FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler plans to ask Congress tomorrow to help facilitate the deployment of next-generation 911 (NG-911) services. In prepared testimony for an oversight hearing before the House communications and technology subcommittee that will feature all five FCC Commissioners, Mr. Wheeler said, “The Nation’s 911 system is at increased risk due to retirement of aging communications infrastructure and public safety’s inability to keep pace with investment in new technology. The solution is accelerated deployment of NG911. The FCC is doing what it can to facilitate NG911 transition, but state and local authorities need more assistance. Targeted near-term Congressional action would help state and local authorities achieve nationwide deployment more quickly and uniformly, thereby reducing risks and long-term costs. I hope to continue to engage with members of the Committee on this critically important matter.”
In August, Mr. Wheeler said that he planned to ask Congress to a take a number of steps to help facilitate the deployment of NG-911 services, including authorizing a national maps database, tasking the FCC with helping states audit 911 fund spending, and authorizing additional grants (TRDaily, Aug. 19). In his prepared testimony, Mr. Wheeler defended actions by the Enforcement Bureau, which Republican Commissioners Ajit Pai and Mike O’Rielly have complained has been too aggressive. The bureau and the full FCC have overstepped the agency’s jurisdictional boundaries and acted in areas where no rules have been adopted, they say.
“I am proud of our Enforcement Bureau’s work to put U.S. consumers first,” Mr. Wheeler said. “The Bureau’s priorities are protecting consumers, safeguarding competition, securing networks, and policing the integrity of the Commission’s funds, programs, and services. In short, the Bureau’s job is to hold companies accountable for their behavior and ensure they are following Commission rules. That’s not overly aggressive; that’s basic consumer protection. Whether it’s preventing cramming, improving Wi-Fi access in hotels, or protecting consumer data, the Commission will not hesitate to act to protect consumers’ interests.”
Mr. Wheeler also noted efforts at the FCC to improve the FCC’s processes, including through the establishment of an internal task force and efforts to implement recommendations in an agency report.
And he bemoaned planned cuts in FCC funding. “While I recognize that appropriations are outside of this Committee’s jurisdiction, I want to emphasize to you all that the proposed cuts to the Commission’s FY2016 budget would have severe consequences to the agency’s ability to protect public safety, advance the spectrum agenda, and transact business vital to the U.S. economy and consumers in a timely fashion,” he said. “For example, budget cuts will mean that the nation’s only federal network monitoring system, the Network Outage Reporting System (NORS) will continue to be vulnerable, as will the Disaster Reporting System (DIRS) that is essential to local public safety in times of emergency.” The reductions also would make it difficult to plan for auctions and maintain the agency’s IT infrastructure, he said.
“The FCC is a licensing agency, and without people and IT improvements, licensing will inevitably slow down, which will have a negative effect on economic innovation and companies’ ability to meet consumer needs,” Mr. Wheeler stressed.
In his testimony, Mr. Pai touched on broadband investment, over-the-top video, and the FCC’s enforcement process.
“To be blunt, the FCC’s enforcement process has gone off the rails. Instead of dispensing justice by applying the law to the facts, the Commission has focused on issuing headline-grabbing fines, regardless of the legality of its actions,” he complained, reiterating his belief that the Commission has exceeded its legal authority in some cases and in others fined entities for violations when no rules on their conduct had been adopted.
“One more problem traces through the Commission’s recent enforcement actions: The penalties prescribed regularly appear to be plucked from thin air. The FCC offered no basis for fining AT&T $100 million, only asserting that applying the statutory maximum would lead to an ‘astronomical figure,’” he said. “In TerraCom’s case, the Commission calculated the base penalty to be $9 billion—with a ‘b’—but decided without further explanation that $10 million was sufficient. With such an implausibly large range of forfeitures, the agency has arrogated for itself the roles of judge, jury, and executioner. For what company can risk exposure to virtually limitless liability?”
Mr. O’Rielly’s testimony discussed issues such as spectrum and wireless infrastructure, foreign ownership, and process reform.
For example, he noted that he has suggested the federal government consider imposing spectrum fees on federal agency use of spectrum and has called for the FCC to promptly address the problem of “twilight towers.” He also discussed “mission creep.” “The Commission’s strong interest in regulating privacy and data security practices is another troubling development for anyone who is interested in the tech economy, or indeed, anyone who is interested in any business that transacts with its customers online,” he said. “As I have pointed out before, our activities on this front run the risk of supplanting or conflicting with well-established FTC privacy and security precedents that are currently serving fairly well as a predictable road map for businesses and consumers alike. Congress has not assigned this role to the FCC, and we should not be taking it upon ourselves to freelance in an area where we have precious little experience or expertise.”
In her prepared testimony, Commissioner Mignon L. Clyburn discussed issues including universal service fund actions – or actions she hopes the Commission takes – as well as recent development on inmate calling rates. “It is no secret that I advocated for the creation of the Mobility Fund in 2011 and fought for sufficient funding to put our nation on a path to universal mobile service. While I believe it was appropriate to seek further comment on refining the Mobility Fund in April of 2014 in light the tremendous deployment during the intervening time, this proceeding was not an invitation for inaction and our job is not done,” she said.
“I applaud the tremendous amount of private sector deployment of LTE, but the truth is that pockets of our nation still lack service and there are areas that only have service due to universal service support,” the Commissioner added. “Like many of us, I have driven through areas of mobile darkness and when I needed connectivity the most, was painfully reminded that the purpose of the universal service fund is to close the divides in areas where the private sector alone is unable or unwilling to deploy. We need to fulfil this commitment for mobile just as we have for fixed services.”
Regarding the Lifeline program, she said, “We must move beyond simply criticizing the ‘old’ Lifeline program and focus on ways in which a restructured, recalibrated, modernized program can serve those who qualify and strengthen our economy. My goal is to create a new, refocused and retargeted program that will serve those most in need, and maximize each dollar of universal service funding spent, while eliminating any remaining incentives for waste, fraud and abuse. If done correctly, for a mere $9.25 per qualified household per month, our government can provide a communications bridge that will help millions to get their lives back on track.”
In her prepared testimony, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel focused in part on what she called “the least glamorous part of the communications revolution. I want to talk about infrastructure. Because no amount of new fiber optic facilities or spectrum matters without good policies on the ground. “We need to take a comprehensive look at deployment practices and find a way to make them more consistent across the country,” she said. “We can begin with Dig Once policies—which can pave the way for more broadband deployment. The notion behind Dig Once is simple.”
“We should also focus on federal lands—which make up as much as one-third of our national real estate,” the Commissioner added. “We can expedite deployment here by creating an open data inventory of federal infrastructure assets that can help support broadband and wireless deployment. We also need standard contracts from the General Services Administration to facilitate deployment of antenna structures on federal property. While we’re at it, let’s consider extending FCC shot clock policies for state and local jurisdictions to federal authorities so those who want to deploy infrastructure get a timely response.”
Ms. Rosenworcel also reiterated what she calls the “homework gap,” which is driven by a lack of broadband access in millions of American homes.
In her prepared opening statement for tomorrow’s hearing, Rep. Anna G. Eshoo (D., Calif.), the subcommittee’s ranking member, stressed the importance of enabling competition. “In the Internet age, it begins with open, interconnected networks that empower consumers and businesses to use the devices and services of their choosing,” she said. “Robust, enforceable open Internet rules prevent broadband providers from blocking or throttling lawful online content or engaging in paid prioritization. It means reforming legacy video laws that hinder innovation and consumer choice, while protecting incumbent interests. And it means ensuring consumers can buy a set-top box from someone other than their pay-TV provider. The lack of competition in the set-top box space has left consumers paying on average a whopping $231 per year on rental fees alone.
“To promote competition, we also need commonsense policies that make it easier for new companies to enter the broadband market,” Ms. Eshoo said. “A ‘dig once’ policy is one such example of how to reduce the barriers to broadband deployment, increase competition, and do so while saving taxpayer dollars. When new competition is unlikely to emerge, such as in the $40 billion a year special access market, the FCC must act decisively to reform the market and stop anti-competitive practices.”
In his opening statement for tomorrow’s hearing, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D., N.J.), ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, noted today’s introduction of legislation “to make sure people have better access to communications in an emergency. The bill recognizes the importance of phone service, TV, and radio during emergencies. I hope that the proposals in that bill, along with the efforts at the FCC to make networks more resilient will mean that we never have a repeat of the communications failures from three years ago.”
Other priorities are online video and spectrum, Mr. Pallone said. “To make sure consumers can access the content they choose, wherever they choose, on whatever device they choose, they need more spectrum,” he said. “The FCC is doing its part to meet this demand through its record-breaking spectrum auction earlier this year and its first-of-its-kind incentive auction set for early next year. I hope that Congress can continue to do our part by building on our recent work in the Budget Deal. We must find new ways to free more spectrum—we have not done enough.- Paul Kirby, paul.kirby@wolterskluwer.com
Courtesy TRDaily