Letter

On December 16, Sen Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) wrote to President-Elect Donald Trump to express concerns about the roles played by Elon Musk in the Trump transition, and the conflicts of interest presented by a frequent federal contractor serving as "unofficial co-president." She wrote, "As a key adviser to you and a high-profile policymaker in his role as co-chair of the DOGE Committee, Mr. Musk appears to be playing an extraordinarily influential role in the transition, and it appears that he is poised to continue doing so after you assume office on January 20, 2025.

In a November 26 letter to Members of Congress, Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel offered an update on the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program, emphasizing the need for full funding of the program.

Over the past few years, Americans have lived through an unprecedented surge in censorship. Your companies [Google, Microsoft, Meta/Facebook, and Apple] played significant roles in this improper conduct. Big Tech companies silenced Americans for doing nothing more than exercising their First Amendment rights. They targeted core political, religious, and scientific speech.

Under your leadership, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has repeatedly ignored the text of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in administering the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is expected to soon begin distributing $1.25 billion in grants to nonprofits under the “Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program” (Program) “to support efforts to achieve digital equity, promote digital inclusion activities, and spur greater adoption of broadband among Covered Populations.” The Program’s Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) establishes that applicants must use the funding to serve members of “Covered Populations,” defined to include “individuals who are members of a racial or ethnic minority group.” This

Mercury Broadband filed letters notifying the Federal Communications Commission that the company is returning census block groups (CBGs) awarded funding in Kansas, Illinois, Michigan, and Indiana. Mercury said deployment costs have increased dramatically since Mercury made its bids in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund auction and factors outside of its control, including rising costs and competitive encroachment, have rendered deployment to many of these RDOF CBGs economically unviable and ultimately unachievable.

Dear Chairwoman Rosenworcel:  The results of the 2024 presidential election are now apparent and leadership of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, the FCC should immediately stop work on any partisan or controversial item under consideration, consistent with applicable law and regulation. There are many bipartisan, consensus items that the FCC could pursue to fulfill its mission before the end of your tenure. I urge you to focus your attention on these matters.

On October 31, NRECA sent a letter to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration expressing concern about the potential for BEAD funds being used to overbuild locations with fiber-to-the-home connections. CEO Jim Matheson wrote "As state broadband offices begin opening BEAD application windows and evaluating proposals, I write to express concern about the potential for BEAD funds being used to overbuild locations with fiber-tothe-home connections.

The Data Mapping to Save Moms’ Lives Act directed the Federal Communications Commission to incorporate maternal health data into its Mapping Broadband Health in America platform. The agency took this task seriously and on June 20, 2023, first introduced this information on the platform, including public data about maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity, as well as facts about race and ethnicity, maternal age, rurality, areas with maternity care deserts, and areas with shortages of mental health care providers.

The House Committee on Oversight and Accountability is investigating the Federal Communications Commission’s decision to reaffirm its revocation of an award authorizing Space Exploration Technologies Corporation’s Starlink to receive broadband deployment subsidies through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF).  The Committee seeks information from the FCC to ensure that the Commission followed established processes and is not improperly using the regulatory process for political purposes.