Jessica Rosenworcel's tenure as FCC acting chairwoman has featured bipartisan unanimity. Former commissioners and others don't see her running out of noncontroversial agenda items soon. They told us to expect issues that could be contentious, such as revisiting net neutrality and new orbital debris rules, to be back-burnered until a third Democratic commissioner is appointed, breaking the current 2-2 balance. Current commissioners credit Rosenworcel including them in decision-making and communicating with them.

Cable ISPs and connectivity experts told us not to expect federal stimulus spending for broadband to make a huge dent in adoption gaps due to lack of connectivity, though it could reduce the number of people dropping service in the near term due to pocketbook issues. Some see the FCC Emergency Connectivity Fund potentially having longer-term ramifications, and much depends on finalized ECF rules due Monday. Many hope to see a more-permanent version of the emergency broadband benefit program emerge.

ISPs and Vermont agreed to keep net neutrality litigation on ice. The challenge to Vermont's law and executive order by ACA Connects, CTIA, NCTA and USTelecom at U.S. District Court in Vermont (case 2:18-cv-00167-CR) has been on hold pending resolution of the same associations' challenge to California’s law. That freeze would continue until the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals resolves industry’s appeal of U.S. District Court in Sacramento denying their preliminary injunction in February (see 2104130072), said Friday's stipulation (in Pacer). The pact would let Vermont require ISPs to adhere to net neutrality in contracts after April 22, though it wouldn’t be enforceable during the stay.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) vowed to fight six telecom associations challenging the state for requiring all ISPs to sell a $15 monthly internet plan to low-income households. Claiming the program is preempted rate regulation, the New York State Telecommunications Association, CTIA, ACA Connects, USTelecom, NTCA and Satellite Broadcasting & Communications Association sued Friday in the U.S. District Court for Eastern New York (case 21-cv-2389). Industry is “turning a blind eye to the needs of its most vulnerable customers once again,” said New York Public Utility Law Project (PULP) Executive Director Richard Berkley.

Education advocates and industry groups disagreed whether the FCC should allow retroactive reimbursements and set technology standards for schools and libraries in the $7.1 billion Emergency Connectivity Fund (see 2104140041). Replies were due Friday in docket 21-93. Schools that "made the decision earlier on to invest in connectivity for remote learning" should be reimbursed for purchases since the pandemic's onset, said Incompas. AT&T said retroactive payments would put schools that couldn't afford that at the "back of the line," a view echoed by the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. Prioritizing retroactive reimbursements would help "most likely more well-off schools and libraries," said ACA Connects (see 2104120052): It "should only be allowed for eligible purchases that have not been funded by any other source." USTelecom and NTCA agreed. Reject calls to allow ECF funding for self-provisioning, said Verizon: "Because self-provisioning requires large upfront expenditures, the schools receiving" that support "would consume a disproportionate share of the ECF and leave too little support for other schools." WTA agreed: This would lead to "substantial delays in the availability of eligible services that are needed immediately." Self-provisioned networks are the "most cost-effective" for students without residential broadband, said groups including New America’s Open Technology Institute, the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, Center for Rural Strategies and Public Knowledge. Avoid minimum service standards because "there is no consensus on the appropriate capacity needed for remote learning," said the Wireless ISP Association: "To narrow the fund’s scope to include only those services offering certain broadband speeds could have the unintended consequence of penalizing students who live in areas" with slower speeds. NCTA and GCI Communication agreed. CTIA said questions about "adequacy of mobile broadband for remote learning are unsupported by the record and flatly contrary to the experience of millions of students during the pandemic." The Competitive Carriers Association, T-Mobile and UScellular said similar. Defining "connected device" should be done in a "flexible, technologically neutral way," said Apple.

ACA Connects asked FCC Wireline Bureau staff to limit Emergency Connectivity Fund support to schools and libraries not already receiving funding from other federal or state programs, including the emergency broadband benefit program, said an ex parte letter posted Monday in docket 21-93 (see 2104060042). Schools and libraries should be required to certify they aren't "seeking ECF support for students and patrons receiving connectivity and devices through other government programs that could be used for remote learning," the group said, because funding is limited and other programs exist.

NAB President-CEO Gordon Smith will step down at the end of 2021 and be replaced by current NAB Chief Operating Officer Curtis LeGeyt, the group announced Wednesday. Broadcasters and broadcast attorneys told us LeGeyt is seen as having extensive contacts among Capitol Hill Democrats.

The FCC’s Emergency Connectivity Fund was enthusiastically praised by education advocates, schools and broadband providers in comments posted Tuesday in docket 21-93. The ECF program will give schools and libraries $7.17 billion to support remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic (see 2103110037). Many suggested that the existing E-rate program is the best model for setting up the new funding as quickly as possible. Others questioned excluding smartphones from funding support.

National Cable Television Cooperative President-CEO Rich Fickle plans to leave by Dec. 31, says his counterpart at ACA Connects, Matt Polka, noting "our two organizations have never been closer"; NCTC notes to us that Fickle told the group's members of his plans ... Progressive Policy Institute hires Tommy Kaelin from Immersion Legal Graphics as digital director ... Gov. Tim Walz (D) and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan (D) reappoint John Tuma as Minnesota public utilities commissioner for term ending Jan. 4, 2027; this appointment needs Senate confirmation.

President Joe Biden’s infrastructure proposal, which includes $100 billion for broadband (see 2103310064), got attention during a Thursday meeting between administration officials and six community broadband groups, participants told us. ACA Connects, the Competitive Carriers Association, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, NTCA, Rural Wireless Association and the Wireless ISP Association participated in the meeting, a WISPA spokesperson confirmed. The groups didn’t object to the general plan the White House released Wednesday, but they want to hear more details, the spokesperson said. The meeting was cordial and had been set before the proposal’s release as a “get to know you” introduction of the industry groups. It appears the Biden administration is “still working out the details” and is in a fact-finding mode aimed at making the plan better, said a lobbyist. The White House appeared interested in how to improve the federal government’s collection of broadband coverage data and “boost competition and affordability,” the lobbyist said. Administration officials didn’t appear to have specific proposals on minimum broadband speed requirements. CCA “was pleased to participate in the discussion,” a spokesperson said. The White House and other participating groups didn’t comment. Biden said Thursday he’s designating five Cabinet-level officials to “take special responsibility” to sell his infrastructure plan to the public, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. The Fiber Broadband Association praised the proposal Thursday, while the Wireless Infrastructure Association praised its proposed funding for registered apprenticeships. ACA, CTA and TechNet gave mixed assessments based on what they know so far.