Commenters disagreed on whether the FCC should require additional disclosures relative to AI calls, in reply comments to an NPRM that commissioners approved 5-0 in August. Consumer and public interest groups urged a smart approach, targeting calls that will most likely confuse consumers. Industry commenters said no new rules are needed now.

A three-judge panel at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit did not appear receptive Monday to a low-power TV broadcaster’s oral argument (docket 24-1004) that Congress didn’t intend to limit the 2023 Low-Power Protection Act’s effects to smaller markets (see 2407050020).

Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr swiftly pointed Sunday night and Monday to enforcing broadcasters’ “public interest obligation” and ending the commission’s “promotion of” diversity, equity and inclusion policies as key parts of his agenda once he becomes chairman Jan. 20. President-elect Donald Trump announced plans Sunday night to make Carr permanent chairman when he takes office (see 2411170001). Some congressional Democrats and public interest groups criticized Carr’s agenda, while many communications policy-focused groups quickly praised the long-expected appointment (see 2407120002).

The Biden administration is making progress on each of the five bands it's studying as part of the national spectrum strategy (see 2311130048), Shiva Goel, NTIA senior adviser-spectrum policy, said during a Center for Strategic and International Studies webinar late Thursday. Other speakers said the government must make available more high-powered licensed spectrum to ensure the nation doesn’t fall behind China and other competitors.

Industry groups widely opposed an FCC notice of inquiry seeking comment about the impact of broadband data caps on consumers and potential regulatory steps the agency could take. In comments posted Friday in docket 23-199 (see 2410150069), many warned the proceeding was a step toward rate regulation and potential consumer harm should the FCC limit the use of data caps. Some public interest groups urged the commission to proceed, however.

CTA is optimistic it can work with the new Trump administration on tech issues, two of the group's top policy officials told us. The outlook on spectrum policy and other issues isn’t completely clear, they added.

The federal government should financially support the growth of data centers in the U.S., telecom and tech groups said last week in comments to NTIA. Meanwhile, an Amazon workers' organization urged that NTIA should be aware of data centers' carbon footprint and skeptical about industry’s environmental impact assessments.

The incoming Republican administration and Congress will likely work at rolling back many of the current FCC’s policies through a combination of agency action, court decisions and the Congressional Review Act (CRA), attorneys and analysts told us in interviews. The CRA's threat also will likely limit the current FCC's agenda, they said. “The CRA is kind of looming over anything the FCC wants to try to do before the administration switches over,” said Jeffrey Westling, American Action Forum director-technology and innovation.

The submarine cable rules rewrite NPRM on the FCC's Nov. 21 meeting agenda (see 2410310048) will likely see resistance from subsea cable operators, who question proposals on shorter license terms, subsea cable experts told us. However, one said a 5-0 approval of the draft NPRM is likely. It's less clear whether the next FCC will make draft rules from the NPRM a priority, the expert added.

Three former Republican FCC commissioners agreed Thursday that the Trump administration will likely focus on making more spectrum available for 5G and 6G, but conceded that the bands targeted by wireless carriers won’t be easy to address. Harold Furchtgott-Roth, director of the Hudson Institute's Center for the Economics of the Internet, joined Cooley’s Robert McDowell and Mike O’Rielly, now a consultant, during a Hudson forum.