The National Educational Broadband Service Association and Catholic Technology Association support the proposed T-Mobile/Sprint deal and want EBS white space to be licensed through priority filing windows limited to tribal nations and educational institutions that don’t hold EBS licenses, they said. The filings posted Thursday in dockets 18-197 and 18-120 on meetings Tuesday with the FCC Wireless Bureau and an aide to Commissioner Brendan Carr. Licensing EBS white space to tribal entities and schools “will benefit the education community as a whole” and “help preserve the essential educational nature of EBS.” T-Mobile/Sprint will provide better coverage and greater availability of 5G, the groups said. It shouldn’t involve the forced divestitures requested by Voqal because they would “be disruptive to affected EBS licensees,” CTA and NEBSA said.

The National Educational Broadband Service Association and Catholic Technology Association support the proposed T-Mobile/Sprint deal and want EBS white space to be licensed through priority filing windows limited to tribal nations and educational institutions that don’t hold EBS licenses, they said. The filings posted Thursday in dockets 18-197 and 18-120 on meetings Tuesday with the FCC Wireless Bureau and an aide to Commissioner Brendan Carr. Licensing EBS white space to tribal entities and schools “will benefit the education community as a whole” and “help preserve the essential educational nature of EBS.” T-Mobile/Sprint will provide better coverage and greater availability of 5G, the groups said. It shouldn’t involve the forced divestitures requested by Voqal because they would “be disruptive to affected EBS licensees,” CTA and NEBSA said.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said he asked staff to expand "engagement with Tribal stakeholders so that their views and insights more fully inform our efforts to identify and develop measures to address, unserved Tribal areas." He noted a recent GAO report urging improved FCC data collection on tribal broadband and input from tribal members (see 1809100041), writing to Reps. Frank Pallone, D-N.J, and Greg Walden, R-Ore., Commerce Committee ranking member and chairman, respectively, and other lawmakers, posted Wednesday in docket 18-5. Meanwhile, Pai responded to Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who voiced concerns about law enforcement use of cell-site stimulators (StingRays) to identify nearby devices and intercept calls. The FCC's role in such law enforcement use is "limited," wrote Pai: "We do not have the authority or expertise to determine which technologies are most appropriate for law enforcement use." Pai told Wyden: "You note a report from Canada and unsupported allegations that cell-site simulators cause significant interference to emergency services. Career Commission staff was unable to find actual test results by law enforcement authorities in Canada or any other credible evidence that authorized cell-site simulators used by federal law enforcement in the United States are failing to comply with the domestic requirement to cause a 'minimum of interference.'" Separately responding to Wyden cybersecurity concerns about Signaling System 7 vulnerabilities, Pai invited the senator or staff to visit the FCC to view a Communications Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Council risk assessment report "in camera," and to contact the Secret Service and FBI for data on breaches in customer proprietary network information, including SS7-specific breaches.

The FCC would give rural telcos monthly model-based USF support of $200 per location if they adopt new commitments to build out 25/3 Mbps broadband, under a draft order issued Wednesday. It would also seek to firm up support for rate-of-return (RoR) carriers still on legacy support in exchange for increased 25/3 Mbps deployment. The tentative agenda issued for the Dec. 12 commissioners' meeting also includes draft items on a new high-band 5G spectrum auction, a communications market report, a quadrennial review, media modernization, a robocall-related reassigned number database (here) and wireless messaging classification (here), as announced Tuesday by Chairman Ajit Pai (see 1811200048).

GAO called for the FCC to improve outreach to tribal governments to improve those entities' access to spectrum. Wednesday's report, sought by members of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, was released more than a month after the committee criticized what's seen as deficiencies in FCC practices for determining broadband coverage on tribal lands (see 1810030055). The FCC “has taken steps to promote and support tribal access to spectrum,” including via 2011 and 2018 rulemakings that included tribal input, GAO said: But the commission “has not finalized these rules and is in the process of responding to comments to the 2018 rulemaking,” an NPRM looking at the future of the 2.5 GHz educational broadband service band (see 1809100045). “While FCC has made additional spectrum available for broadband use in recent years, tribal stakeholders cited limitations with the spectrum FCC has made available,” the report said. The FCC should “collect data on the extent that tribal entities are obtaining and accessing spectrum and use this information” as the agency “implements ongoing spectrum initiatives,” GAO said. "Analyze data to better understand the extent that unused spectrum licenses exist over tribal lands.” GAO called for the FCC to “make information on spectrum-license holders more accessible and easy to understand for interested parties, including tribal entities, to promote their ability to purchase or lease spectrum licenses.” The FCC said it plans to follow the recommendations, by considering “ways to collect data on the extent that tribal entities are obtaining and accessing spectrum, including updating application forms to provide for voluntary submission of this information.”

GAO called for the FCC to improve outreach to tribal governments to improve those entities' access to spectrum. Wednesday's report, sought by members of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, was released more than a month after the committee criticized what's seen as deficiencies in FCC practices for determining broadband coverage on tribal lands (see 1810030055). The FCC “has taken steps to promote and support tribal access to spectrum,” including via 2011 and 2018 rulemakings that included tribal input, GAO said: But the commission “has not finalized these rules and is in the process of responding to comments to the 2018 rulemaking,” an NPRM looking at the future of the 2.5 GHz educational broadband service band (see 1809100045). “While FCC has made additional spectrum available for broadband use in recent years, tribal stakeholders cited limitations with the spectrum FCC has made available,” the report said. The FCC should “collect data on the extent that tribal entities are obtaining and accessing spectrum and use this information” as the agency “implements ongoing spectrum initiatives,” GAO said. "Analyze data to better understand the extent that unused spectrum licenses exist over tribal lands.” GAO called for the FCC to “make information on spectrum-license holders more accessible and easy to understand for interested parties, including tribal entities, to promote their ability to purchase or lease spectrum licenses.” The FCC said it plans to follow the recommendations, by considering “ways to collect data on the extent that tribal entities are obtaining and accessing spectrum, including updating application forms to provide for voluntary submission of this information.”

The FCC circulated drafts last week on the Connect America Fund and its Mobility Fund, plus draft maritime accounting authority and Enforcement Bureau orders, and a draft on an Iowa Network Access Division (Aureon) Tariff No. 1, said the updated list. The CAF draft is an order on Mescalero Apache's petition for reconsideration (see 1805310032) of a "Tribal Opex Relief Order" adopted April 5, emailed a spokesperson Tuesday. He said the Mobility Fund draft is an order on issues raised in an Aug. 21 combined NPRM and orders, and the Aureon draft is an order on an AT&T petition to reconsider a previous tariff.

The FCC said more than 8 million speed tests were submitted during the Mobility Fund II challenge process. Of the 106 entities with access to the MF-II Challenge Process Portal, “38 are mobile service providers required to file Form 477 data; 19 are state government entities; 27 are local government entities; 16 are Tribal government entities; and six are other entities that have filed petitions requesting, and have each been granted, a waiver to participate,” said Friday's report in docket 10-90. It was by the Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force and Wireline and Wireless bureaus. Some say FCC broadband maps are inaccurate (see 1811010031).

The FCC said more than 8 million speed tests were submitted during the Mobility Fund II challenge process. Of the 106 entities with access to the MF-II Challenge Process Portal, “38 are mobile service providers required to file Form 477 data; 19 are state government entities; 27 are local government entities; 16 are Tribal government entities; and six are other entities that have filed petitions requesting, and have each been granted, a waiver to participate,” said Friday's report in docket 10-90. It was by the Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force and Wireline and Wireless bureaus. Some say FCC broadband maps are inaccurate (see 1811010031).

The National Tribal Telecommunications Association recommended changes to USF support mechanisms for carriers serving predominantly rural tribal areas, in a report filed Thursday at the FCC in docket 10-90. NTTA "proposes a Tribal Area Solution to revise current federal universal service programs for [rate-of-return] carriers. These revisions, proposed for the High Cost Loop Support, Connect America Fund Broadband Loop Support, and Alternative Connect America Cost Model support programs, recognize the unique challenges faced by carriers serving rural Tribal areas of the lower 48 states in the country.” Efforts to help tribal areas appear on paper to be “fairly substantial,” the group said: “However, the facts are clear -- Tribal areas, especially rural Tribal areas in the lower 48 states, lag significantly behind the rest of the country in regards to broadband availability.”