Level of Government

As the battle over the use of the 12.2 GHz to 12.7 GHz rages, the 5G for 12 GHz Coalition once again said that the Federal Communication Commission should change its rules and allow terrestrial 5G transmission in this frequency band. Current rules allow for downlink only use for satellite TV. The push for 12 GHz began in October 2020 with a letter to then-FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. Since that time, incumbents AT&T and SpaceX have opposed the shared spectrum use on grounds that terrestrial 5G would interfere with their services, disrupting transmissions to customers.

AT&T Chief Executive Officer John Stankey  considers the expansion of AT&T’s fiber network part of his strategy to refocus the company around offering greater telecommunications connectivity now that it’s left behind its dream of being a media powerhouse.

The Federal Communications Commission set guidelines for two pilot programs aimed at increasing both awareness of and participation in the Affordable Connectivity Program, which provides a discount of up to $30 per month toward internet service for eligible households (and up to $75 per month for households on qualifying Tribal lands). On October 11, the FCC provided an update on the implementation of the pilot programs.

The Washington State Public Works Board (PWB) is seeking public participation to help identify and prioritize issues that stakeholders believe should be addressed in the Board’s broadband funding program as a result of changes made to the program by the 2022 State Legislature. Input from two public workshops in November and a public hearing session in December will also help guide implementation.

From an unnamed Comcast public relations officer: The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) program is an important opportunity to connect more Americans to broadband than ever before and to close the digital divide, and we’ve been working hard to get the word out locally. The programs were implemented with incredible speed by both the government and private companies, and while some bumps in the road were expected, we are working to address issues as soon as possible. We have worked consistently to simplify the processes for consumers while keeping the proper checks and balances in place.

In 2021, Congress and the administration agreed upon a bipartisan approach to bridging differences in digital investment and delivery. But now, even before a single dollar of the bill’s rural broadband deployment funding has gone out the door, governors in both red and blue states are rushing to pour tax dollars into an entirely different strategy they hope will solve the same problem, and a new Senate bill proposes to potentially spend billions more replicating these state initiatives nationwide. Even for Washington, DC, this bipartisan rush to ramp funding for “middle mile” networks is a

The first-in-the-nation digital advertising tax in Maryland is no more after less than two years in practice. The tax was struck down in the Anne Arundel County Circuit Court after Judge Alison Asti sided with subsidiaries of Comcast and Verizon, finding that the policy violated the First Amendment, the Internet Tax Freedom Act, and the Dormant Commerce Clause. By only taxing advertising when it is served digitally, the tax discriminated against e-commerce and violated the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act, Judge Asti said. He also ruled the tax violated the Dormant Commerce Clause—which pro

Applications are open for the Main Connectivity Authority's "Connect the Ready Program." The competitive grants program will allocate $70 million to public & private partners such as governmental entities, broadband utility districts, and internet service providers (ISP). This initiative will support partners’ efforts to proactively and collaboratively design, fund, and build broadband infrastructure projects in eligible areas.

Los Altos Hills Community Fiber (LAHCF) is a cooperative (co-op) broadband provider that gives multi-gigabit fiber Internet to dozens of homes and has a plan to serve hundreds more. Town residents were able to form the provider with the help of Next Level Networks, which isn't a traditional consumer broadband provider but a company that builds and manages networks for local groups. This was done to overcome frustrations residents have been having with providers like Comcast.

Although Rep Ro Khanna (D-CA)'s district includes a wide swath of the tech industry's homes in towns like Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Santa Clara, and Fremont, he is an advocate for laws that would curb Big Tech's power. Among the restrictions Rep Khanna favors would expand privacy protections beyond California's existing law as well as a change in antitrust law that would shift the burden of proof in large deals, requiring the acquiring company to prove a deal won't hurt competition. Members of Congress have proposed new bills around privacy and antitrust and children's online safety, but so far