The FCC offered demonstrations of new and existing features of its mapping broadband health in America platform, in a letter Thursday from Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel to Senate Commerce Committee Chair Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. The agency will release the updates next month, allowing users to "delve deeper into the intersection of broadband connectivity and health" throughout the country, Rosenworcel said. Commissioners heard details about the update's inclusion of maternal health data from the Connect2Health Task Force during their open meeting Thursday (see 2410170026). The platform updates "represent a significant step forward in our work to understand the intersection of broadband connectivity and maternal health," Rosenworcel said.
High-power, two-way fixed operations in the 12.2-12.7 GHz band would cause harmful interference to DirecTV receivers 100 to 1 million times the limits in place to protect direct broadcast satellite (DBS) customers, according to DirecTV. In docket 20-443, it submitted an engineering study by consultancy Savid to counter Dish Network's submitted study by consultancy RKF that backs DBS and fixed wireless coexistence in the band (see 2311160032). The Savid study shows interference extending well beyond the intended coverage area of the base stations, contrary to RKF's "misleading depictions," and allegations of "wreak[ing] havoc" on DBS subscribers, DirecTV said in the filing posted Friday. Separately in docket 22-352, DirecTV recapped calls with aides to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and Commissioners Anna Gomez, Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington. It discussed concerns about opening the adjacent 12.7-13.25 GHz band to terrestrial wireless and the likelihood of harmful interference to DBS operations.
USDA Rural Development awarded nearly $173 million across 10 states in the fifth round of the ReConnect program Thursday. Companies in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota and Virginia were awarded funding. NTCA members received more than $150 million in the latest distribution, the organization said.
A coalition of 14 states challenging an FCC order on incarcerated people's communication services asked the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a filing Monday not to transfer the case to the 1st Circuit (docket 24-2983). The states sought reconsideration of the order's per-minute rate caps for intrastate services (see 2410020039). They argued that the order at issue, which was published in the Federal Register Sept. 20, wasn't the same as the order published Aug. 26, which addressed petitions from several groups. If the court determines the orders are the same, the states asked that the transfer be stayed until the 1st Circuit rules on Securus' motion to transfer its challenge to the 5th Circuit.
Viasat demonstrated direct-to-device connectivity in India, it said Tuesday. In partnership with Indian telecommunications provider BSNL, Viasat showed satellite-delivered two-way messaging services at India Mobile Congress using a commercial Android smartphone.
The Alaska Telecom Association asked the FCC to include certain language in its pending rulemaking on next steps for the Alaska Plan's Alaska Connect Fund (see 2409130026). In a letter posted Tuesday in docket 23-328, ATA urged the FCC to account for the "unique circumstances facing each provider in the state," including geographic challenges and the availability of infrastructure. The group encouraged the FCC to "carefully determine the milestone dates for key assessments and measurements" for participating providers. "Any milestones set before 2031 risk ignoring that many [broadband, equity, access, and deployment] projects will require three or four years of permitting," the group said. The Alaska Remote Carrier Coalition raised similar concerns in a separate letter.
FCC efforts to have 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline calls georouted to the crisis call center closest to the caller's location should be replicated for calls to the national toll-free poison control number, America’s Poison Centers (APC) said. In a docket 18-336 posting Friday, APC said routing calls to a poison control center based on area code, not physical location of the caller, can have "adverse and potentially life-threatening consequences." Poison control center specialists are experts in the poisonous plants and animals of their region and can provide tailored support, said the association, which represents 54 accredited poison control centers in the U.S. FCC commissioners will vote at their open meeting Thursday on a proposed 988 georouting requirement (see 2409250041).
A six-year extension of the freeze of the FCC's federal-state jurisdictional separations of telecom costs and revenue is "appropriate," said four state members of the Federal-State Joint Board on Separations in a letter filed Friday in docket 80-246. The commission in July proposed extending the current freeze, set to expire Dec. 31 (see 2407020017).
FCC Connect2Health task force members will provide an update on maternal health and broadband mapping efforts during commissioners' open meeting Thursday. The task force will speak on "new, more extensive broadband and maternal health data sets" that will be added to the Mapping Broadband Health in America platform, said a news release Thursday (see 2306200074). The update will also "consolidate the chronic disease, opioid, and maternal health modules into one unified platform," the agency said.
The FCC’s February Telephone Consumer Protection Act consent order (see 2402160048) is effective April 11, said a notice in Friday’s Federal Register. The commission adopted rules “making it simpler for consumers to revoke consent to receive unwanted robocalls and robotexts,” said a Friday notice from the FCC: “Callers and texters must honor these optout requests in a timely manner.”