Speech

Much like TaxWatch, one of the Federal Communications Commission’s chief priorities under FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has been to serve as a watchdog to identify and repeal bad regulations and learn from the lessons of the past. By eliminating regulations that impose unnecessary costs on the economy, our actions protect the American consumer, facilitate the deployment of new communications networks to connect distant communities, and help close the so-called “digital divide.” Now, the Communications Act envisions an important role for the states and municipal actors (like local utility and zoning

At the Federal Communications Commission, we have been working hard to help our nation and our industry seize the opportunities of the new space age. At a 1,600,000-foot view, we see a space industry that is changing, and we’re trying to make sure our regulations change with it. Under my leadership, the FCC has been committed to matching the tempo of the industry we regulate. Our space agenda involves cutting red tape and giving green lights.

5G isn’t just an upgraded version of 4G. 5G’s performance characteristics and how it is built blur the distinctions between wired and wireless industries. 5G will enable more choice as previously siloed industries compete, which we know will decrease prices and improve quality. In performing a competition analysis, it would be a mistake to look backwards at the wireless industry as it is constituted today. The lesson for competition authorities should be this: Technology is now creating and disrupting on shorter and shorter cycles.

Because 5G networks are interconnected, even a small amount of compromised equipment could be devastating to a country’s national security. 5G means that we must secure our networks from the “core” to the “edge.” At the Federal Communications Commission, we are in a position to do something about this threat. And we are. [On Nov. 22], my colleagues and I voted to prohibit carriers from using federal dollars to purchase any equipment or services from companies that pose a national security threat, including Huawei and ZTE. 

For those of you unfamiliar with the merger, 17 months ago, in April 2018, T-Mobile and Sprint announced that they would merge in a deal valued at around $26 billion dollars and sought permission from the Justice Department to do so.

On Nov 22 the Federal Communications Commission will vote to adopt a rule ensuring that our universal service funds—which provide billions annually to support broadband deployment in rural communities—are not used to purchase insecure network equipment. We also will kick off a rulemaking to identify where this equipment is in networks today and how to help carriers serving rural America replace it. I think with a few changes we can better protect the integrity of our networks and offer more certainty and predictability for carriers.

After 20 years of seeing these prime airwaves [in the 5.9 GHz band] go largely unused, the time has come for the FCC to take a fresh look at the 5.9 GHz band. And I’m pleased to announce that today, I shared with my FCC colleagues a proposal to end the uncertainty around the 5.9 GHz band and set a path for the deployment of new services. Specifically, I’m proposing to make available the lower 45 MHz of the band for unlicensed uses like Wi-Fi and allocate the upper 20 MHz for a new automotive communications technology, Cellular Vehicle to Everything, or C-V2X.

The Great One, Wayne Gretzky, warned us against this status quo bias. The secret to his legendary success on the ice was to “skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.” The Gretzky Test is popular in sports and in business now, and I think competition authorities—and especially those of us in tech and telecom regulation—should hold ourselves to it, too. The Federal Communications Commission has not always met that test. For too long, too many at the FCC sought to preserve the status quo, thinking that doing so could only benefit the Americans we serve. The FCC was wrong.

It’s fair to say that a Council on Foreign Relations appearance by the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is out of the ordinary. But these are extraordinary times. We’re at a pivotal moment in the evolution of communications technology. Across America and around the world, private companies have begun rolling out the next generation of wireless technology—commonly known as 5G. For all the opportunities that 5G will unlock, it will also create new challenges. Chief among these is the main subject of my remarks: network security.

Thank you to the Broadband Communities team for organizing a great event and inviting me here today to discuss an issue that I care so deeply about which is getting high-speed, affordable broadband to every person across this country.