FCC
FCC Commissioner Simington Says Universal Fiber to the Home Can Wait
Simington also raised idea of Big Tech contributing to Universal Service Fund.

WASHINGTON, September 29, 2021 – Federal Communications Commissioner Nathan Simington said Tuesday that adoption issues for fiber is delaying the need to make universal fiber to the home a priority right now.
“I think we can push back on fiber to the home universally, at least in noting that there are edge cases and adoption issues there and that some degree of wireless is going to have to be part of the broadband future,” Simington said in a one-on-one conversation with the Internet Innovation Alliance.
A large part of the discourse surrounding the future of broadband expansion in the country is what kinds of technologies are most prudent to ensure connectivity now and scalability in the future. The Wireless Industry Association has pressed the fact that multiple technologies, including wireless, have a play in broadband’s future, while the Fiber Broadband Association and others have said fiber buildout is the best, most scalable technology.
The last mile, where the cable physically attaches to the home or business, was said at the Digital Infrastructure Investment conference this week to be a goal for broadband expansion.
But Simington said that while fiber is a “robust technology,” there’s a chunk of Americans that may not want it.
“I’m going to go out on a limb and say that there are some users who are not particularly interested in fiber,” Simington said. “That might be people who are, for example, device-only users and they don’t want a home broadband connection — that’s about 20 percent of the national population (of broadband users), although the question of want is sort of up in the air.
“Obviously to a person who is device-only, the only use that fiber would have would be to provide hotspot. And if you’re spending your entire day out and about working, what matters to you is having adequate wireless coverage in your area,” he added.
Simington touches on Universal Service Fund
Modernizing the Universal Service Fund has been one of the hot topics for broadband this year. The fund, which extends basic telecom services to all Americans, has been called unsustainable due to its reliance on shrinking voice revenues.
Some have suggested that the fund’s reliance be wholesale replaced with general taxation from Congress, while others have said that the fund’s revenue base should be extended to include the increasing broadband revenues.
Simington prefaced his comments by saying he didn’t want to get ahead of Congress, which would set the parameters of a new regime, but raised previous recommendations – including from FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr – that part of the money can come from big technology companies, like Facebook and Google.
“We might also say that there are companies that have built their model on there being universal broadband and have been the beneficiaries of the buildout without having to do much to contribute to it…that’s something that has been raised on both sides of the aisle,” he said.
He added that another approach “would simply be to say that broadband is essentially the equivalent of a telephone service back in the day and therefore we are going to put it on everyone’s broadband bill instead of on the relatively small installed base of phone line subject to the USF. That would certainly be one approach. It would smooth things out somewhat, it would presumably broaden the base very substantially.”
In any case, Simington said the USF is “absolutely vital” and that it’s failure would be “at minimum…immensely disruptive.”
Spectrum strategies and future technologies
In his roughly hour-long chat, Simington touched on a myriad of other issues before the FCC, including the future of satellite technologies, spectrum strategies, and funding for programs to deliver telecommunications services to all Americans.
The commissioner noted that the FCC is prioritizing clearing spectrum for technologies including the next-generation 5G networks, and that the agency is looking to “squeeze every drop” of mid-band frequencies for that end. The FCC has already held a number of auctions for mid-band spectrum, including its massive C-Band auction.
FCC Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said earlier this year that the mid-band spectrum is a priority for the agency over millimeter wave spectrum to close the digital divide.
Simington also said spectrum sharing will increase as technological advances are made. The FCC is fielding comments about how to handle the 12 GHz spectrum band, which is effectively pitting satellite providers who say it can’t be shared and 5G providers who say that it can.
5G
Industry Praises FCC Proposal to Revamp the 5G Rural Fund
The FCC proposed adjusting the $9-billion budget allocated for the fund using updated maps

WASHINGTON, September 26, 2023 – Industry associations are praising a proposal from the Federal Communications Commission Thursday to review coverage areas based on updated commission maps so that the 5G Fund can reach more communities without the wireless technology.
Thursday’s vote proposes to help dictate the eligibility requirements for areas in need of support of the 5G Rural Fund for America.
The commission proposed adjusting the $9-billion budget allocated for the 5G Fund, the optimal methodology for consolidating eligible areas into smaller geographic regions for bidding, the feasibility to extend 5G Fund support to qualifying regions in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, possibly mandating cybersecurity and supply chain risk management plans for 5G Fund recipients, and the possibility of whether the 5G Fund should be utilized to encourage the deployment of Open Radio Access Networks.
“What this means is that as we develop the 5G Fund and build the successor to our existing universal service program supporting wireless networks in rural America, known as the Mobility Fund, we will be able to incorporate this detailed picture of where service is and is not,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said. “We will be able to see gaps in coverage and ensure support actually reaches the communities that need it most.”
Meredith Attwell Baker, president and CEO of industry association CTIA, praised the commission’s decision “for recognizing the crucial role that mobile wireless services play in keeping Americans connected.”
“Implementing the 5G Fund and using the FCC’s new maps will help extend the benefits of advanced 5G services to more communities and consumers,” she said.
Tim Donovan, president and CEO of the Competitive Carriers Association, also praised the decision, saying the 5G Fund “has been a top priority for CCA, and we will continue to work with the Commission and our members to ensure the final rules preserve and expand mobile broadband access to every American.”
The commission also adopted Thursday new regulations to expedite space applications, the availability of spectrum resources for space launches, old rules to combat robocallers, and handed down over $100 million in fines.
FCC space and spectrum allocations
The FCC unanimously ratified the Expediting Initial Processing of Satellite and Earth State Applications Space Innovation, which is the adoption of new rules to expedite its processing of space and earth station applications.
It also unanimously ratified new rules ensuring that commercial space launches have the necessary spectrum resources for reliable communication. These adoptions will “promote safety, competition, innovation, and continued American leadership in the new Space Age,” the agency said. The new rules will also provide an allocation within the 2025 to 2110 MHz band for ground-to-launch vehicle telecommand which is needed for space launch operations, and make “the entire 2200 to 2290 MHz band available for launch telemetry.”
“I believe that the most important part of streamlining the FCC’s application processing procedures is ensuring swift and efficient FCC action—which will maintain U.S. leadership in the satellite communications service industry. It will also nurture the growth of the broader space sector, which includes new and innovative manufacturing processes, robotics, earth surveillance and exploration and other future innovations,” Commissioner Nathan Simington said.
Robocallers losing access to phone numbers
The FCC also voted in favor of adopting rules that would modernize the commission’s requirements on how Voice over Internet Protocol providers get direct access to telephone numbers.
The adoption sets in motion parameters to limit access to “phone numbers by perpetrators of illegal robocalls, protect national security and law enforcement, safeguard the nation’s finite numbering resources, reduce the opportunity for regulatory arbitrage, and further promote public safety.”
In line with the Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence (TRACED) Act, the new rules will require applicants to submit additional disclosures and certifications in regard to their “ownership structures and compliance with the Commission’s rules and state law and takes targeted steps to address the concerns” that were raised in the rulemaking.
These rules consist of making robocall-related certifications that will help ensure compliance with the commission’s rules targeting illegal robocalls; to keep and disclose current information about ownership, including foreign ownership, that will alleviate the risk of providing violators abroad with access to U.S. numbering resources; guarantee their compliance with other commission rules that are applicable to interconnected VoIP providers including particular public safety and access stimulation rules, and requirements to submit timely FCC Forms 477 and 499 filings; and compliance with state laws and registration requirements that apply to businesses in each state where numbers are requested.
FCC fines Dorsher Enterprise $116 million
The FCC additionally adopted a $116,156,250 fine against the Dorsher Enterprise, a group consisting of Thomas Dorsher, ChariTel, OnTel, and ScammerBlaster.
The Commission’s investigation revealed that the group promoted themselves as a crusade fighting against scam robocalls at the same “illegally robocalling toll free numbers” and used credits from their scam “to fund telephony denial of service (TDoS) attacks on other entities.”
The parties in the group, which allegedly made nearly 10 million robocalls to generate toll free dialing fees, are jointly liable for the fine.
“Dorsher’s claim that he was actually trying to ‘shut down scammers’ is meritless in the face of these facts,” Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said. “As I have said repeatedly, there are numerous hurdles to finding these bad actors, and bringing them to account for violations of our rules. I am pleased to see another example of how, by working together, we can untangle these schemes and protect consumers.”
Digital Inclusion
Broadband Association Argues Providers Not Engaged in Rollout Discrimination
Trade group says telecoms are not discriminating when they don’t build in financially difficult areas.

WASHINGTON, September 18, 2023 – Broadband association US Telecom sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission last week saying internet service providers don’t build in certain areas because it is financially difficult, not because they are being discriminatory.
The FCC proposed two definitions of digital discrimination in December 2022: The first definition includes practices that, absent technological or economic constraints, produce differential outcomes for individuals based a series of protected characteristics, including income, race, and religion. The second definition is similar but adds discriminatory intent as a necessary factor.
“To make business determinations regarding capital allocation, an ISP must consider a host of commercially important factors, none of which involve discrimination,” said the September 12 letter from USTelecom, which represents providers including AT&T, Verizon, Lumen, Brightspeed, and Altafiber.
“As the Commission has consistently recognized, such deployment is extremely capital-intensive…This deployment process is therefore subject to important constraints related to technical and economic feasibility” added the letter.
US Telecom explained that ISPs’ will choose to invest where they expect to see a return on the time and money they put into building broadband.
The association added that factors like population density, brand reputation, competition and the availability of the providers’ other services all go into deciding where broadband gets deployed.
“The starting point of the Commission’s approach to feasibility should be a realistic acknowledgement that all ISPs must prioritize their resources, even those that invest aggressively in deployment,” added the letter.
The association also highlighted the fact that it hopes to see as little government intervention in broadband deployment activity as possible, a concern that has been echoed by lobbyists before.
“Rather than attempting to use Section 60506 to justify taking extra-statutory intrusive actions that could paradoxically undermine ongoing broadband investment, the Commission must enable ISPs to make decisions based on their own consideration of the kinds of feasibility factors discussed above” read the letter.
Section 60506 of the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act says that the FCC may implement new policies to ensure equal access to broadband.
The FCC is also looking to develop guidelines for handling digital discrimination complaints filed against broadband providers.
USTelecom said that ISPs should be allowed to demonstrate financial and logistical concerns as a rebuttal to those claims, in addition to disclosing other reasons for directing investment elsewhere to demonstrate non-discriminatory practice.
Reasons for investment elsewhere would include rough terrain, low-population density, MTE owners not consenting to deployment, zoning restrictions, or historical preservation review.
“To aid in the success of the Infrastructure Act and facilitate equal access, the Commission must continue to foster an environment conducive to ISP investment in the high-speed broadband infrastructure that Congress rightly views as central to our connected future,” concluded the letter.
FCC Comments
CAF II Auction Recipients Push FCC to Extend Letter of Credit Waiver, Relax Restrictions
The agency proposed a shorter, more restrictive waiver.

WASHINGTON, September 14, 2023 – Internet service providers who received project funding under the Connect America Fund Phase II Auction are asking the Federal Communications Commission to continue waiving their letter of credit requirements.
The FCC requested in August comments on a proposal to extend the waiver for one year — through December 2024 from the current December 31, 2023 date — and limit it to providers who have filed all location reports on time and have finished at least 60 percent of the total locations they agreed to build in each state. In 2020 the FCC waived the letter of credit requirements — requiring a cash collateral on agreements for risk assessment — for auction recipients in response to the pandemic, allowing them to comply with the less restrictive Rural Digital Opportunity Fund letter of credit rules.
Without the waiver, providers would need to secure letters of credit for all support they had previously received, plus the money they are slated to receive in the coming year. The waiver reduces that requirement to a single year of funding if providers build infrastructure at the agreed upon pace.
Auction recipients, through the Connect America Fund Phase II Coalition, pushed back on both conditions in a filing to the FCC dated Monday and asked for a two-year extension on the waiver, citing long-term economic effects of the pandemic and rising interest rates. That would keep the waiver in place until December 31, 2025, the entire remaining build timeline.
The coalition asked for a lighter deployment threshold, 57 percent of a provider’s obligated locations rather than 60. It also pushed the FCC to include providers who have missed a filing deadline in the waiver, calling the “one strike and you’re out” proposal “disproportionate,” the filing said.
The CAF II auction provided in 2018 nearly $1.5 billion for providers to build out network infrastructure in areas that are expensive to serve. Recipients of funds under the auction are not required to provide broadband speeds, with a minimum requirement of 10 Mbps upload and 1 Mbps upload.
RDOF, which concluded a similar reverse auction in 2020, has allocated over $9 billion for the same purpose, with up to $11.2 million available for a second phase.
Future auctions are in jeopardy, though, as providers defaulted on nearly $3 billion of the initial award. Those that have not defaulted are pressing the FCC for more funding.
More than 300 people in the broadband industry asked the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to remove the requirement for the upcoming $42.5 billion BEAD grant program, arguing it prevents smaller providers with less capital on hand from participating.
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