Verizon backed the Alternative Connect America Cost Model (ACAM) Broadband Coalition proposal to extend the program, per an ex parte filing Tuesday in docket 10-90 (see 2207190056). The FCC could "give rate-of-return carriers the opportunity to make an enforceable commitment to provide 100/20 Mbps service" using their ACAM or Connect America Fund broadband loop support funding, Verizon said in a meeting with Wireline Bureau and Office of Economics and Analytics staff. Doing so would prevent areas subject to enforceable commitments from receiving support through the broadband, equity, access and deployment program, Verizon said. It also backed "looking to the BEAD program or other new programs, rather than the universal service fund, to meet deployment goals" in order to "mitigate increases in annual support."
The Fiber Broadband Association and NTCA marked the one-year anniversary Tuesday of President Joe Biden's signing the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which included $65 billion for broadband (see 2111150074). "If executed properly, the programs created by this landmark law have the potential to deliver on the promise of innovative technologies, create new jobs, and enable breakthroughs in healthcare and education for communities that have been left behind for as long as any of us can remember," said NTCA CEO Shirley Bloomfield. "We stand ready to work with the government at all levels and with partners across the nation to get this right and to connect more rural Americans." Fiber "has been determined to be the broadband infrastructure of choice, and this progress has opened a tremendous opportunity for the fiber broadband industry," said FBA CEO Gary Bolton in a statement: "We are excited to keep the momentum going."
A coalition of consumer advocacy and research organizations responding to Nagish's application for certification raised concerns about the FCC's approval process for applications to provide IP captioned telephone services using automatic speech recognition only. The Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc., Hearing Loss Association of America, National Association of the Deaf and Gallaudet University's Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Technology for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing said they were concerned about the FCC reviewing applications "without first creating technology-neutral minimum standards" or making enough information publicly available, per an ex parte filing Tuesday in docket 03-123. The groups said "little progress has been made on these issues as the urgency to address them has increased over the past three years" and questioned the "quality, privacy, and other tradeoffs involved in using ASR." Nagish's application, "though commendable in parts, follows other applications in seeking to bypass many of the existing requirements intended to ensure the quality of human-captioner-based IP CTS," the groups said, adding the FCC should "focus on in-call switching functionality."
The FCC Wireline Bureau wants comments by Dec. 15, replies Jan. 17, on a Further NPRM on unused funds in inmate calling service accounts and telecom relay services for incarcerated individuals, said a notice for Tuesday's Federal Register. The bureau wants comments on TRS obligations for providers and whether to adopt enterprise registration for IP captioned telephone services. It also wants comments on how to use the third mandatory data collection to establish permanent caps on ICS rates and ancillary fees. Commissioners adopted the item in September (see 2209290017).
The FCC Enforcement Bureau issued a cease-and-desist letter to Urth Access Thursday on apparent illegal robocall traffic about student loan forgiveness (see 2211030071). The bureau ordered the company to stop originating such calls, after an investigation with YouMail and the USTelecom Industry Traceback Group identified "upwards of 40%" of related calls originated from the provider, said a news release. The bureau "opened a formal case and is investigating these calls for possible further legal action." Also Thursday, the bureau issued a public notice authorizing all providers carrying traffic originating from Urth Access to stop. Urth Access CEO Fawaz Saleem didn't comment.
A coalition of industry groups proposed allowing providers participating in the FCC's affordable connectivity program the option to provide an "average net rate charged" to households for each tier of supported services in each five-digit ZIP code as part of the program's mandatory data collection. It would allow the commission to determine "at a geographically granular level" how many households are receiving service "with no out-of-pocket expense" and the average price for households that are "subscribing to broadband services that are not fully covered by the ACP benefit," said the Competitive Carriers Association, CTIA, NCTA and USTelecom in a letter posted Wednesday in docket 21-450. The mandatory collection could include a monthly rate for "each ACP-supported service tier" and the number of subscribers in a ZIP code, they said. The groups asked the FCC to disclose its data "on an aggregate basis" and within ranges for speeds or monthly data allowance to maintain providers' and consumer privacy. The groups also asked that data be aggregated to a higher geographic level if fewer than three providers are "in a geographic unit."
The FCC established a database connection with the Department of Veterans Affairs' Veterans Benefits Administration to improve access to the affordable connectivity program and Lifeline for veterans. It will "enable automatic eligibility verification" for veterans receiving qualifying pension benefits, said a news release Wednesday. Veterans won't need to submit additional eligibility documentation to enroll in either program if their eligibility is automatically determined by the national verifier. The initiative will "help our Veterans more easily get affordable online digital benefits that can open doors to education, health care and job opportunities,” said Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel.
A coalition of consumer advocacy organizations asked the FCC to adopt "broad interpretations" in its final rules on digital discrimination (see 2207050057). Common Cause, United Church of Christ Media Justice Ministry, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, National Center for Transgender Equality, MediaJustice, League of United Latin American Citizens, Next Century Cities, Common Sense, and the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council met with the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, Taskforce to Prevent Digital Discrimination, Media and Wireline bureaus, and an aide to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, per an ex parte filing Tuesday in docket 22-69. Congress gave the FCC a "broad mandate," the groups said, and its rules "must go beyond deployment discrimination and include both technical and non-technical aspects of service quality." The groups also asked the FCC to establish an Office of Civil Rights.
The FCC committed nearly $183 million in additional emergency connectivity fund support Wednesday. The new funding will support 325 schools, 40 libraries and one consortium, said a news release. “We’re making progress closing the homework gap, but we need to make sure every student has after-school access to the digital tools they need for schoolwork and engaging with teachers and classmates,” said Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel.
The FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau wants comments by Dec. 2, replies by Dec. 19, in docket 03-123 on InnoCaption's application for full certification to provide IP relay service, said a public notice Wednesday. InnoCaption sought full certification to provide IP captioned telephone service (see 2209130061).