A potential $25.1 million in fines for the surrender of multiple Rural Deployment Opportunity Fund census block groups (CBGs) is "neither reasonable nor proportionate to the harm caused by the forfeiture," Mercury Broadband petitioned Monday (docket 19-126) as it seeks a waiver of RDOF forfeiture penalty rules. Returning the RDOF locations for which it received funding in Auction 904 "was absolutely necessary," Mercury said, pointing to some CBGs already having 100/20 Mbps service. Many of the CBGs awarded were estimated to have far more serviceable locations than are estimated today, "disrupt[ing] the underlying economic foundation of Mercury’s deployment strategy."

Biennial recertifications of incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) study area boundary data are due June 30, the FCC Office of Economics and Analytics and Wireline Bureau said Tuesday. ILECs and state commissions that have volunteered to file study area boundary data on ILECs operating in certain jurisdictions must review and certify that data every two years, according to the public notice.

The FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau sought comment Tuesday on two petitions from ClearCaptions seeking waivers to rules for the IP-captioned telephone service (IP CTS) and the telecommunications relay service (TRS) fund. The company provides IP CTS that's supported by the fund. Comments are due June 19, replies July 7, in docket 03-123.

A representative of Federal Technology Solutions Inc. (FTSI) met with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr on the company’s pursuit of E-rate support after it missed a Universal Service Administrative Co. deadline. It was denied more than $320,000 in E-rate support from funding year 2019 “due to a minor error that caused FTSI to submit its invoices to USAC shortly after the applicable deadline,” said a filing posted Monday (docket 25-133). “This amount represents approximately 5 percent of FTSI’s annual revenue, and its loss has significantly harmed the company.”

The legal counsel for Rural Alaska School Districts spoke with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr on a pending request for waiver of FCC E-rate rules. The counsel discussed a Wireline Bureau declaratory ruling from last year, said a filing posted Monday in docket 02-6.

The FCC’s Enforcement Bureau has ordered voice service provider Flowroute to immediately stop carrying spoofed jury duty scam calls on its network, said a news release and letter Friday. “The company faces a permanent block of all traffic on its network if it does not comply,” the release said. Flowroute allegedly transmitted spoofed calls to Cook County Illinois residents from someone impersonating an employee of the county sheriff’s office. “A law enforcement imposter told residents they had missed jury duty and must send money to the caller via a Coinstar kiosk at a local grocery store,” the release said. “Between July 23 and August 2, 2024, Flowroute originated 240 spoofed calls using the Cook County Sheriff’s Number,” the release said. The FCC’s traceback consortium, the Industry Traceback Group, tracked the calls to Flowroute, and Flowroute told the agency the calls came from “an entity named Llama Soft Pty. located in Sydney, Australia,” the release said. “The apparently illegal calls are the subject of the FCC’s ongoing investigation.”

Alaska Telephone Co. notified the FCC that it plans to drop its wireline broadband internet access service (WBIAS) offerings, including consumer broadband-only loop service, effective July 1. “Upon discontinuance of the tariffed offerings, the Company will provide WBIAS on a permissive detariffed basis,” said a filing Friday in docket 02-33.

Verizon told the FCC it’s working with NATE, which represents infrastructure builders, on concerns the group has raised about pricing and other issues as the agency considers the carrier’s proposed $20 billion acquisition of Frontier (see 2409050010). “Verizon agrees to include line items in its pricing matrix that allow for site specific conditions to be added, including explanations as to what they represent,” said a filing Thursday in docket 24-445.

Voice on the Net Coalition representatives met with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr on concerns the group has about know-your-customer obligations as part of robocall rules (see 2505120034). VON is worried “about the lack of clarity” around the obligations “and the potential for significant fines for violations of what is obviously a vague standard,” it said in a filing posted Wednesday (docket 17-59).

The FCC Wireline Bureau on Wednesday granted a limited waiver of the support reduction schedule for some recipients of Connect America Fund high-cost support that missed a July 1 network performance testing certification deadline. The waiver applies to more than 20 companies.