Gabriella Novello

Citing the impact of COVID-19 on incarcerated people and their families, FCC commissioners unanimously approved an order and Further NPRM Thursday to cut interstate rates for inmate calling services (see 2105120031). It’s “not the last action we will take because there is more that needs to be done,” said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel during Thursday’s meeting.

Connectivity difficulties for households trying to apply online during the initial FCC emergency broadband benefit rollout could discourage people from returning to the website to try again, some working to encourage EBB enrollment said in interviews. Users reported initial delays (see 2105130063). The FCC posted an alert May 13, the day after the program began, warning online applicants they could have had connectivity issues in applying online. The alert cited high demand. The Universal Service Administrative Co. posted the same.

A draft order cutting inmate calling services rate caps and a Further NPRM to revise site commission payments are expected to be approved 4-0 by FCC members Thursday (see 2104280084). The draft order sets interim caps for interstate calls at 12 cents per minute for smaller facilities and 14 cents for larger ones. Commissioner aides held some meetings where minor changes were suggested, so expect some tweaks to the final text, officials said. The draft order is likely to “look quite similar to what it does now,” one said. The FCC declined to comment Wednesday. The commission also takes aim at site commissions in the draft order that would allow providers to collect no more than 2 cents per minute, which means an incarcerated person may be charged either 14 or 16 cents per minute for an interstate call. NCIC Inmate Communications CEO Bill Pope said some providers pushed back on that rate, and he suggested capping rates based on the average daily population of incarcerated individuals (see 2105120031). “We definitely need to cap the rate,” Pope said, but agencies “are paying to support these systems, and some of them … just want to be able to cover the cost of offering the phone service.”

U.S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia Circuit judges questioned a settlement in principle (in Pacer) that Aureon and AT&T agreed to for a tariff dispute, during oral argument (see 2103190067). Whether a settlement had been reached or if the court had standing to hear the case were issues Friday.

The FCC made few changes to its Emergency Connectivity Fund rules from the draft (see 2104300084), our analysis found. The application filing window was modified to prioritize prospective purchases, with an additional round if it's determined that more funding for prospective purchases is necessary. The commission moved up the program's start date to May 1, 2020, as sought by education advocates (see 2105050052). The rules in Wednesday's Daily Digest gave limited exceptions to buy datacasting services. The commission is "including datacasting among the technologies eligible for funding,” said America’s Public Television Stations CEO Patrick Butler. “The unanimous endorsement of datacasting by members of the Commission is a powerful testament to the value of this technology in bridging the 'homework gap.'” Rules take effect upon Federal Register publication. Meanwhile, the emergency broadband benefit program started Wednesday (see 2102250066). “This program will have a tremendous, positive impact on so many American households,” said acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel.

Some inmate calling services providers and advocates back FCC-proposed interim rate caps for interstate and international ICS calls (see 2104280084), said those who spoke with us recently. Some said the commission didn’t go far enough and needs to clarify how site commission payments factor into the new rates. Don't look for big changes between the proposal released April 29 and what commissioners vote for at their May 20 meeting, one official said.

The FCC will likely open an Emergency Connectivity Fund application filing window in June, acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel told reporters Tuesday. Whether to prioritize retrospective reimbursements, which was proposed (see 2104300084), "was an issue in our deliberations," Rosenworcel said. Commissioners agreed to open the first filing window for prospective purchases, a change sought by Commissioner Brendan Carr, with a second for additional prospective purchases if it's determined that not enough funding was allocated for the first window. Any remaining funds will then go toward an additional filing window for retrospective purchases. "The idea was we want to be able to make a difference and get more students connected than they are right now," Rosenworcel said. Rules included changes sought by Commissioner Geoffrey Starks on data collection (see 2105100061). It's "a smart addition," Rosenworcel said. "Distance learning is not going away," said Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass. This "will help close the homework gap that persisted long before COVID-19," said Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y. Democrats praised the FCC’s implementation plan, including Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell of Washington, House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone of New Jersey, Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania and Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts.

As the FCC is expected to have voted on emergency connectivity fund rules by this week (see 2104300084), stakeholders raised concerns prioritizing retroactive purchases and not taking a tech-neutral approach could shut many schools and libraries out. “There are a lot of good things about the order,” Schools, Libraries, Health & Broadband (SHLB) Coalition Executive Director John Windhausen told us. He cited not requiring competitive bidding and excluding smartphones. “Rules tend to favor hot spot deployment,” he said, and don't "give the schools and libraries the flexibility to look at other technologies that may serve their market better.” The FCC declined to comment Friday. Dozens of advocates, industry groups and providers spoke with staff to lobby for more flexibility. Schools and libraries should be allowed to use ECF funds for smartphones, T-Mobile told Wireline Bureau staff. Samsung agreed and told acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and Commissioner Geoffrey Starks' staff that smartphones “support video conferencing platforms, internet browsing, e-mail, document editing and sharing, and other software necessary to ensure full participation in remote learning activities.” Qualcomm told Rosenworcel’s staff it's “disappointed” with the decision. Whether schools and libraries that have already purchased services and equipment should get priority for reimbursement was a sticking point for education advocates (see 2104260070). The draft rules appear to favor retroactive purchases, Windhausen said. Prospective purchases should be given priority, ACA Connects told Commissioner Nathan Simington's and Commissioner Brendan Carr's staffers, because it would otherwise "be inequitable." One application filing window that prioritizes future purchases would "provide more certainty that support would be available for the upcoming school year," said Verizon. CTIA disagreed and echoed T-Mobile's call to include smartphones. The State E-rate Coordinators’ Alliance recommended starting retroactive reimbursement March 1, 2020, instead of the proposed July 1, 2020. Final rules should allow eligible schools and libraries to use funds for constructing self-provisioned networks, said Motorola, because “the limited exception to permit funding of network construction where there is no commercially available option is administratively unworkable." ENA Services recommended tweaking the language to require schools and libraries only certify that they were unaware of existing services to be reimbursed for new construction. NTCA agreed that a limited exemption for self-provisioning should be granted and raised concerns about allowing reimbursement for purchasing hotspots.

The effort to increase broadband access on tribal lands is gaining momentum, experts said in recent interviews. The next challenge is holding the FCC and Biden administration to their commitment to consult with tribal leaders and promote broadband deployment on tribal lands, they said.

Nearly 18 million of the more than 22 million comments submitted to the FCC when it repealed net neutrality rules in 2017 were fake, reported New York Attorney General Letitia James' (D) office. More than 500,000 fake letters went to Congress. “Americans' voices are being drowned out by masses of fake comments and messages being submitted to the government to sway decision-making,” James said: “Instead of actually looking for real responses from the American people, marketing companies are luring vulnerable individuals to their websites with freebies, co-opting their identities, and fabricating responses that giant corporations are then using to influence the policies and laws that govern our lives." The report found the largest broadband companies spent $4.2 million on a campaign to submit more than 8.5 million fake comments to the FCC. The report didn't find evidence that the companies or their lobbying firms had direct knowledge of the fraudulent comments. Millions of fake comments were also submitted in favor of net neutrality rules, the report said. More than 7.7 million of the 9.3 million fake comments supporting the rules were submitted through automated software. Fluent, React2Media and Opt-Intelligence, the lead generators of fake comments, entered settlements and will pay $3.7 million, $550,000 and $150,000, respectively. Investigations are continuing. The report recommended implementing CAPTCHA tests or other technical safeguards to prevent comment submissions through automated software. This "demonstrates how the record informing the FCC’s net neutrality repeal was flooded with fraud," said acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, in a statement. "This was troubling at the time because even then the widespread problems with the record were apparent," Rosenworcel said. "We have to learn from these lessons and improve because the public deserves an open and fair opportunity to tell Washington what they think about the policies that affect their lives.” Rosenworcel had urged then-Chairman Ajit Pai to delay repealing the rules until an investigation was complete (see 1712040046). Pai declined to comment now.