Sen Roger Wicker (R-MS) urged the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) to conduct an oversight review into pandemic-related spending to ensure broadband funds were used appropriately for assisting unserved communities and those economically affected by the pandemic. In response to the need for broadband amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress created multiple broadband accessibility programs that allocated billions of dollars to assist Americans in their participation in remote activities. The CARES Act created the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC), within the Council of Inspectors General, to coordinate independent pandemic-related oversight. Sen Wicker requested that the PRAC "guide the independent Inspector General reviews necessary to ensure the federal funds allocated for broadband deployment are spent as Congress intended." Specifically, Wicker asks that the PRAC collect responses to a variety of questions about the performance of broadband-related agencies and programs. These questions fall under three main objectives: 1) Ensuring that funds serve unserved communities; 2) Preventing waste, fraud, and abuse in the Emergency Broadband Benefit program and its successor, the Affordable Connectivity Program; and 3) explaining to what extent the PRAC is planning to engage with the Federal Communications Commission, Treasury and National Telecommunications and Information Administration on enforcement efforts for noncompliance.

For those of us in Telecom land, the annual season of Spectrum Wars holds an attraction like no other. 2022 is shaping up to be a major spectacular, with lots of old plotlines coming back (like 5.9 GHz), sleeper issues (like 12 GHz), and an unexpected new dramatic plotline around the Federal Communications Commission’s overall auction authority — and More! With the FCC close to finally getting a full cast, it’s looking like 2022 could be a total blockbuster (which will, of course, end in the cliffhanger of a new Congress — with Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX) as potential Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee!). Of course, not every potential plotline will work out, and we’ll undoubtedly have plenty of surprises along the way, but here’s a (not so) brief recap of what you need to know to follow along this season. If I missed your favorite show, let me know in the comments.

For the first time, Verizon is offering free Internet with its Fios Forward program to qualifying Affordable Connectivity Program customers. With Fios Forward and ACP, qualifying customers will have access to premium high-speed Internet without data caps, extra fees or equipment costs, helping them maintain connectivity for virtual learning, remote work, telehealth visits and more. Service has speeds starting at 200Mbps for downloads and uploads, crucial bandwidth for video-heavy applications. Verizon is also removing hidden cost barriers, with no extra fees, no contracts, and no router costs. If customers are eligible for Lifeline, they can receive an additional $9.25 off their bill. Verizon customers who live in Maryland and are enrolled in ACP receive an additional subsidy discount of up to $15 per month from the Maryland Broadband Benefit program.

As the Kremlin moves to block or throttle more foreign websites and Russian citizens rush to deploy workarounds such as virtual private networks, concern is growing that Moscow plans to recreate Beijing’s tough restrictions — known collectively as the “Great Firewall” — that shield Chinese citizens from much of the broader internet. But Russia likely possesses neither the infrastructure nor the technical capabilities to mirror China’s relative success in walling off its citizens from the web. And even if it did, it’s unclear whether Russian President Vladimir Putin and his top advisers have the political capital to do it. The Russian government has struggled for years to restrict online content. Between 2018 and 2020, for example, the Kremlin couldn’t get its nominal ban on messaging app Telegram to actually take hold. “You had Kremlin officials who would have Telegram on their phone even though it was technically illegal, and who would make fun of the Russian internet-censor people for not being able to block it,” said Justin Sherman, a fellow at the Atlantic Council, a think tank. Unlike the Chinese internet — which from Day One was structured with tight controls on content in mind — Sherman said Russian internet infrastructure is “extremely diffuse,” with hundreds of service providers spread across a vast country. That makes it tough to find the kinds of chokepoints the Chinese built directly into their networks. Sherman said the Kremlin is slowly improving the technical capabilities it needs to filter out unwanted internet content. But Russian citizens, unlike those in China, have had years of exposure to US tech platforms.