House Commerce Committee ranking member Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said Wednesday he and other supporters of the FCC’s affordable connectivity program are seeking stopgap funding for an FY 2024 omnibus appropriations package in a bid to keep the endangered initiative running. Meanwhile, ex-FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and eight other former commission heads said congressional leaders should “act swiftly” and appropriate up to $15 billion for next-generation 911 tech upgrades. President Joe Biden last year sought $6 billion in stopgap ACP money and $3.08 billion to fully fund the FCC’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program as part of a supplemental appropriations request but didn’t mention NG-911 (see 2310250075).
Mitigating practices that could speed the country toward phone number exhaustion is a priority item for state officials ahead of NARUC’s Feb. 25-28 meeting in Washington, commission officials told us. The state utility regulator association is planning a vote during the meeting on a proposed resolution from Telecom Committee Chair Tim Schram. It urges the FCC “to provide updated guidance on how states should bring forward cases of telephone number resource mismanagement or suspected robocalling using rented telephone numbers to the Commission using the audit process” from Section 52.15(k) of the Telecom Act.
The use of quantum computing is emerging as a threat to public key infrastructure technology and other methods of encryption used to protect data on the internet, speakers said Tuesday during a Mobile World Live webinar. The National Institute of Standards and Technology has a long-standing project, launched in 2016, to develop post-quantum encryption standards.
Industry groups welcomed the FCC's inquiry on improving its broadband data collection (BDC) process. The agency sought feedback as part of a report to Congress about data collection and whether tools are needed to improve the data's accuracy (see 2401190071). Comments were posted Tuesday in docket 19-195.
Petitioners Maurine and Matthew Molak want the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to “disregard the statutory requirement” under Communications Act Section 405(a) that persons who weren’t parties before the FCC file a petition for reconsideration as a “condition precedent” to seeking judicial review, said the FCC and DOJ reply Friday (docket 23-60641) in support of their motion to dismiss the Molaks’ petition (see 2402070002).
Manufacturers of phones, tablets and gaming consoles should have responsibility under law for establishing default content filters that block minors from accessing pornography and obscene content, Del. Shaneka Henson (D) said Tuesday, arguing in favor of her legislation during a House Economic Matters Committee hearing.
Media misinformation and disinformation are major concerns, but the FCC shouldn't regulate newsrooms, Commissioner Anna Gomez Tuesday told a Media Institute luncheon. “Our democracy needs a press free from interference from regulators like myself,” said Gomez.
Expect a lengthy fight among satellite operators over equivalent power flux density (EPFD) limits at the FCC and during preparations for the 2027 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-27), satellite experts and insiders tell us. Some see the issue emerging at ITU Working Party 4A meetings in May -- 4A is concerned with satellite spectrum efficiency and interference. Non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) advocates of an EPFD change face a challenging road getting EPFD rules changes made at WRC-27, though changes are possible, we're told.
Smaller online platforms operating in the EU must comply with the Digital Services Act (DSA) starting Feb. 17, the European Commission said during a virtual briefing. Smaller platforms are defined as those with fewer than 45 million users per month. National digital services coordinators (DSCs) will oversee compliance. Consumers cheered the expansion of the measure but urged proper enforcement.
Russia's developing anti-satellite (ASAT) capabilities, even if they violate the Outer Space Treaty (OST), are unlikely to lead other space-faring nations to abandon the agreement, space policy experts tell us. OST has "shown it has good bones" in past instances of countries being bad actors in space, said Victoria Samson, Secure World Foundation chief director. Russia's ASAT effort could help the U.S. gather support for a global voluntary ban on destructive ASAT testing, Michelle Hanlon, executive director-Center for Air and Space Law at the University of Mississippi, wrote in an email. The White House said last week Russia is developing an ASAT capability. It called that work "a national security threat" and "troubling" but provided scant details.