Gary Arlen

Even before Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai formally unveiled his plan for a C-band spectrum auction to reassign bandwidth for 5G wireless services, legislative and public interest forces began voicing their opposition to or endorsements for the proposal. 

The prospect that "third parties [could] undercut...federal enforcement decisions" — such as the pending T-Mobile/Sprint merger — is one of the greatest concerns in the new antitrust environment, Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim explained. He reminded people that the Federal Communications Commission, the Department of Justice, and many states approved the merger in 2019. But then attorneys general from 10 states and the District of Columbia sued to prevent the alliance. A decision is still pending.

Brett M. Kavanaugh has won Senate confirmation to become an associate justice of the Supreme Court and will take his seat on Tuesday, October 9. Although Judge Kavanaugh has discussed his dissent on network neutrality, the Supreme Court's agenda for the coming term now has very few cases dealing with technology, telecommunications or media. Several cases scheduled to come before the Court may produce decisions that affect these sectors though -- especially the regulatory aspects.

Establishing an integrated first-responder communications system is all about the details, not just the big picture overview and goals.  That reality became obvious as Michael Poth, CEO of The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet), explained the agency's objectives to a Media Institute monthly luncheon in Washington on Feb 15. Poth cited "improved situational awareness" as a keystone of the FirstNet project, but also acknowledged that the near-term requirement is "getting technology to first responders using the technology that now exists."

Congressional action to update the Telecommunications Act will be incremental, according to House Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR). "We're looking at it piece by piece," Walden said at the 2018 State of the Net conference on Jan 29. He added that Congress also "needs to look at the FCC operation" overall, acknowledging that "we live in a different era" than when the 1996 Telecom law was enacted. Walden said he expects a "program-by-program" evaluation, but did not suggest any timetable or urgency for the review.

Five federal policymakers offered their familiar visions of core regulatory issues, including spectrum policy and network neutrality, during Consumer Electronics Show sessions.  With Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai absent because of death threats he has recently received, and Democratic commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel opting to skip the program, the sessions were largely status reports on activities at the FCC, the National Telecommunications & Information Administration and Federal Trade Commission. 

House Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) outlined a broad agenda for the committee and its Communications Subcommittee Feb 14, with items ranging from legislative action on Title II to a comprehensive examination of Federal Communications Commission and National Telecommunications and Information Administration "reauthorization" to accelerated rural broadband deployment to increased oversight of federal cybersecurity initiatives.

At the monthly luncheon of the Media Institute, Chairman Walden endorsed the "process reforms" that FCC Chairman Ajit Pai (who was in the audience) has already introduced. Chairman Walden complimented Pai for successfully doing administratively "what Congress has been trying to do legislatively." As for the Open Internet rules, the Chairman Walden said, "Republicans are open to legislative solutions" and that net-neutrality decisions "should be done legislatively." But he acknowledged "it will take time" to develop new procedures, saying, "We have draft legislation" in the works. Chairman Walden called deployment of rural broadband a top priority on the Committee's communications agenda, pulling in examples of the need for wireless broadband. In particular, he emphasized the need to "lower the cost of broadband development."

"Disconnectivity" -- and specifically its locations -- has emerged as a major hurdle as the "Connect2HealthFCC" project prepares to submit its report within coming weeks. Karen Onyeije, a Federal Communications Commission associate general counsel and chief of staff for the Connect2HealthFCC Task Force, said that she hopes the group's final report and recommendations can be presented in early January, pending approvals.

In remarks to the annual Connected Health Conference in suburban Washington Dec. 11-14, Onyeije described the initial findings of the two-year-old study, which is intended to find "a new way of analyzing the intersection of broadband and health." At the core of the examination is a mapping process that identifies how broadband infrastructure (or the lack of it -- mainly in rural areas) and health needs coincide around the country. Working with other agencies, the Task Force is seeking to identify the types of telemedical services that could be developed.

As if there were any doubt, Google and its policy allies will continue to push their vision for Smart Cities with a focus on education and health applications during the coming years. Rural plus small-town deployment will remain a centerpiece of their political efforts. At a Next Century Cities (NCC) program in Washington on Nov 30, bipartisan speakers extolled broadband's value and some, such as Sen Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), indicated plans to keep their agenda alive no matter what policy barriers lie ahead. "," the title of the event, was sponsored by Google Fiber, the Ford Foundation, Internet2 and Harrison Edwards. The program was held at Google's Washington office. In prepared remarks, Sen Klobuchar said, “Everyone, from the farmers in rural Minnesota to those in our towns and cities, must be able to log on and participate in this new digital economy.” Sen Angus King (I-ME), described high-speed broadband's capability to enable people "whether they live in rural Maine or New York City, to realize unprecedented economic, educational and cultural opportunities."

The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition and US Ignite, which supports next-generation Internet applications, co-hosted the event. Other speakers included several mayors, school and library administrators plus familiar broadband cheerleaders such as Harvard Law professor Susan Crawford, Gigi Sohn, the outgoing counselor to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, and Brookings Institute senior fellow Blair Levin.

The Federal Communications Commission has released details of its annual "What You Owe" message to licensees in six categories of regulated services. Sept 6’s posting provides details of the Assessment of Regulatory Fees for Fiscal Year 2016, which the Commission issued on Sept 2. Industry-specific fact sheets about the fees are posted on the FCC website. The regulatory fee payments must be received by Sep. 27, 2016. The notices also include information about exemptions from the fee payments.

"What You Owe" advisories have been issued for media services licensees (radio and television, including low power stations), cable TV systems (including direct broadcasting satellite providers), commercial wireless services, international and satellite service licensees and interstate telecommunications service providers. The regulatory fees vary depending on the nature of each licensed business. For example, cable and DBS fees are based on the number of subscribers or on a CARS license. Fees for AM and FM radio station licensees are based on class of station and market population served.