Smith Bagley asked the FCC for a three-month extension of the waivers of its Lifeline recertification and reverification for customers in tribal areas. The waivers otherwise expire Jan. 31, said a Tuesday filing in docket 11-42. "Historic inequalities caused Tribal communities to shudder more than the rest of the country during COVID-19 pandemic, and conditions in the communities have yet to recover as new public health challenges arise," the carrier said: "The day-to-day difficulties associated with contacting and obtaining responsive documents from remote Tribal customers have not improved."
Completing NTIA’s work on more than $48 billion in connectivity spending through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will take years and require “a huge amount of work,” but it’s not the agency’s only focus, NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson told CES Saturday. Other speakers said wireless projects must be able to fully compete with fiber for the program to be most successful.
The FCC Wireline Bureau clarified that participation in the affordable connectivity program's Your Home, Your Internet pilot program by nongovernmental entities "must be in partnership with a federal government entity or a state, local, or tribal housing entity" in response to an inquiry from the Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future. Organizations with existing partnerships with government agencies are eligible to participate, the bureau said in a letter posted Friday in docket 21-450, although the government entity must certify and submit the applications. The bureau also declined to extend the application deadline, citing the FCC's "goal of initiating our pilot programs and grant-funded outreach efforts as soon as possible."
The National Tribal Telecommunications Association backed a petition for rulemaking filed by the Alaska Remote Carrier Coalition that would address the middle-mile transport expenses in "ultra-high" cost areas of Alaska, in comments posted Friday in docket RM-11938. The proposed Alaska middle-mile expense support plan would assist carriers participating in the Alaska Plan, Alternative Connect America Model and the Connect America Fund Phase II programs. NTTA asked the FCC to consider expanding eligibility beyond those covered in the petition, noting that middle-mile costs aren't supported "in any way by federal or state universal service programs" for many providers and are "essentially treated as 'non regulated' costs to be borne by the unregulated internet service provider."
The FCC Wireless Bureau approved a request by Pine Cellular for a one-year extension to meet the tribal lands bidding credit (TLBC) construction requirement to deploy service to Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma communities in eastern Oklahoma using one of its 600 MHz licenses bought in the TV incentive auction. Pine Cellular got a bidding credit of $2 million and was initially required to construct and operate a system capable of serving 75% of the Choctaw Nation communities within the relevant service area by Jan. 9, 2021. The Wednesday order extends the deadline until Jan. 9, 2024. “We find that strict application of the TLBC construction requirement, which would result in either Pine Cellular’s repayment of its TLBC or automatic termination of its license, is not warranted,” the bureau said: “Neither the repayment of the TLBC nor the automatic termination of the license would facilitate the provision of wireless broadband service to the Choctaw Nation communities, and thus would not serve the public interest or the underlying purpose of the TLBC rule.”
NTIA awarded more than $36 million in additional tribal broadband connectivity program support Monday to two tribal entities, said a news release. The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe of Minnesota received about $18.8 million to connect 4,399 unserved Native American households and the Department of Hawaiian Homelands received about $17.3 million for broadband use and adoption planning, engineering, feasibility and sustainability studies.
NTIA awarded more than $40.3 million in additional tribal broadband connectivity program support Wednesday to nine tribal entities. The Ak-Chin Indian Community in Arizona, Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians in California, Fort Independence Indian Reservation in California, Indian Township Tribal Government in Maine, Pueblo of Picuris in New Mexico, Santa Clara Pueblo of New Mexico, Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, Apache Tribe of Oklahoma, and Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs in Oregon received funding for broadband deployment and digital skills training, said a news release.
Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Communications Subcommittee ranking member John Thune, R-S.D., criticized Commerce Department Inspector General Peggy Gustafson for what they say is a failure to adequately do oversight of NTIA's tribal broadband connectivity program. Congress mandated when it authorized the program via the FY 2021 appropriations and COVID-19 aid law (see 2012220061) that the Commerce IG "review TBCP grants awarded by NTIA and make recommendations to address any waste, fraud or abuse with respect to these grants," with the first two reports due May 16 and Nov. 16 this year, Wicker and Thune said in a letter to Gustafson. The IG office's failure to meet those deadlines "is deeply concerning for two reasons: 1) NTIA has a long and well-documented history of misusing federal dollars when attempting to expand broadband access; and 2) your office has had a significant and ongoing problematic history." Congress has also "recently heard testimony of funds being used to overbuild existing broadband networks which makes it even more alarming your office would disregard its oversight responsibilities," the GOP leaders said. They want Gustafson to "provide a specific timeline" by Dec. 16 for providing the reports to Congress. Commerce didn't comment. Thune earlier this week began a bid for stronger oversight of all federal broadband programs funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and other recent measures (see 2212060067).
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel visited Isleta and Laguna pueblos in New Mexico Tuesday to discuss tribal library broadband connectivity with tribal leaders and library representatives. The visit "aims to amplify agency efforts to ensure tribal library institutions have equitable access to E-rate," said a news release. The FCC's changes to ensure tribal libraries' access to the program and tribal libraries pilot program "will provide one-on-one help to Tribal libraries throughout the sign-up and benefit process and help make participating in E-rate easier," Rosenworcel said (see 2210200046).
NTIA awarded more than $73 million in tribal broadband connectivity program grants to nine tribal entities Wednesday. The new funding will connect more than 3,000 unserved households, businesses and anchor institutions, said a news release. "The Biden administration is committed to fostering meaningful partnerships with tribal nations," said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo: "These grants ... highlight the Biden administration’s unprecedented commitment to closing the digital divide in Native communities."