press release

The findings by the inspector general reveal significant dysfunction and a lack of transparency at the [Federal Communications Commission]. Under the agency’s current interpretation, the FCC chairman is free to leak cherry-picked details about proceedings and deliberations while other commissioners are gagged and even kept in the dark about decisions by the chairman to approve such leaks. Worse yet, the FCC is not keeping a record of decisions by the chairman to disclose non-public information. This report is yet another indication of increased partisanship and dysfunction at the FCC that underscores the need for Congress to reform how the agency does business.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler has circulated to his fellow Commissioners a proposed Order to give consumers the tools they need to choose how their Internet service provider (ISP) uses and shares their personal data.

Building on widely accepted privacy principles, the rules would require that ISPs provide their customers with meaningful choice and keep customer data secure while giving ISPs the flexibility they need to continue to innovate. The rules, if adopted, would not prohibit ISPs from using or sharing their customers’ information – they would simply require ISPs to put their customers in the driver’s seat when it comes to those decisions. The approach Chairman Wheeler is recommending reflects extensive public comments received in response to the comprehensive proposal adopted by the Commission in March, including input from the Federal Trade Commission. Here's an outline of Chairman Wheeler's proposal:

• Focus is on providing consumers choice over how to protect their privacy and their children's privacy online.
• ISPs must tell customers about the collection, use, and sharing of their information.
• Prohibits "Take-it-or-leave-it" offers, meaning that an ISP can't refuse to serve customers who don't consent to the use and sharing of their information for commercial purposes.

The full Commission will vote on the proposed Order at the FCC’s October 27 Open Meeting.

The White House is announcing the expansion of the Opportunity Project and the launch of twenty-nine new digital tools built by companies and non-profit organizations to increase access to opportunity in communities across the country.

Although the poverty rate declined more rapidly in 2015 than in nearly fifty years, too many communities still do not have access to the resources and opportunities that residents need to thrive. The unprecedented combination of open data and technological talent that has emerged in recent years can play a critical role in closing that gap, as technologists partner with community leaders to expand access to opportunity in ways that were not previously possible. Key components of today’s announcements include:

• Twenty-nine new digital tools built by non-profits, companies, and students, use federal and local data to address a set of national priorities identified by six federal agencies, specifically the Departments of Labor, Transportation, Education, Housing and Urban Development, and Agriculture, and the Office of the Surgeon General with support from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
• The Department of Commerce announces its commitment to lead the Opportunity Project moving forward and create a lasting platform for technologists to collaborate with government and local communities using federal open data.
• New and easier ways to access high-value Federal data on civil rights and course access through the Department of Education’s new Civil Rights Data Collection Application Program Interfaces (APIs), and combined jobs, skills, training and wage data through the Department of Labor’s new OpenSkills API.
• New commitments from federal government, non-profits, tech companies, coding boot camps, and academic institutions to use the Opportunity Project data and create or use digital tools to build stronger ladders of opportunity nationwide.
• A call to action from the White House for members of the public to develop new tools, offer additional sources of data, and invent new ways of using open data to make our communities more prosperous, equitable, and just. We want to hear what new steps you are taking or programs you are implementing in your community.

President Barack Obama is issuing a new Presidential Memorandum that provides guidance on the implementation of policies to promote diversity and inclusion in the national security workforce. Currently, more than three million military and civilian personnel in the US Government are engaged in protecting the country and advancing our interests abroad, through diplomacy, development, defense, intelligence, law enforcement, and homeland security. In broad comparison with the wider Federal Government, the federal workforce dedicated to our national security and foreign policy is – on average – less diverse, including at the highest levels. While this data does not necessarily indicate the existence of barriers to equal employment opportunity, the Presidential Memorandum outlines a number of actions that will allow departments and agencies to better leverage the diversity and inclusion of the federal workforce, consistent with the existing merit system and applicable law, including:

Collection, analysis, and dissemination of workforce data;
Provision of professional development opportunities and tools consistent with merit system principles;
Strengthening of leadership engagement and accountability.

The guidance in this Presidential Memorandum furthers the initiative that President Obama announced in 2011 in Executive Order 13583, “Establishing a Coordinated Government-wide Initiative to Promote Diversity and Inclusion in the Federal Workforce,” for departments and agencies to develop and implement a more comprehensive, integrated, and strategic focus on diversity and inclusion.

At the White House Rural Forum convened Oct 5 at Pennsylvania State University, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced $32 million in loans and grants that will promote economic development and provide access to broadband in more than 80 rural American communities. Sec Vilsack, who is chair of the first-ever White House Rural Council, convened the forum with rural policy, business and nonprofit leaders to discuss pertinent issues facing rural communities, including opportunities for economic growth and strategies for improving health care and housing. "This funding will provide much-needed capital and bring cutting-edge technology to rural communities across the country," Sec Vilsack said. "Investments in our rural businesses and communities, coupled with extending high-speed broadband, have led to a resurgence of economic development, created jobs and improved the quality of life in rural America. While we have made great progress, our work to extend capital and technology to rural America is not done." Some of the new investments include:

$3 Billion Invested in Rural Infrastructure Projects: In 2014, USDA launched a public-private partnership with Capitol Peak Asset Management and CoBank, a national cooperative bank and member of the Farm Credit System. Since 2014, more than $3 billion in private sector funding has been lent to over 400 financings of projects in the power, water, communications and community facilities industries.'
$7.7 Million in New Grants to Bring Broadband to 6 Unserved Communities: USDA's Community Connect program provides funding for broadband deployment into unserved areas. Since 2009, USDA Rural Development broadband programs have helped bring high-speed Internet access to nearly 6 million rural residents and businesses.'
Health Information Technology Investments: HHS's Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is investing approximately $36 million in rurally-located health centers to support strategic investments in Health Information Technology. The investments will help health centers enhance their health IT and better prepare providers and staff to use health IT and data.

USTelecom announced it has selected veteran technology leader Jonathan Spalter to be President and Chief Executive Officer, effective Jan 1, 2017. Spalter brings a blend of public policy, entrepreneurial and executive experience to USTelecom’s helm. For the past eight years, he has served as chair of Mobile Future, the national wireless technology association. He has a long track record leading innovative technology companies in the US, Asia/Pacific, and Europe. He also held key positions in national security policy and technology management in the Clinton Administration. Spalter will replace Walter B. McCormick, Jr. who is retiring after 16 years of service.

Spalter is a veteran of President Bill Clinton’s Administration where he served as Associate Director of the United States Information Agency and also managed the agency’s global technology resources as Chief Information Officer. In the Clinton White House, he served on the staff of the National Security Council and as Vice President Al Gore’s chief international affairs spokesperson and speechwriter. He also was a policy aide to the Undersecretary of Defense for Policy at the Pentagon. In the private sector, Spalter’s executive roles include serving as CEO of Snocap, the digital content services company founded by the creators of Napster. He also was CEO of Atmedica Worldwide, the online healthcare affiliate of the Fortune 100 telecommunications and media company Vivendi Universal, where he also served as Executive Vice President for Business Development and Strategy at its Internet subsidiary VivendiNet; and as the group's Senior Vice President for global public policy. He has been an advisor to and board member of cutting-edge technology companies, financial institutions, and not-for-profit organizations in Silicon Valley and beyond.

A graduate of Harvard College and Cambridge University, he currently resides in the Bay Area of California with his wife Carrie Goux, the Vice President of Communications at GreatSchools, the Oakland-based non-profit, and their four children.

US Deputy Secretary of Commerce Bruce Andrews traveled to Silicon Valley to participate in two meetings of the Digital Economy Board of Advisors (DEBA). Established by Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker in 2016, the DEBA is comprised of technology industry leaders, innovators, and experts, and serves as a centralized forum to help businesses and consumers realize the potential of the digital economy to advance growth and opportunity. The Board provides advice in furtherance of increasing domestic prosperity, improving education, and facilitating participation in political and cultural life through the application and expansion of digital technologies.

Deputy Secretary Andrews moderated a discussion of the DEBA Working Group Coordinators’ Committee (WGCC), which included Working Group members and outside experts, representing corporations ranging from General Electric to Uber to Microsoft. Deputy Secretary Andrews expressed his interest in the WGCC’s advice on how the Department can transform to meet the demands of the 21st century economy and remain as relevant as possible to its constituents. The Deputy Secretary also received valuable information about what companies need from the Department of Commerce in today’s digital economy and how Commerce can improve its outreach to its constituents.

Andrews delivered opening remarks at the second public meeting of the full DEBA, thanking members for their contributions to the Commerce Department’s successes in the digital economy space.

The Montana Public Service Commission voted 5-0 to certify 26 companies and affiliates as eligible telecommunications carriers (ETCs) for 2017, opening the doors for approximately $100 million in broadband investment funds to be utilized across Montana over the next year. The funds that each ETC is eligible to receive come from the Federal Communication Commission’s Universal Service Fund to improve communication infrastructure in unserved and underserved areas across the country. The FCC’s Universal Service Fund includes four components: Connect America Fund, Low Income Assistance (Lifeline), E-Rate (schools and libraries), and Rural Healthcare, totaling approximately $100 million available for broadband investment in Montana over the next year to the 26 certified ETC’s. Ratepayers in Montana contribute approximately $28 million to the USF annually.

The Federal Communications Commission adopted rules to update and strengthen Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), a system that delivers critical warnings and information to Americans on their wireless phones. The updated rules are intended to promote the wider use and effectiveness of this lifesaving service, especially for state and local authorities to convey important information to their communities.

Since its launch in 2012, WEA has informed the public about severe weather, missing children, and other emergencies through alerts to their wireless phones. Now that stakeholders have four years’ experience with the service, and in light of its real-world use and technological advancements since the FCC adopted technical and procedural requirements for WEA in 2008, the agency has updated its rules. In a Report and Order adopted Sept 29, the FCC took action to improve WEA message content, help ensure that the messages reach only those people for whom an alert is relevant, and establish a WEA testing program that will improve the effectiveness of the system for public safety officials and the public.

The updated rules will:

• Increase the maximum length of WEA messages (from 90 to 360 characters) for 4G LTE and future networks;
• Require participating wireless providers to support inclusion of embedded phone numbers and URLs in all WEA alerts, including WEA AMBER alerts, which will enable the public to click to see a photo or to call authorities;
• Require participating wireless providers to deliver the alerts to more granular geographic areas;
• Create a new class of alerts (“Public Safety Messages”) to convey essential, recommended actions that can save lives or property (e.g. emergency shelter locations or a boil water order);
• Require participating wireless providers to support transmission of Spanish-language alerts; and
• Make it easier for state and local authorities to test WEA, train personnel, and raise public awareness about the service. Commissioner O’Rielly dissenting in part.

The Federal Communications Commission issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to foster consumer choice and access to diverse programming on television.

The proposed rules may prohibit the use of certain clauses in pay TV programming distribution contracts that impede carriage of independent and diverse programming. Specifically, the proposed rules would prevent pay TV providers from including so-called “unconditional” most favored nation (MFN) and “unreasonable” alternative distribution method (ADM) clauses in their contracts with independent programmers. An “unconditional” MFN clause entitles a pay TV provider to receive favorable contract terms that a programmer has given to another programming distributor, without requiring the pay TV provider to assume any corresponding obligations from the other distribution agreement. An ADM clause generally prohibits or limits a programmer from putting its programming on alternative video distribution platforms, such as online platforms. The FCC seeks comment on the specific kinds of ADM clauses that it should prohibit as unreasonable.

The proposed rules are a result of the input received from an inquiry the FCC opened into the state of diversity in the video programming market. The FCC held two workshops on the issue to examine the state of the video marketplace, challenges faced by distributors of video programming, and marketplace obstacles that affect the provision of independent and diverse programming to consumers.

Chairman Wheeler, Commissioners Clyburn and Rosenworcel approving. Commissioners Pai and O’Rielly dissenting.