Lauren Frayer

The Federal Communications Commission will hold an Open Meeting on the subjects listed below on Thursday, March 23, 2017.
Advanced Methods to Target and Eliminate Unlawful Robocalls – The Commission will consider a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Notice of Inquiry that would enable voice service providers to better protect subscribers from illegal and fraudulent robocalls. (CG Docket No. 17-59)
Promoting Technological Solutions to Combat Contraband Wireless Device Use in Correctional Facilities – The Commission will consider a Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would adopt rules to facilitate the deployment of technologies used to combat contraband wireless devices in correctional facilities, while seeking comment on additional proposals and solutions. (GN Docket No. 13-111)
Improving the Quality and Efficiency of Video Relay Service – The Commission will consider a Report and Order, Notice of Inquiry, Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, and Order that would enhance service quality and propose a new provider compensation plan for video relay services. (CG Docket Nos. 10-51 and 03-123)
Cellular Service Reform – The Commission will consider a Second Report and Order, Report and Order, and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would facilitate mobile broadband deployment, including LTE, promote greater spectrum efficiency, and reduce regulatory burdens and costs. (WT Docket Nos. 12-40, 10-112, 16-138)
Part 43 Reporting Requirements for U.S. Providers of International Services – The Commission will consider a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that proposes to (1) eliminate the Traffic and Revenue Reports and (2) streamline the Circuit Capacity Reports. (IB Docket Nos. 17-55 and 16-131)
Channel Sharing by Stations Outside the Broadcast Television Spectrum Incentive Auction Context – The Commission will consider a Report and Order that would authorize channel sharing outside the context of the incentive auction and thus permit stations with auction-related channel sharing agreements to continue to operate if their auction-related agreements expire or otherwise terminate. (GN Docket No. 12-268; MB Docket No. 03-185; MB Docket No. 15-137).
Presentation: : The Commission will receive an update from the Public Safety & Homeland Security Bureau on the status of its continuing inquiry into the AT&T Mobility 911 outage that occurred on March 8, 2017.

On March 16, the president proposed eliminating all federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a main revenue source for hundreds of local NPR and PBS stations across the country. The CPB’s $445 million cut amounts to just 0.04 percent of the $1.1 trillion of total annual discretionary spending in the president’s proposal — or approximately $1.35 per person. Seen through another lens, that $445 million amounts to little more than 2 percent of the total cost of Trump’s proposed Mexican border wall — estimated at $21.6 billion by the Department of Homeland Security.

Groups like the Free Press Action Fund and millions of people across the country will fight to save the CPB. A 2017 poll rated PBS and its 350 member stations as the most-trusted nationally known institution. Survey respondents also rated the federal funding that supports PBS as taxpayer money “well spent.” Public and community media are treasured local institutions that are far more popular than Congress or this president.

President Donald Trump overcame more than a dozen Republican opponents, Hillary Clinton, an array of scandals and daunting electoral math to land in the Oval Office. But now, he may have finally met an opponent he cannot slay: Big Bird.

Republicans argue that they do not want to see the demise of the stations, only the demise of taxpayer funding for them. “The idea is that it can be privately financed,” said Paul Winfree, the White House’s director of budget policy and a Heritage Foundation alum. However, wealthy metropolitan areas would likely be able to continue to support their public stations, while poorer rural areas — places that lack access to quality news programming to begin with — would lose out. That could give pause to a number of Republican representatives. The universality of public broadcasting that supporters argue make it so crucial also make it tougher to eliminate for purely political reasons. There are many federal programs with far fewer fans — and far smaller budgets — whose elimination would be more politically palatable.

Some of the 19 agencies President Donald Trump's budget would kill:

Corporation for Public Broadcasting This is the agency that helps fund public broadcasters nationwide, including NPR and PBS.
National Endowment for the Arts: This is the agency that delivers grants to fund and promote various fine arts across the country. Having recently turned 50, it was launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson as a way of helping foster the arts as part of the Great Society. Its budget is $148 million.
National Endowment for the Humanities: Similar to the NEA — and with the same $148 million budget and launch date — the NEH deals with grants for education programs related to culture.
Institute of Museum and Library Services: Launched 20 years ago under President Bill Clinton, this agency is the main federal funder of local libraries and museums across the United States. It had a budget of $230 million in 2016. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-WI) has targeted it for elimination before, arguing museums and libraries should be funded by the private sector.

"When you start looking at places that we reduce spending, one of the questions we asked was can we really continue to ask a coal miner in West Virginia or a single mom in Detroit to pay for these programs? The answer was no. We can ask them to pay for defense, and we will, but we can’t ask them to continue to pay for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.” -- White House budget director Mick Mulvaney.

Mulvaney may be the WH budget director, but these comments suggest little understanding of the taxes paid by single mothers or coal miners. Single mothers in Detroit, most of whom are living in poverty, likely pay no taxes at all and instead would be receiving funds from the U.S. government via the Earned Income Tax Credit. Coal miners also do not earn a lot of money, but in many cases may pay at least some taxes. The biggest part of the federal budget is entitlement programs — especially Social Security and Medicare — but President Trump has pledged to leave those untouched. That’s where the real money is, whereas programs like the CPB are a relative pittance.

[Commentary] I care deeply about cultural literacy, the idea that we should all have access to a shared set of core concepts that will not only make it easier for children to learn to read and write, but that will give Americans at least some common language and ideas we can use to understand each other across our differences. Schools are an obvious place where Americans get access to this common pool of information and ideas. And once we leave school and go out into the world, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the National Endowments are institutions that work to make sure that access continues.

If you want to create a genuine national culture, you actually have to reach all Americans, rather than losing yourself in idiotic and racist delusions about defeating “bad hombres” by force or outbreeding the competition. And you have to create compelling, high-quality content that can persuade Americans across the political spectrum, rather than mediocre trash that preys on audiences who feel under-served by mainstream media. The Trump administration shows no rhetorical sign that it understands this — or that the public broadcasting system and other federal arts and humanities institutions could have value to conservatives who want to try to meet their high standards.

President Donald Trump’s 2018 budget blueprint touts major investments in cybersecurity, including a $61 million hike to help the FBI and the Justice Department combat criminals and terrorists’ use of encrypted communication tools. The document is light on specifics, however, and does not include a top line figure for cyber investments.

The budget proposal would give the Defense Department a boost of more than $50 billion, largely by ending the automatic budget cuts known as sequestration, for a total request of $639 billion. That money would be aimed at building a “more capable, and more lethal joint force” and at ensuring US superiority in major domains including cyberspace. That Pentagon budget would include $7.2 billion for operations and maintenance, including improving cyber capabilities, according to a White House memo. The blueprint lacks a specific figure, however, for all DOD cyber priorities at US Cyber Command and elsewhere.

One significant threat to the public interest under the new administration that is receiving increased attention is broadband privacy for consumers. The Congressional Review Act (“CRA” for you Washington types), is a little known bill passed in 1996 that allows Congress to completely get rid of rules passed by an federal agency within 60 days of being published in the Federal Register or submitted to Congress, whichever is later. Once Congress uses the CRA on a rule, it is like the rule never existed. In legal speak, the rule has no force or effect...

The practical truth is, if the CRA is passed, consumers will be left with no one to enforce their privacy rights. Congress should be in the business of protecting consumers, not eliminating protections, especially given the recent news showing the technological advances in monitoring Americans and the importance of data security rules to strong cybersecurity protections. It’s time for Congressional leaders to reassure Americans that their sensitive, personal information will be properly protected. The FCC broadband privacy rules were a strong step in that direction. They should not be repealed, and if they are, at a minimum Congressional leaders should be clear about how they will be legally replaced without weakening protections.

Hundreds of rural K-12 school districts, charter schools and libraries across Arizona could receive new or expanded internet access thanks to a new initiative and federal funding. The Arizona Corporation Commission unanimously approved changes March 14 to the Arizona Universal Service Fund rules to provide money for this program to connect Arizona’s rural schools to the internet.

The ACC vote paves the way for a partnership between the Corporation Commission, the Governor’s Office, the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the non-profit EducationSuperHighway. The group will draw down $100 million in federal e-rate funds to pay for infrastructure that will provide broadband to rural schools and libraries. The Arizona Universal Service Fund will provide $8 million in state match funding. An additional $5 million is needed, and that amount is included in the governor’s budget proposal.

India and China, the world’s two most populous countries, have long had a competitive relationship and have emerged as major economic powers. But in the digital space, China has a clear advantage. Since Pew Research Center began tracking advanced technology adoption in the two countries in 2013, the Chinese have consistently reported rates of internet and smartphone use that are at least triple that of Indians. That trend has continued through 2016. In our latest poll, 71% of Chinese say they use the internet at least occasionally or own a smartphone, our definition of internet users. In contrast, only 21% of Indians say they use the internet or own a smartphone.