Congress grills FCC on ACP, mapping, broadband funding overlaps

On July 9, a House subcommittee held a hearing to get an update on how the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is addressing some of the most pressing broadband issues in the country. Here’s what the FCC had to say:

• Mapping: How does the FCC plan to deal with ISPs that overstate their coverage? Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel stressed the Commission will take action against providers that overstate coverage “in a willful, malicious and dishonest way.” But incidental overstatements also exist, and that’s where states can help.
• Affordable Connectivity Program: The government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which provided a low-cost internet option to more than 23 million households, expired at the end of May. Asked by Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA) what the FCC is doing to “secure the progress made by ACP,” Chairwoman Rosenworcel said the Commission has reached out to its “outreach partners to make sure that they are aware of alternatives.”
• Preventing Program Overlap: There’s a lot of buzz around the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, but the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) is also chugging along despite defaults. Although the FCC not letting providers off the hook for paying default penalties, it encouraged them to default sooner rather than later so states can receive the necessary info for BEAD planning.