Monday, August 5, 2024
Headlines Daily Digest
A Plan to Bridge the Digital Divide in Colorado
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Biden-Harris Administration Approves Montana, Oklahoma, and Vermont's “Internet for All” Initial Proposal
The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Montana, Oklahoma, and Vermont's Initial Proposals for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s “Internet for All” initiative. This approval enables Montana, Oklahoma, and Vermont to request access to funding and begin implementation of the BEAD program—a major step towards closing the digital divide and connecting everyone in America with affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet service. This action allows Montana to request over, $628 million, Oklahoma over $797 million, and Vermont over $228 million.
The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Missouri and Tennessee’s Initial Proposals for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s “Internet for All” initiative. This approval enables Missouri and Tennessee to request access to funding and begin implementation of the BEAD program—a major step towards closing the digital divide and meeting the President’s goal of connecting everyone in America with affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet service. Today’s action allows Missouri to request over $1.7 billion, and Tennessee over $813 million.
In 2022, the Colorado Broadband Office (CBO) commissioned a survey of 2,000+ Coloradans, 18+ agencies, 200+ local governments, nonprofits, and organizations serving marginalized populations to assess the current state of broadband in Colorado. At the time, only approximately 76 percent of households in Colorado subscribed to broadband despite over 90 percent having access. CBO determined that lack of physical access to broadband infrastructure accounted for 56 percent of those who had not adopted the internet, while 38 percent of residents without at-home broadband reported cost as the main reason. In its proposal for spending Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program support, Colorado adopted a goal of improving adoption by expanding digital inclusion and adoption to achieve affordability, access and digital literacy by 2027. CBO sought to achieve this goal by promoting programs that make high-speed internet more affordable
The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced that it received 227 applications requesting more than $2.94 billion in funding to support wireless equipment innovation. The second Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) in the Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund will make up to $420 million available to invest in projects that will drive commercialization and innovation in open radio units. Radio units, which sit at the top of cell phone towers to transmit and receive signals, are the largest and most costly part of the carrier network. Applications for this round of funding were due July 17. NTIA is evaluating the applications and expects to begin making awards later in 2024.
Sen Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced new legislation to help deliver reliable internet to more rural Americans by returning dormant federal funding back to the state it was intended for. The Federal Communications Commission’s current funding structure favors large companies that reap billions in federal government contracts meant to provide high-speed internet access to rural communities. These companies, however, often fail to meet obligations, leaving federal funds in default and America’s rural communities without internet service. So far, the FCC’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund has seen more than $2.8 billion in defaulted funds. Senator Hawley’s Broadband Fairness Act would:
- Allocate defaulted FCC funds to the state that originally received the award for broadband deployment;
- Ensure that the geographic region where an award defaulted is eligible for other broadband funding opportunities; and
- Allow states to supplement other grant funding to complete broadband projects.
Justice Department Sues TikTok and Parent Company ByteDance for Widespread Violations of Children’s Privacy Laws
The Justice Department, together with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), filed a civil lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against TikTok Inc., ByteDance Ltd., and their affiliates (together, TikTok) for violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and its implementing regulations (COPPA) in connection with the popular TikTok app. COPPA prohibits website operators from knowingly collecting, using, or disclosing personal information from children under the age of 13, unless they provide notice to and obtain consent from those children’s parents. It also requires website operators to delete personal information collected from children at their parents’ request. In 2019, the government sued TikTok’s predecessor, Musical.ly, for COPPA violations, and since then the defendants have been subject to a court order requiring them to undertake specific measures to comply with COPPA. According to the complaint, from 2019 to the present, TikTok knowingly permitted children to create regular TikTok accounts and to create, view, and share short-form videos and messages with adults and others on the regular TikTok platform. The defendants collected and retained a wide variety of personal information from these children without notifying or obtaining consent from their parents. Even for accounts that were created in “Kids Mode” (a pared-back version of TikTok intended for children under 13), the defendants unlawfully collected and retained children’s email addresses and other types of personal information. Further, when parents discovered their children’s accounts and asked the defendants to delete the accounts and information in them, the defendants frequently failed to honor those requests. The defendants also had deficient and ineffectual internal policies and processes for identifying and deleting TikTok accounts created by children.
Perkins Coie Partner Marc Martin, a lawyer who helps companies understand Federal Communications Commission rules, expects multiple FCC cases to go before the Supreme Court. Martin called the recent Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decision about the Universal Service Fund (USF)—ruling that the framework through which the FCC created the USF is unconstitutional—“a shock to the industry.” He referred to the Fifth Circuit Court as a “forum-shopping place for people to overturn regulations,” and noted that two other circuit courts upheld the Universal Service Fund in recent years. Due to the conflict among the court decisions, “there’s no place to go other than the Supreme Court.” At the Supreme Court, there were three decisions “hostile” to regulatory agencies: (1) the Chevron deference case, (2) a ruling against the Environmental Protection Agency, and (3) a decision against the Security and Exchange Commission. In that environment, Martin says it’s “likely” that the Supreme Court will uphold the Fifth Circuit Court’s ruling against the Universal Service Fund. On the Sixth Circuit’s temporary block on the FCC’s proposed net neutrality rules, Martin said, "I think it’s a dead man walking." Martin pointed out that, with Justice Brett Kavanaugh now on the Supreme Court and the recent Chevron deference ruling—which, according to Martin, essentially says agencies like the FCC can no longer “change their mind”—the Supreme Court is likely to look unkindly on the FCC case and strike down their proposed net neutrality rules.
Benton (www.benton.org) provides the only free, reliable, and non-partisan daily digest that curates and distributes news related to universal broadband, while connecting communications, democracy, and public interest issues. Posted Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are factually accurate, their sometimes informal tone may not always represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang (headlines AT benton DOT org), Grace Tepper (grace AT benton DOT org), and Zoe Walker (zwalker AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
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