Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Federal websites run by the FCC, FTC, Patent and Trademark Office and the White House performed well overall in meeting basic standards of accessibility, mobile friendliness, speed and security, reported the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. ITIF, which assessed 297 of the most popular government websites on those four criteria, said 92 percent weren't up to snuff and recommended the White House largely take the helm in helping fix them.

In early filings on a Mobilitie petition asking the agency to pre-empt state and local authority over rights of way (see 1703070013) the FCC is getting lots of pushback from local governments concerned about losing control over siting. FCC Commissioner Mike O’Rielly said Tuesday he’s hopeful the FCC will act soon to accelerate the siting process for wireless facilities, citing the Mobilitie petition (see 1703070018). Comments were due Wednesday on a December FCC Wireless Bureau notice in docket 16-421, after the FCC extended the filing deadline by a month.

Sorenson Communications said an FCC draft Further NPRM "missed an opportunity" to explore "less regulatory" proposals for new video relay service compensation rates, though it praised agency transparency in releasing text and its effort to provide "certainty and stability." The largest VRS provider urged the FCC to seek comment on a "market-based" auction proposal for setting price caps that the company outlined this week. GlobalVRS, a smaller provider, rejected Sorenson's plan. Commissioners tentatively plan to vote March 23 on a draft VRS order, FNPRM and notice of inquiry that prominently sought comment on the proposals of smaller providers to increase rates except for the highest traffic tier covering Sorenson, which would be cut further (see 1703020070 and 1703030053).

Wednesday’s Senate Commerce Committee hearing comes as a referendum on the new chairmanship of FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, who received his nomination from the White House Tuesday for another five-year term at the agency following his term’s July 1, 2016, expiration. Pai met with President Donald Trump Monday (see 1703060055), and all eyes are on the administration for any information about forthcoming FCC nominations for the two open commissioner spots, one typically for a Republican and one for a Democrat.

A group of 21 Senate Republicans will join Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., in his introduction Tuesday of his Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval to kill the FCC’s ISP privacy rules, said his aides, who had predicted the resolution may be coming this soon (see 1703060041). The text of the resolution -- which would kill the regulations and prevent the FCC from developing substantially similar ones -- is barely more than one page. The backers include GOP Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, along with the others expected, but also Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., and other senior Republicans such as Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. Co-sponsors include Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., Dean Heller, R-Nev., and Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Industry groups including the Chamber of Commerce, NCTA, USTelecom and CTA wrote Senate Commerce leaders backing the CRA. “If Congress employs the CRA to disapprove the rule, customers will still enjoy reasonable privacy protections under Section 222 of the Communications Act,” they said. The resolution “will reverse the FCC's broad regulatory overreach and restore certainty and consistency with privacy guidelines established by the Federal Trade Commission,” CTA President Gary Shapiro said in a statement. The heads of the 21st Century Privacy Coalition, which consists of communications companies, lauded the introduction. The FCC's "rules deviate substantially from the FTC's successful privacy model and are fatally flawed" and the "resolution will give the Administration the opportunity to hit the reset button and develop a holistic approach to privacy for the entire internet ecosystem that benefits consumers," said co-chairs Jon Leibowitz, a former FTC chairman, and Mary Bono, a former House GOP lawmaker. Capitol Hill Democrats and public interest groups called the CRA destructive (see 1702270035). House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is leading efforts in the lower chamber on the CRA resolution. “We continue to discuss the issue with our colleagues in the Senate and are exploring all options moving forward,” a GOP House aide said.

The FCC approved 2-1 a stay of data security parts of ISP privacy rules, which otherwise would have taken effect Thursday. Chairman Ajit Pai asked the commissioners to vote by the end of Thursday on the stay, saying otherwise staff would act (see 1702240055). Democrat Mignon Clyburn already indicated she opposed the stay. She issued a sharply worded dissent.

Communications sector-specific language in draft versions of President Donald Trump's upcoming cybersecurity executive order (EO) drew mixed reviews from industry lawyers and lobbyists. The White House has continued to revise the anticipated executive order in the weeks since officials first delayed Trump's planned late January signing of the order, several lobbyists said. Then, the order would have directed the Office of Management and Budget to assess all federal agencies' cybersecurity risks and required agencies to manage their risk using the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Cybersecurity Framework (see 1701310066).

With industry-backed wireless siting bills gaining steam in state legislatures, some local-government groups see momentum and seek to limit damage through negotiation. In an interview Tuesday, ex-NATOA President Ken Fellman urged communities to follow the example of Colorado local-government groups and hash out small-cells bills with industry rather than oppose state legislation outright. Meanwhile, industry applauded a Texas Public Utility Commission proposed decision finding that wireless infrastructure provider ExteNet need not pay access line fees to Houston.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai indicated he will act to guarantee parts of ISP privacy rules don’t take effect Thursday, over the potential protest of the agency's sole Democratic member and amid concerns from Democrats overseeing the agency. Pai and fellow Republican Mike O’Rielly were critics when the rules were approved under former Chairman Tom Wheeler in October, just before the presidential election (see 1610270036), and after the election, industry officials predicted Pai would scuttle the privacy order (see 1611090034).

A Vermont 911 case is raising legal and public policy questions about whether states can mandate backup-power requirements for wireless or interconnected VoIP carriers. Last week at the Public Service Board, some commented that federal statute bars states from making battery-backup mandates to either industry, and -- for wireline providers including VoIP -- that FCC existing backup power requirements make separate state rules unnecessary. A recent former California commissioner said in an interview it’s critical from a public policy standpoint for states and local governments to make their own decisions on communications network resiliency, including battery backup. A NARUC attorney disputed industry claims of federal pre-emption.