supporting the agreement, the commission said it shared "some of the broader public interest concerns" that the Oregon Citizens’ Utilities Board and Lumen customer Priscilla Weaver raised (see 2310250014). The commission directed the parties to revise the plan to explicitly say the company will maintain a 24/7 dedicated customer phone line, with certain requirements. The line should let callers report multiple addresses and the company should treat trouble tickets opened there as high priority. Also, the company should provide a monthly report on contacts through the line, it said. The Oregon PUC outlined other expectations. "CenturyLink is expected to include in its monthly [federal Rural Digital Opportunities Fund] build report any potential delays or issues … that could cause the project to continue past December 31, 2024, and corrective steps the company is taking," it said. PUC staff “is expected to monitor CenturyLink’s reports, as well as customer complaints, and raise any issues with the Commission as soon as possible, particularly with regards to health and safety issues or localized, chronic issues that may not be reflected immediately in the metrics.”

AT&T sought South Carolina Public Service Commission approval to merge affiliate AT&T Corp. into the newly formed AT&T Enterprises by May 1. “This merger will be transparent to current AT&T Corp. customers, who will continue receiving: the same services; under the same rates, terms, and conditions; and backed by the same technical, financial, and managerial resources,” AT&T said in the petition posted Thursday by the PSC (docket 2024-56-C).

The governor must name Utah public service commissioners “with the advice and consent of the Senate,” said a bill that was signed into law Thursday by the state's Gov. Spencer Cox (R). In addition, SB-99 makes other procedural changes to Utah commissioner appointments.

The Virginia House Commerce Committee cleared a pole-attachments bill (HB-800) in a 22-0 vote Thursday. Under a committee substitute, the bill would regulate how public utilities handle attachment requests. A pole owner would have to determine within 15 business days if an application is complete. If the owner decides it’s incomplete, the attacher could resubmit the application and receive a response within seven business days. Within 75 days of receiving a complete request, the utility would have to decide whether to grant or deny the application and survey affected poles. HB-800 would bar a public utility from making a telecom or cable provider pay the cost of replacing a red-tagged pole, meaning a pole that is “designated for replacement for any reason unrelated to a lack of capacity to accommodate a new attacher's request for attachment or … would have needed to be replaced at the time of replacement even if the new attachment was not made.” Telecom and cable providers would have to pay “the incremental cost of a taller or stronger pole that is necessitated solely by the new” telecom or cable facilities. Also, HB-800 would require the Virginia State Corporation Commission to resolve pole-access disputes, including allocation of rearrangement costs, within 90 days, and to resolve other pole attachment issues within 120 days.

The Florida House Commerce Committee unanimously supported a bill Thursday to extend dollar broadband attachments through 2028. The Ways and Means Committee previously cleared HB-1147, which would extend a promotional rate that the state began offering in 2021 (see 2401310072). It lets ISPs pay $1 a year per wireline attachment per pole to bring broadband to unserved or underserved areas in municipal electric utility service territories. The promo will expire July 1 unless extended. The bill could next get a House floor vote. The Senate could soon vote on a similar bill (SB-1218) that cleared the Rules Committee by a 19-0 vote Thursday.

The South Dakota Senate Judiciary Committee voted 4-2 Thursday to clear a bill increasing a state 911 fee on monthly phone bills to $2, from $1.25. The committee's approval of HB-1092 followed House passage last week (see 2402010025). CTIA opposed the bill in a Jan. 23 letter to the House Taxation Committee. “This 60 percent increase would result in South Dakota consumers paying about $8 million more in taxes, with about $6 million of the increase borne by wireless consumers,” the mobile industry association wrote.