FCC to Take Up Undersea Cable Review in November

WASHINGTON, Oct. 30, 2024 –  The Federal Communications Commission is set to vote on a review of its subsea cable rules at its November 21 meeting.

“Dozens of systems of submarine cable serve as the backbone of our domestic and global communications networks,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel wrote in a statement Wednesday. “Over the past two decades, the technology, economics, and security challenges involving these systems have greatly changed, but FCC oversight has not. The Commission will vote to undertake the first major comprehensive review of our submarine cable rules since 2001.”

The agency had not released a draft of the item on Wednesday. The FCC is responsible for granting licenses to companies looking to lay subsea cables that hook up to the United States.