Consultant Karen Peltz Strauss, former deputy chief of the FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, discussed the status of the agency’s Disability Advisory Committee and other “disability access priorities” before the FCC, in a meeting with Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. Strauss also discussed the status of rules on wireline real-time text, the recognition of American Sign Language “as an essential form of communication for people who rely on this as their primary language, including when calling business and government call centers,” and “the need for functional equivalency in telecommunications relay services,” among other items, said a filing posted Thursday in docket 21-40.

As net neutrality celebrated its 20th birthday, the concept, first proposed by Columbia Law School professor Tim Wu in a 2003 paper, may no longer be relevant, American Enterprise Institute experts blogged Thursday. The internet today “is very different from that in 2003,” wrote Bronwyn Howell, AEI nonresident senior fellow, and Petrus Potgieter, professor in the Department of Decision Sciences at the University of South Africa. “Most significantly, the application base has changed from when ISPs alone monetized internet traffic flows (Phase I),” they wrote: “We are now in Phase III where the bulk of the traffic is of subscription content, for which the end-user pays the content provider (for example, Netflix) directly. The ISP delivers traffic to the end-user, the value of which (to the end-user) the ISP cannot fully capture since the end-user has already paid the content provider.” In 2023, traffic volumes are “enormous and growing at a swift rate through increased time spent in front of a networked screen and steadily higher resolution and quality of content,” they said.

The American Library Association and the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition asked the FCC to ensure community anchor institutions are included as serviceable locations in the commission's broadband availability maps. The groups met with an aide to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, Broadband Data Task Force staff and Office of General Counsel staff, per an ex parte filing posted Wednesday in docket 19-195. The "presumption" should be that community anchor institutions in rural areas "purchase mass-market service and should be designated as broadband serviceable locations in the next version of the map’s underlying fabric," the groups said, saying providers should have the ability to "prove otherwise." The current map and broadband serviceable location fabrics "make the inaccurate assumption" that community anchor institutions "purchase custom-tailored broadband service" and aren't classified as serviceable "simply because E-rate program participants are required" to issue an request for proposal for service, the groups said.

The FCC reauthorized its Intergovernmental Advisory Committee and sought nominations by April 7, said a notice in Wednesday’s Daily Digest. The IAC’s most recent term expired Nov. 22, the FCC said. Two-year terms on the committee start with the group’s first meeting. Because this committee consists of only state, local and tribal elected officials, it’s not subject to the procedures in the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the agency said.

The FCC announced Wednesday an in-person workshop on tribal issues on Feb. 27, hosted by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians in Solvang, California. The workshop is “designed to provide information that will help Tribal Nations identify and evaluate opportunities to develop more robust broadband infrastructure and services in Tribal communities,” the FCC said: “It is also designed to provide information about the FCC and how it conducts its regulatory responsibilities, and to encourage Tribal participation in the regulatory process.” NTIA and the Rural Utilities Service were invited to participate, the FCC said. The workshop starts at 9 a.m. PST.

NTIA awarded $500,000 to Passamaquoddy at Pleasant Point, Maine, through the tribal broadband connectivity program Tuesday, said a news release. “Our tribal communities badly need better connectivity to thrive in the modern digital economy,” said Administrator Alan Davidson. The grant will "help the more than 240 Native households connect to telehealth, apply for jobs and access educational opportunities.”

The Cross-Sector Resiliency Forum updated staff for FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and Commissioner Brendan Carr on their work, after providing a similar update to the Public Safety Bureau last week (see 2301250039). “Recently, over 40 member companies … reconvened to look back at 2022 and review the efforts of communications providers and electric companies to respond to disaster events, including wildfires and hurricanes (Hurricane Ian, in particular), as well as opportunities to enhance our coordination and collaborative efforts in future disaster events,” said a filing posted Monday in docket 11-60.

NTIA awarded more than $33.5 million in Connecting Minority Communities Pilot program support to 12 minority-serving institutions Monday, said a news release. The Commerce Department is "committed to seeing investments from initiatives like the Connecting Minority Communities program create opportunities for good jobs supported by equitable hiring, fair compensation, safe workplaces, and the tools and training needed for long-term success," said Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Graves. The grants went to universities in Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

The National Emergency Number Association said Friday it’s making available for 911 call center use four public service announcements to promote “the rewarding and meaningful jobs available in the emergency-communications field.” The PSAs “can be used in recruiting and hiring efforts to reach candidates and educate them about the benefits of a career in 9-1-1,” NENA said. “We want to attract the best and brightest individuals to our profession, and these videos highlight how our first responders make a huge difference in people’s lives,” said NENA CEO Brian Fontes.

The Rural Utilities Service wants comments by March 31 in docket RUS-22-Telecom0056 on a final rule updating the ReConnect program's definition of non-funded service area and audit submission requirements, said a notice for Monday's Federal Register. The rule is effective May 1.