Puerto Rico has much to share about resiliency, FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said in a recent interview after he returned from a field hearing (see 2002260041). "There has not been a network or a people that has been as tested," he said of the hits they took from Hurricane Maria in 2017 and from earthquakes more recently.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
What is the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)?
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is the U.S. federal government’s regulatory agency for the majority of telecommunications activity within the country. The FCC oversees radio, television, telephone, satellite, and cable communications, and its primary statutory goal is to expand U.S. citizens’ access to telecommunications services.
The Commission is funded by industry regulatory fees, and is organized into 7 bureaus:
- Consumer & Governmental Affairs
- Enforcement
- Media
- Space
- Wireless Telecommunications
- Wireline Competition
- Public Safety and Homeland Security
As an agency, the FCC receives its high-level directives from Congressional legislation and is empowered by that legislation to establish legal rules the industry must follow.
Latest News from the FCC
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai got pledges from top ISPs, including all major carriers and cable operators plus telcos, to keep everyone online for the next 60 days amid the coronavirus. Pai spoke with the companies Thursday, he said Friday; see our report here. Companies and trade associations endorsed the pledge. Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks said that's a good start, but the agency needs to do more.
As fears about the spreading coronavirus increase, stakeholders are upping requests (see 2003060036) for additional government actions on telehealth and remote patient monitoring. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) said Thursday Michigan plans to give Medicaid patients easier access to telehealth services during the pandemic. That will expand "opportunities for safe, quality care through telemedicine," she said.
House Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee Chairman Mike Quigley, D-Ill., told us he’s eyeing attaching a rider to the subcommittee’s FY 2021 appropriations bill aimed at allocating proceeds from the FCC’s coming auction of spectrum on the 3.7-4.2 GHz C band. Quigley raised concerns about the FCC’s current C-band auction plan during a Wednesday House Appropriations Financial Services hearing on the commission’s FY 2021 budget request. The C-band plan drew criticism from Senate Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee Chairman John Kennedy, R-La., during that subpanel’s Tuesday FCC budget hearing (see 2003100022).
The House Communications Subcommittee advanced the Clearing Broad Airwaves for New Deployment (C-Band) Act (HR-4855) and 10 other measures Tuesday on voice votes, as expected (see 2003090070). The timeline for the House Commerce Committee to mark up any of those measures remains uncertain, because of negotiations aimed at reaching a bipartisan deal on HR-4855 and other measures that have gotten GOP pushback and broader questions about Congress’ schedule given the spread of coronavirus.
FCC staffers expect to handle more meetings over the phone and fewer in person over the next weeks due to the coronavirus. The FCC hasn't made a decision yet, but industry and agency officials said in interviews this week the March 31 commissioners’ meeting may not be in-person. Chairman Ajit Pai spoke to the Free State Foundation conference Tuesday via video and Commissioner Brendan Carr canceled an appearance. Commissioner Mike O’Rielly spoke. See that news: 2003100047 and 2003100061.
The coronavirus is affecting more FCC-related events, with FCBA postponing all of its March gatherings (see 2003090055). An aide to a commissioner may quarantine herself due to possible exposure. For now, NAB's annual show in Las Vegas remains on, it said Monday (see 2003090030).
With public and highway safety groups staking out a hard line, it’s unclear when the FCC will act on new rules for the 5.9 GHz band, industry and commission officials said. Commissioners agreed 5-0 in December to examine revised rules for the band, reallocating 45 MHz for Wi-Fi, with 20 MHz reserved for cellular vehicle to everything and possibly 10 MHz for dedicated short-range communications (see 1912180019). Some observers said with the FCC poised to open the 6 GHz band for Wi-Fi and unlicensed, Chairman Ajit Pai may be less inclined to continue the fight over 5.9 GHz while taking some actions to allow C-V2X. Comments were due at 11:59 p.m. Monday in docket 19-138.
Coronavirus concerns are forcing the cancellation of more industry summits and prompting the FCC to ban nonessential travel and participation in large gatherings (see 2003040061). America's Communications Association Thursday also announced the cancellation of its March summit.
Commissioners Mike O’Rielly, Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks Friday criticized an FCC NPRM, approved 3-2, proposing sharing communications outage information with other federal and state agencies. The two Democrats dissented.