President Joe Biden extended an emergency Tuesday, letting the Commerce Department bar transactions in the information and communications tech sector that are an unacceptable risk to national security. Former President Donald Trump implemented this in 2019 (see 1905150066). That executive order paved the way for recent FCC and Commerce actions to limit the U.S. presence of equipment from Huawei and other Chinese manufacturers. Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Roger Wicker, R-Miss., meanwhile, pressed a trio of U.S. tech companies for information on their compliance with Commerce Department Bureau of Industry and Security’s August revisions to its restrictions on Huawei’s use of U.S. technology (see 2008170043). “The unrestricted acquisition or use in the United States of information and communications technology or services designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by persons owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of foreign adversaries augments the ability of these foreign adversaries to create and exploit vulnerabilities in information and communications technology or services,” Biden wrote Congress. “This threat continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat." Wicker asked Seagate, Toshiba and Western Digital whether they consider the August BIS restrictions to bar “shipment of hard disk drives to Huawei or any affiliate without a license” and if the companies “continued shipping” gear to Huawei. He wants to know if the companies incorporate “semiconductor products” into their hard-disk drives “that the supplier knows or should know would then be incorporated into hard disk drives for subsequent shipment to Huawei.” The Semiconductors in America Coalition formed Tuesday in a bid to get Congress to fund implementation of the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America Act, which was included in the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (see 2105110065).

Congress should consider allocating federal funds for state antitrust enforcement, New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) and a coalition of 45 AGs wrote Congress Monday. State investigations require “massive” resources, so Congress should consider partnering here, said James. The letter to Senate Antitrust Subcommittee and House Antitrust Subcommittee leadership said AGs are encouraged by “bipartisan legislative proposals and congressional reports to increase funding to these federal agencies and urge you to consider similarly supporting the states’ antitrust enforcement capabilities.”

The departments of Commerce and Homeland Security will testify Tuesday at a Senate Homeland Security Committee hybrid hearing on SolarWinds response (see 2104140043). DHS Cybersecurity and Information Security Agency acting Director Brandon Wales will testify with DOC Chief Information Security Officer Ryan Higgins and Health and Human Services Department Chief Information Security Officer Janet Vogel. The hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. in 342 Dirksen.

The Senate Commerce Committee will consider Lina Khan’s nomination to the FTC (see 2104210039) and the Endless Frontier Act (S-1260) (see 2104270045) at a 10 a.m. markup Wednesday in 106 Dirksen.

The FCC should “take a fresh look” at “effectiveness” of rules implementing the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act’s bar on excessively loud TV ads, acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a letter to Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., released Thursday. The Media Bureau sought comment last month in docket 21-181 on the extent to which Calm Act rules need to change in response to a request from Eshoo (see 2104140001). Comments are due June 3, replies July 9 (see 2104200001). “Like you, I am concerned when I hear complaints about commercials that are far louder than the programming they accompany,” Rosenworcel told Eshoo. “I am hopeful that the record we develop will help inform what next steps may be needed to increase the effectiveness” of Calm Act enforcement.

Senate Commerce Committee member Rick Scott and two other Florida Republicans urged the FCC Thursday to reject an April push by members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to potentially block WSUA Broadcasting’s pending sale of Spanish-language WSUA (AM) Miami and FM translator W232DX to America CV. CHC members contend the transfer could result in further misinformation. They claim America CV silences “progressive voices” at the broadcaster. “Preventing the assignment of the radio station licenses based on its anticipated” programming “likely would violate the First Amendment,” said Scott, Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart in a letter to acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel: "Reject any politicization of the FCC, and engage the application on its merits alone.” It’s “laughable that left-leaning partisans have found reason to object to the sale of one radio station” given “the overwhelming predominance of left-leaning bias in print, cable, and broadcast media,” they said. The FCC didn’t comment Friday.

Public Knowledge CEO Chris Lewis and Next Century Cities Executive Director Francella Ochillo urge broadband affordability and equity legislation along the lines of what President Joe Biden and Democratic lawmakers propose (see 2103310064), in written testimony before a Thursday House Communications Subcommittee hearing. National Urban league Senior Vice President-Advocacy and Policy Joi Chaney and Phoenix Center Chief Economist George Ford also will testify (see 2105040062). Their written testimony wasn’t available Wednesday. “The high cost of broadband is one of the primary reasons why the United States has such a staggering digital divide,” Lewis says. “Congress must take steps to increase competition in the marketplace, which will reduce prices. However, even with lower prices, some of our nation’s most vulnerable will still be unable to afford this critical service. For this reason, Congress must create a long-term benefit” to succeed the $3.2 billion FCC emergency broadband benefit (see 2012220061). A “long-term emergency broadband benefit must continue the EBB’s legacy of broad consumer eligibility, should provide enough funding to enable consumers to access service that meets their needs, and should guarantee that all eligible consumers complete enrollment by promoting automatic verification of identity and eligibility,” Lewis says. “Congress should also require any entity receiving federal funding to offer a low-cost option for anyone.” Ochillo urges lawmakers to consider nontraditional network models to ensure a comprehensive affordability strategy, including municipal networks. Muni broadband has "some of the fastest speeds and highest quality connectivity in the nation while making prices readily transparent, selling service in symmetrical tiers, and maintaining affordability programs for low-income residents,” she says. “Publicly owned WiFi and mesh networks also fill important gaps.” The Computer & Communications industry Association praised House Communications for tackling broadband affordability and equity.

The FBI should provide details on why it continues to “abuse” warrantless surveillance authority under Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Section 702, House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., wrote the agency Tuesday. They cited a recently declassified Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court memorandum opinion from November 2020 “detailing the FBI’s ‘apparent widespread violations.’” Jordan and Biggs demanded detailed accounts about every instance since December 2019 the agency used Section 702 powers “for purposes unrelated to national security.” They asked for how the agency is responding to the opinion. The bureau confirmed receipt of the letter.

Public Knowledge CEO Chris Lewis and Next Century Cities Executive Director Francella Ochillo are set to testify at the House Communications Subcommittee’s Thursday hearing on broadband access and affordability (see 2104270093), the Commerce Committee said Tuesday. National Urban League Senior Vice President-Advocacy and Policy Joi Chaney and Phoenix Center Chief Economist George Ford will also testify. The virtual hearing begins 11:30 a.m. EDT.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., doubted "there will be any Republican support -- none, zero,” for President Joe Biden’s infrastructure proposal, which includes $100 billion for broadband (see 2103310064). Republicans signaled support for pursuing core infrastructure spending; the Senate GOP’s counterproposal includes $65 billion for broadband (see 2104220067). “We're open to doing a roughly $600 billion package which deals with what all of us agree is infrastructure," McConnell told reporters Monday. "If it's going to be about infrastructure, let's make it about infrastructure.” Republicans “are not going to revisit" the 2017 tax cut law, as Biden proposed to pay here, McConnell said.