Congressional Democrats are pressing harder for President Joe Biden to name a permanent FCC chair and a fifth commissioner, citing the need for a majority to act on changes to net neutrality rules and other priorities unlikely to garner GOP support. Lawmakers remain publicly hopeful the administration will soon announce its FCC nominees. Privately, Senate Democrats in recent days told the White House their patience on FCC nomination delays has evaporated, aides said.
A fee on Georgia landline bills will decline to 3.75% from 6% July 1, the Georgia Public Service Commission said Tuesday. Commissioners voted unanimously to reduce the state’s USF fee due to a sunsetting law that required carriers to align intrastate long-distance call charges with interstate charges over 10 years.
The Oklahoma Corporation Commission set a USF hearing later this month on the fund administrator’s Tuesday motion to double the contribution factor on an interim basis. The hearing is June 24 at 8:30 a.m. CDT, said a Tuesday notice in docket OSF 201900036. Oklahoma USF Administrator Brandy Wreath’s motion seeks to increase the revenue-based factor to 12.73% from 6.28% after commissioners punted on a plan to change the contribution method to connections-based contribution (see 2105110045). Wreath supports “the idea that a connections based methodology, in addition to eliminating the problems resulting from the continued decline in assessable revenue, will be a more reasonable and fair way to collect assessments for OUSF,” per his testimony. The OCC will “continue efforts to reach a final order” in the contribution overhaul docket (OSF 201900316), and staff will withdraw the interim request if the commission agrees to a per-line method, said Wreath.
Rural healthcare providers want to begin participating in the FCC Connected Care Program, which is expected to get commissioners' approval on Thursday, agency and industry officials said in interviews last week. The $100 million, three-year pilot will help boost access to healthcare, experts said.
The Q3 USF contribution factor is 31.8%, confirmed the FCC Office of Managing Director Thursday.
The FCC is expected to approve 4-0 an NPRM next week proposing to bar certification of equipment from companies found to be a national security risk. No lobbying meetings were reported on the draft, per docket 21-232. FCC officials said CTA is starting to make the rounds among commissioner aides to discuss the item, which could lead to a few tweaks. Wednesday, Huawei executives criticized the proposal.
Commissioner Nathan Simington said finalizing new broadband data maps is a “very high priority” for FCC action. It's a “very thorny problem,” Simington said in an interview Wednesday. The FCC had to build out capacities that didn’t exist after Congress “passed the ball,” and acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is “working very hard to get it done,” he said. The commissioner has USF concerns and may be open to some changes.
The FCC Wireline Bureau wants comment by July 8, replies July 23, in docket 10-90 on Yukon-Waltz Telephone's waiver of certain USF rules, said a public notice in Tuesday's Daily Digest. Yukon-Waltz asked to convert its current cost-based ratemaking and revenue settlements to average schedule methods.
The FCC may use USF support to help carriers during an ongoing emergency, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said Friday as it denied Tri-County Telephone Association's challenge to agency orders to provide high-cost support to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands after Hurricanes Irma and Maria. A per curiam order in case No. 20-1003 said the petitioner's USF contributions would have been increased regardless of whether the FCC used existing cash reserves or future contributions. Judges cited the commission's prior use of USF funds for disaster relief in its 2005 Hurricane Katrina order. Then-Judge Merrick Garland and Judges David Tatel and Harry Edwards heard oral argument in October (see 2010150042). An attorney for Tri-County didn't comment now.
Not meeting deadlines for using FCC high-cost USF funds to further roll out broadband could imperil other auction winners that played by the rules, some said in recent interviews. Charter Communications, which received $1.2 billion to serve more than 1 million locations (see 2012070039), is among rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction winners seeking waivers to extend the June 7 eligible telecom carrier certification deadline.