The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted an administrative stay late Tuesday afternoon that temporarily blocked a White House OMB memo, which called for a freeze on most federal grants and loans, from going into effect. The Trump administration memo already faced an array of legal challenges, including a planned lawsuit from a coalition of Democratic attorneys general from New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island. Broadband officials and industry advocates raised questions about the memo's constitutionality and the future of certain FCC programs, such as Lifeline. Others warned the freeze could have serious implications for NTIA's BEAD program.
USTelecom urged legislative action to shore up lawmakers’ mandate for the USF amid the “existential threat” posed by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ 2024 en banc decision that the program’s contribution factor is unconstitutional (see 2407240043). The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing the 5th Circuit’s ruling (see 2501170046). In an open letter Friday, USTelecom said Congress should “reaffirm” its bipartisan will to maintain USF “and reform how the program is funded.” It added, “Reform must begin by requiring Big Tech companies that benefit massively from universal connectivity to join in contributing to this vital national commitment.” Some lawmakers and other observers believe Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, may move Congress’ USF revamp toward making the program subject to the federal appropriations process (see 2411270060). In addition, USTelecom said NTIA, under President Donald Trump, “should roll back rate regulation and other requirements” for the $42.5 billion BEAD program “that Congress never asked for, while retaining a significant role for fiber, the high-speed broadband gold standard.” Removing BEAD requirements Congress didn’t mandate in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act “would shed the unwanted baggage and accelerate what matters most -- getting the work of connecting everyone done,” USTelecom said. “Restoring a tight focus on the mission -- broadband deployment – can dramatically accelerate efforts to fill gaps in high-speed service, helping unlock economic opportunities and access to innovation throughout” the country. USTelecom also urged lawmakers to “move again” on the American Broadband Deployment Act permitting package that the House Commerce Committee approved in 2023 (see 2305240069). The measure, which groups together more than 20 GOP-led connectivity permitting bills, drew unanimous opposition from House Commerce Democrats, and local government groups continued lobbying against it last year (see 2409180052). “Congress should green light speeding up approvals for more broadband projects on federal lands,” USTelecom said: “With a third of our nation’s land under federal control, federal permitting reform would provide an immediate adrenaline shot to the capacity, sophistication, reach and security of our nation’s information infrastructure.”
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr will undoubtedly continue focusing on his core issues of deregulation, competition, infrastructure development and national security, Venable lawyers Craig Gilley and Liz Clark Rinehart wrote Thursday. How quickly he can steer the agency in that direction will depend on Congress' speed in confirming Olivia Trusty as the third Republican commissioner, giving him the majority he needs, they added. A Carr administration means the agency will change course on communications policy issues including net neutrality, broadband regulation, digital equity, spectrum, rationalizing federal infrastructure spending and BEAD, and content moderation online, they said. Carr will likely take a narrower view of the scope of FCC authority and use competition, rather than regulation, to protect consumers. However, he will be a more aggressive regulator on national security matters. GOP control of Capitol Hill and the White House makes net neutrality "a non-issue over the next four years," though whether the FCC can explicitly preempt state net neutrality regulations remains an open question, the lawyers said. If the FCC's digital discrimination rules survive the current challenge before the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Carr's FCC would likely revisit and repeal them, they said. The Republican-controlled Congress isn't likely to restore Affordable Connectivity Program funding, "given where Congressional Republicans are on budget issues." They said they expect Carr's FCC to focus on streamlining rules for fiber and infrastructure deployment, such as limiting fees that states and local governments can charge for permit application reviews.
NTIA must take a tech-neutral approach in the BEAD program and "reverse policy choices that skew market-driven outcomes for technology selection," Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry (R) told commerce secretary nominee Howard Lutnick. Louisiana was the first state to begin its BEAD process and receive final NTIA approval for its plan (see 2501140055). Landry wrote Lutnick a letter Wednesday encouraging that the agency provide more flexibility and streamline other approval processes.
The following are short summaries of recent CBP NY rulings issued by the agency's National Commodity Specialist Division in New York:
BEAD-related construction in Louisiana, Delaware and Nevada should start as soon as Q2, according to state officials, some BEAD subgrantee award winners and BEAD experts. The three states last week received NTIA approval of their final proposals, the first to do so. Unclear is whether other states will get started this year due to questions surrounding the change in administration possibly causing delays, we're told.
The following are short summaries of recent CBP NY rulings issued by the agency's National Commodity Specialist Division in New York:
NTIA released its final guidance Thursday on the use of BEAD funding to deploy alternative broadband technologies. The agency sought comment in August, with some seeking flexibility in the program's rules to support deployment of low earth orbit (LEO) satellites and unlicensed fixed wireless technology (see 2409110066). LEO providers will be reimbursed based on "either subscriber milestones or the number of locations in a project area" and program rules were amended to "better facilitate" provider participation, said a news release.
California's top assemblymember on communications is concerned about the state's process for distributing broadband cash and what President-elect Donald Trump might do to its $1.86 billion federal BEAD allocation. In an exclusive Communications Daily Q&A ahead of Monday's opening of the new legislative session, Assembly Communications and Conveyance Committee Chair Tasha Boerner (D) said she expects she will resurrect her proposal that creates a single state broadband office. And the committee will try again on a digital discrimination bill that failed to pass in the last session. Our conversation below with Boerner was lightly edited for length and clarity.
Participation in BEAD bidding could vary widely among states, officials at broadband trade groups, state telecommunications organizations and other entities tell us. For example, some states, including Pennsylvania, could face low participation rates owing to onerous bidder requirements. In other instances, local rules facilitate BEAD participation.