The House of Representatives passed a bill that would require CBP to develop a plan “to increase CBP’s non-intrusive-inspection scanning rates to 100% of commercial and passenger vehicles at all land ports of entry that includes incremental timeframes and estimated costs by port.” The bill, called the Securing America's Ports Act, passed on a voice vote Feb. 10. It does not have a Senate companion bill, and the Senate has been passing next to no legislation in this session, instead concentrating its energy on appointing judges.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., believes there’s a rapidly decreasing likelihood lawmakers will reach a deal on legislation allocating the proceeds of a coming FCC auction of spectrum on the 3.7-4.2 GHz C band before or after the commission's planned Feb. 28 vote on Chairman Ajit Pai’s proposal (see 2002060057). House Commerce Committee leaders don’t share Wicker’s pessimism. The House-side lawmakers plan further talks this week on a coming bill, which has become their main telecom policy priority (see 2002070044).
Local governments and the FCC are gearing up for oral argument Monday at the 9th U.S. Court of Appeals in Pasadena, California, on two commission orders the agency and industry say are needed to streamline 5G infrastructure deployment. Judges’ decision about whether the commission legally pre-empted local authority in the right of way could have broader impact for local authority in telecom, municipal attorneys and others told us.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai proposed accelerated relocation payments of up to $9.7 billion for C-band incumbents to clear the band quickly for an auction to start Dec. 8, in a speech (see 2002060031) Thursday at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. Those would be above compensation for relocation costs, estimated to be between $3 billion and $5 billion, he said. Pai has the three votes he needs for approval at the commissioners' Feb. 28 meeting (see 2002060048) with quick endorsements of Commissioners Mike O’Rielly and Brendan Carr.
Chairman Ajit Pai is likely to seek a vote on a proposal for a 10-year, $9 billion 5G Fund for Rural America at the March FCC meeting, industry officials said. The agency opened docket 20-32 on the fund Monday. A vote is possible at the Feb. 28 meeting, but industry officials said the March 31 meeting is more likely. Pai is expected to release a blog Thursday on the February meeting.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's $9.7 billion C-band clearing plan has support from fellow Republican commissioners. That means the order has the votes needed to be approved at or before the Feb. 28 commissioners' meeting.
The FCC’s priority application window for tribes to apply for free licenses in the 2.5 GHz band opened Monday. It closes Aug. 3. Tribal interests raised concerns about rules for the band (see 2001230037), which was the subject of a workshop last month at the FCC (see 2001140059). “My travels throughout Indian Country have shown me that bringing high-speed connectivity to rural Tribal lands can be a game-changer,” Chairman Ajit Pai said Monday.
As the coronavirus outbreak disrupts supply chains, U.S. agricultural exporters are unsure when normal cargo processing will resume and are concerned about penalties from ocean freight carriers, according to a Feb. 3 open letter to ocean carriers by Agriculture Transportation Coalition Executive Director Peter Friedmann.
The Patent and Trademark Office granted CTA its second deadline extension to file a statement of use (SOU) in its June 2018 application to trademark a certification logo for over-the-counter hearing aids (see 1806250018), agency records show. CTA created the logo to identify reputable OTC hearing aids for consumers with mild or moderate hearing loss that meet minimum performance specs in the ANSI/CTA-2051 standard approved in January 2017. PTO requires SOUs to prevent applicants from hoarding trademarks with no intention of using them in normal commerce. CTA is hamstrung from filing the SOU because it needs to await the FDA’s expected release by late summer of proposed rules establishing the OTC hearing-aid category under legislation President Donald Trump signed into law in August 2017 (see 2001170050). A trademark applicant is entitled to up to five SOU deadline extensions of six months each, but must file the SOU within three years after receiving PTO's notice of allowance (NOA) that clears the application for final approval. PTO issued CTA its hearing-aid NOA a year ago Wednesday.
The Patent and Trademark Office granted CTA its second deadline extension to file a statement of use (SOU) in its June 2018 application to trademark a certification logo for over-the-counter hearing aids (see 1806250018), agency records show. CTA created the logo to identify reputable OTC hearing aids for consumers with mild or moderate hearing loss that meet minimum performance specs in the ANSI/CTA-2051 standard approved in January 2017. PTO requires SOUs to prevent applicants from hoarding trademarks with no intention of using them in normal commerce. CTA is hamstrung from filing the SOU because it needs to await the FDA’s expected release by late summer of proposed rules establishing the OTC hearing-aid category under legislation President Donald Trump signed into law in August 2017 (see 2001170050). A trademark applicant is entitled to up to five SOU deadline extensions of six months each, but must file the SOU within three years after receiving PTO's notice of allowance (NOA) that clears the application for final approval. PTO issued CTA its hearing-aid NOA a year ago Wednesday.