Press Release

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that David Lawrence will lead the FCC task force coordinating the agency’s review of the transaction proposed by T-Mobile US and Sprint. The parties filed their applications with the Commission on June 18, 2018.

A group of conservative organizations sent a letter to the Senate Antitrust Subcommittee supporting the proposed merger of T-Mobile and Sprint, saying the transaction is consistent with antitrust law and will benefit consumers. The groups say the merger will drive competition and will result in higher speeds and lowered prices for consumers. 

House Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) announced the Compassionate Calling and Immigrant Family Reunification Act of 2018 to put an end to the abusive practice of charging detained immigrant parents extortionary rates to use the phone to either contact their children that have been separated from them and placed in detention facilities or to contact federal agencies to learn where their children are being held.

Public Knowledge leads a group of public interest and racial justice allies in welcoming net neutrality advocates from across the United States to Washington (DC) for a “Day of Advocacy.” Volunteers plan to express how important net neutrality is to their lives, schools, and businesses and why Congress should support the Congressional Review Act resolution to reinstate the FCC’s strong net neutrality rules. More than 50 participants volunteered to share their stories in scheduled meetings with their representatives on Capitol Hill.

[Press release] Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that the following items are tentatively on the agenda for the July Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, July 12, 2018:

When it comes to 5G, we need to keep the playbook fresh and forward leaning. So at our July 12 meeting, the Federal Communications Commission will take another step to ensure that America continues to lead the world in mobile innovation. Headlining the agenda at the FCC’s July meeting is a proposal to make more intensive use of mid-band spectrum from 3.7 to 4.2 GHz, commonly called the C-band. Another area in which the FCC has made substantial progress but must not stand still is emergency alerting.

Benton Foundation Executive Director Adrianne B. Furniss named Gigi Sohn Benton Senior Fellow and Public Advocate. Furniss said, “The Benton Foundation is honored to support the ongoing work of one of the nation’s leading public advocates for open, affordable, and democratic communications networks.

On June 20, 2018, Federal Communications Commissioner Michael O'Rielly wrote to Gov Eddie Calvo (R-Guam) regarding 911 fee diversion. "I am writing to follow-up on my Feb 20, 2018 letter inquiring on your territories' 9-1-1 fee diversion practices....As of today, four months later, my office has not received a response from you or your office...The citizens of Guam rely on the 9-1-1 system to work in their most dire times of need. It is beyond disappointing to learn that your territory has made a habit of diverting these funds for other purposes.

On June 15, 2018, Federal Communications Commissioner Michael O'Rielly wrote to Gov Gina Raimondo (D-RI) and Rhode Island General Assembly Speaker of the House Nicholas Mattiello (D-RI-15) to follow-up on the issue of 9-1-1 fee diversion. He wrote, "To put it bluntly, your state is diverting 60 percent of the funds intended and necessary for public safety purposes to your general fund, and no amount of relabeling will resolve this reality...I am writing, again, to implore you to end Rhode Island's fee diversion practices." 

On June 19, 2018, Federal Communications Commissioner Michael O'Rielly wrote to Charles Salle, Deputy Director of the New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee. He was responding to a phone call Commissioner O'Rielly received addressing why the state of NM diverted 9-1-1 fees in 2016.