Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Two federal judges focused on whether a state regulatory group had legal standing to challenge an FCC order that allowed interconnected VoIP providers to acquire phone numbers directly from numbering authorities, rather than through telecom carriers. In oral argument at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Wednesday, Chief Judge Merrick Garland and Judge Judith Rogers asked what harms NARUC's members suffered under the order, which didn't classify VoIP as a Title II telecom service under the Communications Act. NARUC General Counsel Brad Ramsay said state commissions lost VoIP certification authority and oversight over numbering issues, but FCC counsel Matthew Dunne said the order preserved most state numbering rights.

Don't expect NTIA reauthorization to be a vehicle for other policy proposals such as spectrum allocation legislation and vehicle-to-infrastructure grants, House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., told reporters Wednesday, rejecting inclusion of measures that subcommittee Democrats raised last week (see 1702020065). House Commerce Republicans continued to lay out an agenda for 2017 during a meeting with reporters Wednesday, focused heavily on NTIA and FCC reauthorizations, starting with NTIA and then moving to FCC action.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau is no longer allowed to settle enforcement actions begun by the full commission without a vote of all members, Chairman Ajit Pai said in a statement Wednesday on his latest change to processes. Pai has announced a process modification each day this week (see 1702070072 and 1702060062). Meanwhile, the other Republican commissioner asked the agency to be more consistent with deadlines, holding all to them after a general amnesty period except for when waivers are granted. And AT&T slammed past FCC enforcement measures.

Federal judges questioned the sustainability of FCC inmate calling service regulations contained in a 2015 order that limited ICS rates and charges, major parts of which the new Republican-run commission is no longer defending. Citing the agency's shift, Judge Laurence Silberman seemed skeptical about the legal justification for much of the order, and Judge Harry Edwards also raised some doubts, while Judge Cornelia Pillard hypothesized the panel could still uphold the order. The three judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit pressed litigants to clarify what they wanted their panel to do about the case, Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461, as they struggled to sort out various complexities in oral argument Monday that ran 90 minutes, after being scheduled for 40 minutes.

FCC reversal of several cybersecurity-related proceedings and proposals further feeds expectations of an agencywide shift on cybersecurity policy under new Chairman Ajit Pai, industry executives and lawyers said in interviews. The Public Safety Bureau rescinded two cybersecurity items Friday amid a spate of Pai-directed actions (see 1702060062) -- a white paper on communications sector cybersecurity regulation issued two days before now-former Chairman Tom Wheeler's resignation and a notice of inquiry on cybersecurity for 5G devices. The FCC also removed from circulation a controversial cybersecurity policy statement adopting the Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council’s (CSRIC) 2015 report on recommendations for communications sector cybersecurity risk management (see 1702030070).

FCC bureaus Friday afternoon undid numerous orders and other items (see 1702030058) enacted under former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, reversing actions on zero rating, media ownership, video streaming and other matters. Commissioner Mignon Clyburn criticized it as “Take out the trash day” and a “Friday news dump.” The reversed items are all “last minute actions” that weren't supported by a majority of commissioners when they were taken and that “ran contrary to the wishes expressed by the leadership of our congressional oversight committees,” said Chairman Ajit Pai in a statement Friday. "In some cases, Commissioners were given no advance notice of these midnight regulations." The actions also were a subject of our earlier story (see 1701240020).

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has gotten off to an active start in his first two weeks in the job. Several former FCC officials said early on, in contrast to former Chairman Tom Wheeler, Pai could have a tough time figuring out what to do once designated to lead the regulator, especially given the Republican emphasis on less rather than more regulation and the strong possibility Congress, not the FCC, will address ISP privacy and net neutrality rules. But Pai is already moving forward with a busy agenda, teeing up six items for the Feb. 23 commissioners meeting. Much of his early emphasis has been on closing the digital divide. But controversy arose Friday (see 1702030070).

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., introduced S-277 Thursday to “establish a Rural Telecommunications and Broadband Advisory Committee” within the FCC. It has no co-sponsors and was referred to the Commerce Committee, where Manchin was a member last Congress. “The Rural Telecommunications and Broadband Service Act would bring these voices to the table to ensure that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Congress live up to the promise of universal service and help define what that means in today’s 21st century economy,” Manchin said in a statement Friday. “Running a business should not force you to choose between your hometown and a fast and reliable broadband connection.” His news release cited his efforts to press the FCC on Mobility Fund Phase II (see 1702020025).

Wi-Fi advocates told the FCC it shouldn’t make changes to its rules for high-frequency spectrum that would be detrimental to unlicensed use of the bands. Microsoft, Public Knowledge and the Open Technology Institute and the Wi-Fi Alliance were among those weighing in. In December, wireless carriers sought changes (see 1612150067). Oppositions to the recon petitions were due at the FCC Tuesday in docket 14-177. Wireless industry commenters, meanwhile, opposed satellite industry petitions asking for the FCC to give fixed satellite service (FSS) downlink spectrum in the 42 GHz band and for less stringent rules on locating earth stations (see 1612160019).

FCC ISP privacy rules were a frequent topic during the Senate Commerce Committee’s hearing Wednesday on regulatory burdens. House Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., told reporters Tuesday that “I think you’ll see both bodies put legislation in” for a Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval against the rules, unsure of which one "goes first” (see 1701310071). “Anything CRA-wise is going to originate” in the House, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., told us Wednesday.