FCC OKs Disaster Resiliency NPRM With Few Tweaks

FCC commissioners approved an NPRM on making networks more resilient during disasters 4-0 Thursday, as expected (see 2109280051). Commissioners said more mandates could come as a result of the investigation. Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said the FCC plans a virtual field hearing as part of the Oct. 26 meeting on Hurricane Ida. Rosenworcel and Commissioner Brendan Carr traveled to Louisiana this week to tour areas hit by the latest storm. Commissioners also unanimously adopted an order on foreign ownership and an NPRM about closing two methods for scammers taking control of victims' mobile phones, SIM swapping and port-out fraud. Such actions were as expected (see 2109280009).

Carr told reporters the NPRM could lead to more regulation, but he hasn’t heard “a ton of pushback” from industry. “The starting point for an NPRM, in my view, is anybody gets to ask any question that they want,” he said: “Let’s get it out and if it’s a bad idea, then people have a chance to shoot at it and say, ‘You ask about this, but let me tell you the complicated ways, the nuanced ways, that that sounds like a good idea, but it’s a bad one.’” Carr said he’s open-minded on the need for some additional regulation to enforce resiliency.

“We have to understand where communications fell short, where recovery took too long, and what changes can be made to make our networks more resilient before the next unthinkable event occurs,” Rosenworcel said. One topic that kept coming up during the visit to Louisiana was a desire for “cooperative roaming to work faster, work better and help keep more people connected in disaster,” she said.

The NPRM asks about improvements to the voluntary wireless network resiliency cooperative framework, launched in 2016, including whether to codify “some or all of the Framework.” It asks how to “enhance the information available” to the commission through the network outage and disaster information reporting systems “to improve situational awareness” and would seek ways to make telecom facilities more resilient during power outages (see 2109090068).

The final order is mostly the same as the draft except for the addition of a few questions on roaming and resiliency for covered 911 operators, Public Safety Bureau Chief Lisa Fowlkes told reporters.

“From the feedback I heard in Louisiana this week, I am particularly interested in ideas that could ensure roaming during disasters proceeds more smoothly and seamlessly, in ways we can get state officials more timely information about outages at 911 call centers, and in efforts to deepen the coordination between power restoration crews and their counterparts in telecom,” Carr said during Thursday's meeting. The FCC added questions on the “situational awareness of 911 and other emergency services, including through stronger industry coordination” and is seeking comment on the resiliency of covered 911 providers, he said.

A power company reported losing about 30,000 poles during Ida, “more than the number of poles lost in Hurricanes Katrina, Ike, Delta and Zeta combined,” Carr said. “We can and must do much better,” he said. Compared with Katrina, when 38 911 call centers lost service, initial reports are only four did during Ida, he said.

The NPRM examines whether to make carrier participation in the disaster information recovery system mandatory, “something I have long called on the commission to actively consider,” said Commissioner Geoffrey Starks. The NPRM “brings much-needed attention to issues around backup power,” he said. During last year’s earthquakes in Puerto Rico and Ida, “the overwhelming majority of cellsite outages resulted from power loss,” he said. Public Knowledge Senior Policy Counsel Jenna Leventoff said the FCC was right to start the inquiry: “Unfortunately, during the times when they are needed most, our nation’s networks are unreliable.”

“As Americans face an increasing number of historic storms, wireless operators will continue to work tirelessly to keep millions connected and when necessary, quickly restore service when still facing challenges with commercial power and other conditions,” said a CTIA statement: “Our wireless networks are more reliable today because of our successful collaborative approach to service restoration, cooperative roaming, committed preparations and extensive investments in emergency response.”

Robocalls

Two Further NPRMs aimed at curbing illegal robocalls were unanimously approved Thursday. The first proposes that voice service providers be given access to phone numbers used to make autodialed calls and be required to block calls to public safety access points on the public safety answering point do not call registry from those numbers (see 2109230052). “We believe this is a promising approach, but we want to get this right,” Rosenworcel said.

The FNPRM will seek comment on the severity of robocalls since the registry's creation in 2012, whether other ways to curb robocalls to PSAPs are available, and the security risks associated with granting autodialers access to PSAP numbers on the registry. The only substantive change made from the final draft was adding a question on whether the reassigned numbers database can be used in some fashion, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Chief Patrick Webre told reporters Thursday.

The second item asks about tightening rules for gateway providers to prevent illegal robocalls that originate abroad (see 2109240060). The FNPRM proposes that gateway providers be required to implement Stir/Shaken caller ID authentication, file in the robocall mitigation database, and respond to trace-back requests within 24 hours.

The decision to pause the foreign provider prohibition was based on a “commitment to making sure there is no disruption in legitimate traffic and a desire to conduct further analysis around the prohibition,” Wireline Bureau Chief Kris Monteith told reporters. “Today’s robocall actions are another example of chairwoman Rosenworcel’s commitment to tackling illegal robocalls from all angles,” said USTelecom Vice President-Policy and Advocacy Josh Bercu. AT&T backs these steps, said Executive Vice President-Federal Regulatory Relations Joan Marsh.

Other Items

Citing Princeton University research indicating 80% of SIM-swapping attempts in the U.S. are successful, Rosenworcel said the FCC “can help fix” burgeoning SIM-swap and port-out fraud issues by requiring carriers to securely authenticate a customer before transferring a phone number to a new device or carrier, and having carriers immediately notify customers when a SIM change or number porting request has been made. The agency has rules aimed at protecting customer proprietary network information, but they “need an update to address new types of fraud like SIM swapping,” she said.

Starks said he got questions added to the NPRM on possible “future proofing” FCC guidelines for authenticating user identities by incorporating the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s digital identity guidelines and whether the FCC should audit compliance with any carrier obligations it adopts. “There’s good reason to think consumer complaints alone may not reliably surface problems like improper authentication procedures,” he said. The text of the approved NPRM wasn't immediately released.

An order on foreign ownership review questions to be used by the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the U.S. Telecom Services Sector was approved 4-0, as expected (see 2109200059). This creates a list of questions for companies seeking FCC approval for transactions with licensees that would involve their being more than 5% foreign-owned. The questions are intended to give the committee a basis for deciding whether a prospective owner represents a security concern for the U.S. The committee’s predecessor Team Telecom -- a joint effort by DOD, DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security -- requested similar information from companies, but the order creates specific questions that companies can anticipate. The prior process was more ad hoc. “We are posting them on our website so parties before the agency can prepare in advance,” said Rosenworcel. “This does not mean the Committee’s assessment is any less meticulous or exhaustive.”

The order's final version was substantively unchanged from the draft version, International Bureau attorney adviser Jocelyn Jezierny told reporters. That means USTelecom’s requests for more narrowly focused questions weren’t heeded. The trade group didn’t comment. The committee won’t begin using the questions for foreign ownership review until OMB approves the order and IB issues a public notice, Jezierny said.

FCC Meeting Notebook

Commissioners approved an NPRM amending the definition of eligible libraries for the E-rate program to ensure tribal libraries are eligible to receive support and seeking comments on how to increase participation (see 2109210061). Some tribal libraries were ineligible for the program “because of a quirk in our rules,” Rosenworcel said. The final version includes several questions sought by Carr on how to promote awareness, increase training materials, and whether the FCC should be setting metrics to measure progress. Public Knowledge welcomed the action, said Director-Government Affairs Greg Guice.

The FCC ahead of the meeting OK’d a notice of inquiry 4-0 seeking comment on current and future spectrum needs “to enable better connectivity.” Before the meeting, commissioners cleared a public notice on automated frequency control in 6 GHz (see 2109290040). The 6 GHz notice continues to get support. Authorizing AFC systems “is the first step to actually realizing the significant benefits of allowing unlicensed access to the whole 6 GHz band,” said Kathleen Burke, Public Knowledge policy counsel. Starting the AFC operator authorization process “reflects the importance of enabling 6 GHz standard power Wi-Fi,” emailed Chris Szymanski, Broadcom director-product marketing/technology strategy: “Standard power Wi-Fi 7 devices that can operate both indoors and outdoors will elevate the user experience with ultra-reliable, low latency and high throughput connectivity.” The NOI “further focuses the important conversation about the inputs needed to support and enhance consumer access to this growing area of next-generation connectivity,” NCTA said: “We appreciate the Commission’s continued recognition of the importance of unlicensed spectrum for next-generation networking.”

“I’m not really open to it,” Carr told reporters when asked whether the FCC should consider requiring broadband providers to contribute to USF. Carr said including digital advertising revenue to the contribution base instead would keep the fee from being passed on to consumers. “We should be seeking comment on the issue,” he said, adding he would support opening a preceding “now.”

Carr declined to make a prediction on the 3.45 GHz auction, since it’s starting in a few days. “I don’t want to offer a view that’s positive, negative or even in the middle,” he said. The FCC continues to make progress on spectrum but faces pushback from federal agencies that want to “either delay” or “put a thumb on the scale” against an eventual auction of the 3.1-3.45 GHz band, he said. The FCC “has a great track record of looking out … for the broad public interest when it comes to spectrum,” he said: “We have to balance from our perch a lot of competing considerations.” Then-Chairman Ajit Pai had to stand up to other agencies, Carr said. “Spectrum policy these days requires FCC officials that accumulate political capital and are willing to spend it, and that’s how we’ve gotten good results.”

“We’re reviewing it right now,” Rosenworcel told reporters when asked about ACA Connects’ recent ex parte that claimed some emergency broadband benefit providers were potentially abusing the program. Carr told reporters he hadn't seen the letter.