Infrastructure

By this letter, the Puerto Rican Telecommunications Alliance (PRTA) urgently requests the immediate attention of the Federal Communications Commission in a matter presently before Puerto Rico's House of Representatives.

This week, the Federal Communications Commission established procedures for the first phase of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund auction (Auction 904, if you're scoring at home).

I thought that I’d spend my time this morning talking about how the Federal Communications Commission has responded to COVID-19 and some of the lessons we’ve learned.  The FCC doesn’t just want to encourage private industry to better serve the public, we want to free them to expand and enhance their networks. That’s why we’ve moved aggressively to cut through red tape that often prevents or delays innovative solutions to consumers’ problems. 

With the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrating the critical need for communications connectivity, local governments are striving to improve local broadband service and fill broadband service gaps. At the same time, localities may be able to generate much-needed revenue from broadband and telecommunication assets they already own, including towers, fiber optics, rooftops, conduit, and poles.  Indeed, many cash-strapped communities possess a range of assets, including fiber strands and tower and conduit space, that have spare capacity and could be maximized.

Mississippi is now seeing how legislation can swing open the door for rural broadband expansion. In Jan 2019, former Gov Phil Bryant (R-MS) signed the Mississippi Broadband Enabling Act, removing a 1942 regulation that prevented electric cooperatives from offering anything other than electricity to their members.  Since the bill was approved, nine of Mississippi’s 25 electric co-ops are in the process of building fiber to the home in their coverage areas, said Brandon Presley, northern district commissioner of the Mississippi Public Service Commission.

The explosive growth in wireless communications over the last many years has resulted in increasing interplay involving building codes, construction techniques and materials, and wireless communications coverage. In light of this, I believe that there is an opportunity for the Department of Energy and the Federal Comrntinications Commission to collaborate more extensively in order to produce thoughtful building codes that will not only allow the Department to fulfill its mission, but also expand wireless spectrum opportunities, and thus facilitate more consumer uses.

The Federal Communications Commission' Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force, Wireline Competition Bureau, and the Office of Economics and Analytics announce they are ready to authorize Connect America Fund Phase II auction (Auction 903) support for the Auction 903 winning bids.

Wisconsin, Colorado, Illinois, Oregon, and New Hampshire join 13 other states who are partnering in the National Broadband Availability Map (NBAM) program. With the addition of five new states, the NBAM is another step closer to creating a national platform that can help inform policymakers and expand Internet coverage across the United States. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has made something clear that the members of the Communications Workers of America (CWA), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) have known for a long time: millions of families in the United States do not have access to affordable, reliable broadband internet connections. Technicians can’t install high-speed internet service for households without fiber optic cable in their neighborhoods. Teachers can’t keep children who cannot access online materials engaged and learning.