The National Tribal Telecommunications Association has "significant concerns with the broadband testing protocols" in July's order on measuring speed and latency at recipients of high-cost USF support for fixed locations, NTTA wrote the FCC on Tuesday. The group backed some NTCA and rural broadband advocate WTA fears on broadband performance testing. Testing protocols aren't "ready and will not be ready in time for testing to begin" in Q3, NTTA wrote, in a letter posted Wednesday in docket 10-90. "NTTA shares NTCA’s and WTA’s concerns about the requirement for carriers to test outside their networks, speeds and tiers to be tested, incompatible CPE [customer premises equipment], and the starting date." NTTA didn't immediately answer our questions. Other telecom groups have USF speed/latency worries (see 1905140019). The commission will "be addressing the issue in the near future," emailed a spokesperson.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is considering an item addressing the 2.5 GHz band for the June 6 commissioners’ meeting, industry officials said Monday. The agency should hold off further action on the band until a full record is established on the educational broadband service (EBS), the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition and others said Monday in a letter to the commission.
The FCC scheduled a tribal workshop June 12-13 at the Chickasaw Nation in Norman, Oklahoma. The event will provide information to help tribal nations get better broadband, telecom and broadcast services and infrastructure, and to encourage tribal participation in the regulatory process, said a Thursday public notice. The FCC invited Agriculture Department officials to share information on relevant programs, and a Universal Service Administrative Co. representative will do an E-rate training, the agency said.
The FCC scheduled a tribal workshop June 12-13 at the Chickasaw Nation in Norman, Oklahoma. The event will provide information to help tribal nations get better broadband, telecom and broadcast services and infrastructure, and to encourage tribal participation in the regulatory process, said a Thursday public notice. The FCC invited Agriculture Department officials to share information on relevant programs, and a Universal Service Administrative Co. representative will do an E-rate training, the agency said.
More than 830 signatories petitioned the FCC Wednesday to make new educational broadband service licenses available to educational institutions and tribal nations, the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition said. The group noted that 23 years ago, the FCC stopped issuing new EBS licenses, “leaving 50 percent of the geography of the United States, primarily rural areas, without access to this portion of the 2.5 GHz band.” A year ago, commissioners approved 4-0 an NPRM seeking proposals for changes to the band, including an incentive auction like the one for TV broadcast spectrum (see 1805100053). The petition's signers include schools, rural operators, libraries, nonprofit organizations, anchor institutions and public interest groups from 48 states and the District of Columbia, the coalition said. “EBS is currently the only licensed spectrum available for educational institutions to serve their communities,” the group said. “The FCC is expected to reach a decision this summer about how to make this spectrum available. It has sought comment on whether to give educational and Tribal entities the first opportunity to obtain this spectrum, or whether to proceed immediately to a commercial auction and eliminate the requirement that licenses be held by an educational or nonprofit entity.”
Rural rate-of-return carriers have until June 17 to indicate whether they're OK with the revised alternative connect America cost model (A-CAM) support to fund voice- and broadband-capable networks in their service territories, the FCC Wireline Bureau said in a public notice Thursday. The FCC said those subsidy offers -- approved in December (see 1812120039) -- could fund deployments to 1.13 million homes and businesses over the next decade. It said in return for the revised A-CAM offers, the carriers would be required to deploy at least 25/3 Mbps connectivity on a defined schedule. It said even without accepting those revised A-CAM offers, legacy carriers will be required to deploy 25/3 Mbps to at least 600,000 locations. The bureau said the offer amounts have a funding cap per location of $200 except in tribal lands, where the cap is $213.12. It said carriers have a choice in determining deployment obligation: average cost of 25/3 service based on weighted average cost per loop or revised A-CAM calculation of the cost per location. The FCC said this week additional A-CAM support resulted in carriers committing to expanding their deployment plans to cover an additional 106,000 addresses (see 1904290189). NTCA is "evaluating the details of today’s announcements," said CEO Shirley Bloomfield Thursday. "We hope that the options and measures announced today will give many of our members even more opportunity to bring even better services to rural America."
Rural rate-of-return carriers have until June 17 to indicate whether they're OK with the revised alternative connect America cost model (A-CAM) support to fund voice- and broadband-capable networks in their service territories, the FCC Wireline Bureau said in a public notice Thursday. The FCC said those subsidy offers -- approved in December (see 1812120039) -- could fund deployments to 1.13 million homes and businesses over the next decade. It said in return for the revised A-CAM offers, the carriers would be required to deploy at least 25/3 Mbps connectivity on a defined schedule. It said even without accepting those revised A-CAM offers, legacy carriers will be required to deploy 25/3 Mbps to at least 600,000 locations. The bureau said the offer amounts have a funding cap per location of $200 except in tribal lands, where the cap is $213.12. It said carriers have a choice in determining deployment obligation: average cost of 25/3 service based on weighted average cost per loop or revised A-CAM calculation of the cost per location. The FCC said this week additional A-CAM support resulted in carriers committing to expanding their deployment plans to cover an additional 106,000 addresses (see 1904290189). NTCA is "evaluating the details of today’s announcements," said CEO Shirley Bloomfield Thursday. "We hope that the options and measures announced today will give many of our members even more opportunity to bring even better services to rural America."
Even revised broadband deployment numbers still show a narrowing digital divide, with notable broadband deployments particularly in rural areas, the FCC said Wednesday. Some skeptics and critics of the initial report (see 1903060034) seemed partly mollified about the new data, though not pleased with the pace of deployment. "The new data doesn't change the ... fundamental conclusion: we are closing the digital divide," Chairman Ajit Pai said.
Even revised broadband deployment numbers still show a narrowing digital divide, with notable broadband deployments particularly in rural areas, the FCC said Wednesday. Some skeptics and critics of the initial report (see 1903060034) seemed partly mollified about the new data, though not pleased with the pace of deployment. "The new data doesn't change the ... fundamental conclusion: we are closing the digital divide," Chairman Ajit Pai said.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit clarified it didn't reject all of an FCC tribal Lifeline order in February when it sent the 2017 limits on such government subsidies back to the agency (see 1902010051). Wednesday's one-page per curiam order (in Pacer) amended the earlier ruling to say that "because the Commission's adoption of the Tribal Facilities Requirement and Tribal Rural Limitation was arbitrary and capricious, the court grants the petitions and vacates the 2017 Lifeline Order as challenged in the petitions, and remands the matter to the Commission for a new notice-and-comment rulemaking proceeding." Industry lawyers and others watching the proceeding noted it's a somewhat procedural matter, rather than a new ruling on the merits. The FCC is "pleased that the DC Circuit granted our unopposed motion and amended its opinion to make clear the Court vacated only the challenged portion of one section of the five-section item,” emailed an agency spokesperson.