Gabriella Novello

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr raised concerns Thursday about coordination among federal agencies regarding NTIA’s $42.5 billion broadband, equity, access and deployment program and about overbuilding through the program. “We’re going to take areas that have service today and we’re going to put federal dollars on top of private dollars rather than actually connecting people,” Carr said during an American Enterprise Institute event.

Industry disagreed whether the FCC should consider an Alternative Connect America Cost Model (ACAM) Broadband Coalition proposal to extend the program through increased deployment obligations in exchange for additional funding (see 2205190023). Some sought to expand eligibility to carriers receiving other high-cost USF support, in comments posted Tuesday in docket 10-90. Others said the FCC should defer new high-cost support until programs funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are completed.

Every state and territory applied for NTIA’s digital equity planning grant program, the agency announced Wednesday (see 2206160072). NTIA received letters of intent from "hundreds of tribal nations" to participate in the digital equity program. All states and territories also submitted a letter of intent for the $42.45 billion broadband, equity, access and deployment program by the July 18 deadline, NTIA said. Iowa and Florida were the last two states to sign on, per a tweet from NTIA Tuesday.

Industry groups and carriers welcomed a draft FCC Further NPRM that would propose ways to clarify commission rules on access stimulation. Some sought minor edits to the draft (see 2206230069). The item would seek comments on revisions to a 2019 order on access arbitrage to clarify "perceived ambiguities ... that some providers are exploiting," according to the draft. It would target carriers that may be evading the rules by including IP enabled services (IPES) into the call flow.

Industry experts raised concerns about the amount of work states have to do to participate in NTIA’s broadband, equity, access and deployment program (see 2201190057), during a Fiber Broadband Association webinar Tuesday. “We are operating still … with a lot of uncertainty,” said Kelley Drye 's Tom Cohen, FBA counsel, since NTIA “tossed in a lot of issues” in its notice of funding opportunity (see 2205130054).

A draft FCC notice of inquiry aimed at improving access to communications services for survivors of domestic or sexual violence should include privacy concerns and encourage partnerships with entities at the local level, advocacy organizations told us (see 2206230069). Commissioners will consider the item Thursday, which would seek comment on obstacles survivors face to obtaining broadband services and ways to amend Lifeline or the affordable connectivity program to encourage enrollment among survivors.

Industry groups and consumer advocacy organizations continued to disagree on the amount of digital discrimination in the broadband marketplace, in reply comments posted Friday in docket 22-69 (see 2205170071). Central to the disagreement was whether the FCC has the authority to consider a disparate impact standard rather than discriminatory intent in final rules.

Industry groups disagreed whether the FCC should adopt a new cost allocation framework and rules for pole replacements, in comments posted Tuesday in docket 17-84. The proceeding stems from a 2020 NCTA petition asking the FCC to clarify its pole replacement rules. The FCC adopted the Further NPRM in March in lieu of acting on the petition, noting the group “revealed inconsistent practices by utilities" on cost responsibility for pole replacements (see 2203180074).

States, local communities and industry should begin having conversations now about the type of partnerships needed once NTIA’s broadband, equity, access and deployment program and middle-mile broadband infrastructure program funding become available, panelists said during a Schools, Health and Libraries Broadband Coalition webinar Friday. Panelists encouraged anchor institutions to start organizing and identifying their communities' needs as funding from both programs may not reach everyone.

A draft FCC notice of inquiry would seek comment on expanding access to the affordable connectivity program and Lifeline for survivors of domestic and sexual violence, if adopted during the commissioners’ July 14 meeting. It would seek comment on the agency’s authority to adjust both programs to better assist survivors and whether the FCC should adopt certain requirements set in the proposed Safe Connections Act.