Granting ViaSat's petition seeking reconsideration of the Connect America Fund performance metrics order requirements about voice testing methodology (see 1809200035) would "undermine the integrity" of the CAF program and its auction process, USTelecom said in a docket 10-90 posting Tuesday. It said ViaSat took part in the CAF Phase II auction despite compliance concerns and the FCC can't change bidding rules now to suit one winner unless it wants to rerun the whole auction. ViaSat outside counsel didn't comment
The FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau denied petitions for reconsideration of findings of slamming by U.S. Telecom Long Distance, Consumer Telecom and Central Telecom Long Distance. Three orders on recon Monday (see here, here and here) affirmed Consumer Policy Division findings that the carriers' verifiers in each of the 42 cases obscured the actual purpose of the calls in question when they didn't make clear that the change in long-distance service would result in service from a different carrier, a practice known as slamming. The recon petitions were filed in 2010, 2013 and 2014. The companies didn't comment.
Comments are due April 12, replies April 19 on Norvado's proposed buy of another Wisconsin LEC, Price County Telephone, and its Price County Telecom subsidiary, said a docket 19-72 FCC Wireline Bureau public notice Friday.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals set an April 12 case management conference for recently consolidated challenges to FCC infrastructure orders (see 1903200045), appellate Commissioner Peter Shaw ruled (in Pacer) Thursday. The conference “addressing scheduling, briefing, related agency proceedings, and other matters” starts 1 p.m. PDT in San Francisco.
Representatives of Best Doctors met with an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai on a December petition for declaratory ruling on FCC Telephone Consumer Protection Act rules (see 1812210038). Best Doctors asked the FCC to clarify that a faxed request “to verify contact information and operational status of a medical practice for inclusion in a database of practicing physicians when the request does not state the commercial availability or quality of property, goods or services is not an advertisement" under the TCPA, said a Thursday filing in docket 02-278. Best Doctors discussed “the proliferation of TCPA cases concerning faxes and the need for the Commission to provide courts with clear guidance.”
An NTCA official met with aides to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks on a proposal to end USF rate floor, circulated for a vote at the April 12 commissioners' meeting (see 1903220055). “If the rate floor were to increase dramatically in coming months due to a stalled debate over how otherwise to proceed, this would cause significant harm to rural consumers,” NTCA said Thursday in docket 10-90. The harms would come from “voice telephony rates that could increase by nearly 50 percent per month” and “suppressed network investment,” the group said: “The public interest … necessitates prompt action, and the draft report and order provides the best vehicle for such action.”
The "measly" amounts the FCC is receiving in fines from robocallers are ineffective in addressing the problem, so it's time for other commissioners to call on carriers to make tools freely available to consumers to block such calls, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel tweeted Thursday. The Wall Street Journal reported the agency has levied $208 million in such penalties, collecting $6,790.
The FCC told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit it should reject as untimely a March 5 petition seeking judicial review, after the agency denied a Sandwich Isles Communications request to reconsider a 2016 order saying the Hawaiian telco must repay $27.3 million in improper USF payments it received 2002-2015 (see 1901030024). SIC said in a March 5 petition the FCC wrongly ignored a report from an independent consulting firm that it owed only $4.1 million in overpayments. “By ignoring the evidence, the FCC acted arbitrarily and capriciously,” SIC said (in Pacer, docket 19-1056). The FCC said in a filing posted Thursday that regardless of the merits, the petition for review was due at the court 60 days after the FCC released an order rejecting the telco’s claims. The window closed March 4, the regulator said: “Because Sandwich Isles failed to file its petition within the statutory filing period, this Court is ‘constrained to dismiss the untimely petition for review for want of jurisdiction.’”
FCC members and others ramped up rhetoric on a draft NPRM on a potential USF budget, which hasn't been made public. The commission declined to comment. Commissioner Mike O'Rielly, the point person on the rulemaking, is "troubled by early critiques of this item," he tweeted Thursday. "Beyond not having read it, these people don’t seem to have any idea what they are talking about. Shocking for DC, I know." Three of four "USF programs already have hard spending caps & the other has a soft cap requiring Commission action if it were exceeded," he said. "An overall cap doesn’t add new budgetary pressures than those that already exist!" He said, "Instead, an overall cap will force the Commission to seriously grapple with the consequences of raising an individual program’s cap for the total fund, and more thoughtfully confront how it spends consumers’ hard-earned dollars." Commissioner Geoffrey Starks tweeted, "How can we talk about capping our Universal Service programs at a time when the Commission doesn’t seem to have a good handle on who currently has broadband and who does not?" The reported proposal (see 1903270042) "to cap USF funding directly contradicts Chairman [Ajit] Pai’s oft-repeated mantra that his primary focus is to close the digital divide," said Public Knowledge Communications Justice Fellow Alisa Valentin. "Congress has long directed the Commission to ensure that every American has access to essential communications services." Benton Foundation Executive Editor Kevin Taglang said, "We can’t extend broadband’s reach throughout rural America with a USF cap." It's "premature" to consider capping Lifeline, one part of USF, said National Consumer Law Center Staff Attorney Olivia Wein. This would "unnecessarily ration Lifeline support," she added.
CenturyLink has a role in 911 delivery issues even when the problem isn’t in the carrier’s dedicated network provided by West Safety Services, said the Minnesota Commerce and Public Safety departments. The agencies disagreed Wednesday with CenturyLink's saying in docket 18-542 that a Public Utilities Commission probe into an Aug. 1 outage should focus on 911 and not address separate network issues separate. CenturyLink agreed to be 911 system coordinator in Minnesota, the departments said. “The Agencies are not suggesting that CenturyLink’s task is to ensure that problems never occur, only that CenturyLink agree to assist the public safety agencies in working toward the goal of eliminating failed 9-1-1 calls, no matter the cause.” The investigation’s purpose is to ensure a responsive 911 system, they said. “If a call does not reach the [public safety answering point] or cannot deliver necessary information, then that uncompleted call constitutes a public safety failure, and every effort must be made by the providers of the network and providers of the public safety services to ensure that calls never fail for any reason.” When 911 fails, communication to all parties involved in emergency call delivery and to the public “must be prompt, regular, and as complete as possible,” they said.