Congress is taking another shot at renewing the Federal Communications Commission’s spectrum auction authority, after that authorization lapsed in March due to its inability to pass a must-pass spending bill with auction authority attached. But the legislation is yet another stopgap renewal.

Listed last on a raft of 28 House bills all targeted at closing the digital divide is one that will be key to freeing up more spectrum for Wi-Fi: Allowing the FCC to auction spectrum by extending its authority, though only until June 30, 2023.

A marathon markup in the House Communications Subcommittee Wednesday (May 16) will include a bill, not yet named or numbered, “to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to extend the authority of the [FCC] to grant a license or construction permit through a system of competitive bidding.”

A markup is a committee or subcommittee business meeting during which bills are amended, debated and ideally get an up or down vote out of the subcommittee. Next stop would be a full committee vote.

Also Read: House E&C Leaders Decry Looming Lapse of FCC Spectrum Auction Authority

The FCC spectrum auction authority bill is being introduced by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (D-Wash.), chair of the full Energy & Commerce Committee.

The House last month passed H.R. 1108, which at least would have extended the FCC’s authority to May 19, but the Senate failed to follow suit before that authority expired. The FCC’s authority was set to expire on September 30, 2022, but then was extended four times through March 9, 2023.

FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel has called on Congress to pass a long-term extension.

In 1993, Congress authorized the FCC to grant licenses via competitive bidding, bringing in billions of dollars for the treasury.

In a report on FCC spectrum auction authority, the Congressional Research Service warned that allowing the authority to expire will create potential uncertainty “for both agencies and industry.”

Among the other 27 bills getting vetted Wednesday are a number of deregulatory bills that are intended to speed both wired and wireless broadband deployment by 1) goosing tower citing decisions; 2) setting deadlines for local franchising authorities to grant or deny applications for cable franchises and requiring those authorities to provide plenty of supporting evidence for decisions to deny a franchise; and making it easier to deploy on federal lands.

“Access to reliable high-speed broadband services has become an essential tool,” Rodgers said in announcing the markup. “In order to ensure all Americans are connected, we need to remove regulatory burdens and cut the red tape, which have resulted in unnecessary permitting delays and exorbitant costs to deploying our communications infrastructure.”

The full list of bills being marked up is below:

• H.R. 3279, the “Winning the International Race for Economic Leadership and Expanding Service to Support Leadership Act” or the “WIRELESS Leadership Act” (Rep. Latta)
• H.R. 3295, the “Barriers and Regulatory Obstacles Avoids Deployment of Broadband Access and Needs Deregulatory Leadership Act” or the “BROADBAND Leadership Act” (Rep. Griffith)
• H.R. 3287, the “Cable Access for Broadband and Local Economic Leadership Act” or the “CABLE Leadership Act” (Rep. Balderson)
• H.R. ___, the “Connecting and Building Lines for Expedited Expansion Act” or the “CABLE Expansion Act” (Rep. Lesko)
• H.R. ___, the “Consumer Access to Broadband for Local Economies and Competition Act” or the “CABLE Competition Act” (Rep. Burgess)
• H.R. ___, the “Cable Transparency Act” (Rep. Weber)
• H.R. 3298, the “Broadband Expansion and Deployment Fee Equity and Efficiency Act” or the “BEAD FEES Act” (Rep. Allen)
• H.R. ___, the “Granting Remaining Applications Not Treated Efficiently or Delayed Act” or the “GRANTED Act” (Rep. Obernolte)
• H.R. 3300, the “5G Using Previously Granted Rulings that Accelerate Deployment Everywhere Act of 2023” or the “5G UPGRADE Act of 2023” (Rep. Harshbarger)
• H.R. ___, the “Streamlining Permitting to Enable Efficient Deployment for Broadband Infrastructure Act of 2023” or the “SPEED for Broadband Infrastructure Act of 2023” (Rep. Pence)
• H.R. 3289, the “Wireless Broadband Competition and Efficient Deployment Act” (Rep. Johnson)
• H.R. 3288, the “Broadband Competition and Efficient Deployment Act” (Rep. Joyce)
• H.R. ___, the “Wireless Resiliency and Flexible Investment Act of 2023” (Rep. Bucshon)
• H.R. ___, the “Broadband Resiliency and Flexible Investment Act” (Rep. Crenshaw)
• H.R. 3291, the “Proportional Reviews for Broadband Deployment Act” (Rep. Carter)
• H.R. ___, the “Reducing Antiquated Permitting for Infrastructure Deployment Act” or the “RAPID Act” (Rep. Hudson)
• H.R. ___, the “Coastal Broadband Deployment Act” (Rep. Bilirakis)
• H.R. 3292, the “Brownfields Broadband Deployment Act” (Rep. Walberg)
• H.R. 3280, the “Timely Replacement Under Secure and Trusted for Early and Dependable Broadband Networks Act” or the “TRUSTED Broadband Networks Act” (Rep. Guthrie)
• H.R. 3301, the “Connecting Communities Post Disaster Act of 2023” (Rep. Dunn)
• H.R. 3296, the “Wildfire Communications Resiliency Act” (Rep. Rodgers)
• H.R. 3297, the “Reducing Barriers for Broadband on Federal Lands Act” (Rep. Fulcher)
• H.R. 3309, the “Standard Fees to Expedite Evaluation and Streamlining Act” or the “Standard FEES Act” (Reps. Palmer and Ryan)
• H.R. 3293, the “Expediting Federal Broadband Deployment Act” (Reps. Duncan and Craig)
• H.R. 3299, the “Deploying Infrastructure with Greater Internet Transactions and Legacy Applications Act” or “DIGITAL Applications Act” (Reps. Cammack and Matsui)
• H.R. 3283, the “Facilitating the Deployment of Infrastructure with Greater Internet Transactions and Legacy Applications Act” or “Facilitating DIGITAL Applications Act” (Reps. Miller-Meeks and Dingell)
• H.R. ___, the “Federal Broadband Deployment Tracking Act” (Reps. Pfluger and Soto)
• H.R. ___, to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to extend the authority of the Federal Communications Commission to grant a license or construction permit through a system of competitive bidding (Rep. Rodgers)

The House Communications Subcommittee has told the FCC and the NTIA to get in a room, if not quite get a room, and make up for the good of the country's leadership in next-generation communications technologies like 5G.

That came Wednesday (Nov. 3) at a markup (subcommittee consideration of amendments and votes) on two communications bills. Both measures were approved by voice vote and favorably reported to the full Energy & Commerce Committee.

The Federal Communications Commission and National Telecommunications and Information Administration, under the Trump administration, were sometimes at odds over spectrum issues and how the government spectrum that the NTIA oversees could be shared or freed up for commercial 5G use while still protecting important government uses like radar and GPS.

That tensions have resurfaced lately over Federal Aviation Administration concerns with interference from new wireless users of C-band spectrum they won at auction. Those worries were expressed in a press conference even as the NTIA and FCC have been trying to resolve those concerns out of the public glare.

Also read: NTIA Identifies More Midband Spectrum

In an effort to get the FCC and NTIA to better coordinate spectrum policy, the Subcommittee on Tuesday passed the Spectrum Coordination Act (HR 2501), which would require the FCC and NTIA to update a 2003 memorandum of understanding governing their coordination.

What passed was actually an amended version of the bill with the addition of clarification on the three key ways the FCC and NTIA need to update the memorandum, which is to: 1) improve the process for resolving frequency allocation disputes between them; 2) ensure spectrum is used efficiently; and 3) establish reasonable timelines for exchanging information.

Legislators on both sides of the aisle were clearly tired of the disconnect between the FCC and NTIA. Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.), a bill co-sponsor, said he recognized their coordination had improved of late, but this bill would make sure that continued.

Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) laid the blame for the NTIA and FCC disconnect with the Trump administration. He said that spectrum policy needed to be managed competently and correctly, which was not the case under Trump, when the two agencies often bickered. government must speak with one voice on spectrum and move beyond interagency disagreements, he said.

Also approved and reportedly favorably to the full committee was the Data Mapping to Save Moms Act (HR 1281). That bill requires the FCC to overlay Centers for Disease Control data on maternal morbidity with connectivity data to see the correlation and help target broadband where telehealth could have an impact on the country’s rising maternal morbidity rates, particularly among minorities and rural populations most likely to be on the wrong side of the digital divide.

There were some other communications bills that both sides said they would have liked to mark up, but they could not come to agreement on that.

“I commend Chairman Doyle, Ranking Member Latta, and Members of the Subcommittee for advancing the bipartisan ‘Spectrum Coordination Act’ and the ‘Data Mapping to Save Moms’ Lives Act," said Competitive Carriers Association President Steven K. Berry. "Spectrum coordination between the FCC and NTIA is extremely important to ensure disputes are addressed well before spectrum is designated for commercial use. Additionally, CCA has long advocated for better data maps, which among many benefits, will help provide critical internet connectivity to improve maternal health outcomes. I thank the Subcommittee for moving these bills forward and look forward to continued work on these issues as they are considered by the full Committee.”

Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.), ranking member of the House Communications Subcommittee, said he will not be running for re-election in 2022.

He said with redistricting, he is up against the new boundaries of his 18th district and he said it was a good transition time for a new — Democratic — member of Congress to get acclimated to the district.

He also said it was time for the next generation of party leadership. Doyle will be 69 at the end of his term.

Doyle said he was making the announcement now so that candidates will step forward, but that he has no one in mind. He did say if he did find a candidate he liked he would endorse him. He pointed out he was in a seven-way primary when he was elected. He said he would like to see a similar race bringing different ideas from all parts of the party.

Doyle, who has been in Congress since 1995, has been one of the most prominent legislators in the communications space, including pushing for the return of network neutrality rules and big bucks for universal broadband deployment. He has headed the committee since Democrats took over control of the House in 2018 and before that was ranking member.

Just last week, in the wake of the revelations by a Facebook whistleblower and allegations about the company’s internal research about the impact of its platforms on young people, House Energy & Commerce Committee leaders including Doyle proposed a bill that targets “reckless” use of algorithms by limiting Section 230, which protects edge providers from civil liability for most third-party content on their platforms. He pointed out that legislation in a press conference announcing his exit.

He also recently introduced a bill with Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) that would free up more spectrum for wireless broadband using a sharing approach.

Doyle's legislative director, Phil Murphy, left last June to become a senior adviser to the Biden Administration on telecom policy.

“Throughout his over 25 years in the House of Representatives, Rep. Mike Doyle has worked tirelessly to represent the interests of his Pennsylvania district in Washington, D.C." said NCTA-the Internet & Television Association. "He has distinguished himself during that time as a talented and respected policymaker, playing an important role in shaping communications and spectrum policy the United States. He has compiled a commendable record of accomplishments, including his work to facilitate the growth of Wi-Fi and the expansion of broadband across the country. His leadership as chair of the Communications Subcommittee (and his legendary management of the Democratic baseball team) will be sorely missed, and we wish him well in the next chapter of his life.”

“Proud of his Pittsburgh roots and dedicated to improving the lives of his constituents, Rep. Mike Doyle was greatly admired and respected because he always made clear that his chief loyalty was simply to be the best public servant he could be," said ACA Connects President Matt Polka. "We appreciate that Rep. Doyle took the time to understand our issues and allow ACA Connects to interact in positive ways with his House Communications & Technology Subcommittee – most recently in June, 2019, when ACA Connects Chairman Patricia Jo Boyers testified on legislation that would soon become the Television Viewer Protection Act of 2019 (TVPA). That law took a big step forward in rectifying disparities in retransmission consent law harmful to the customers of smaller multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs)."

"Mike Doyle is a champion for competition, consumers and a better Congress that works together to help improve the lives of working families," said INCOMPAS CEO Chip Pickering. "Maybe better than anyone in public service, Mike understands the impact policies crafted in Washington have on the wallets of families and small businesses back home. Leaving a tremendous legacy on broadband, Mike's support for competition policy has helped bring greater affordability and innovation in the marketplace.  

"Mike Doyle has led by example, showing great integrity for the Institution of Congress, working across the aisle, and carrying on the great legacy of Congressional Baseball, which has always proven to be more than just a game. We look forward to working with Chairman Doyle until the last out of the last inning to ensure better, faster broadband gets deployed to every American.” 

“NAB congratulates Rep. Doyle on his retirement and we thank him for his leadership on telecommunications issues while serving as chairman and ranking member of the House Communications & Technology Subcommittee," said National Association of Broadcasters President Gordon Smith. "During his 14 terms in Congress, Rep. Doyle has been diligently focused on serving his constituents and we appreciate his recognition for the vital role local radio and television stations play in his district and in communities across the country. We look forward to continuing to work with him in the 117th Congress and wish him all the best in his next endeavors.”

“Representative Mike Doyle has been an influential advocate of self-driving cars and next generation mobility technology," said Michael Petricone, SVP at the Consumer Technology Association. "We thank him for his service and his advocacy for American innovation.”

The Democrat-controlled House Communications Subcommittee has scheduled an FCC oversight hearing for Sept. 17 and if its title, "Trump FCC: Four Years of Lost Opportunities,” is any indication, the FCC commissioners should prepare for some tough questions.

If the title were not sufficient, the joint statement from Communications Subcommittee chairman Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) and parent House Energy & Commerce Committee chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) put an exclamation point on the Democrats' unhappiness.

“After four years, this FCC has failed to make broadband any more affordable for consumers, which has exacerbated the digital divide,” they said. “Worse yet, they have not used all the tools at their disposal to blunt the terrible impact COVID-19 has had on Americans struggling to stay connected to schools, work and needed services. We look forward to questioning the commissioners on these and other issues next week.”

One issue Democrats have is that FCC chairman Ajit Pai has said that the E-rate broadband subsidy for schools can't be used to pay for home broadband service or equipment for students.

Pai has said the Communications Act "expressly limits the FCC's use of E-rate program funding to broadband and other services delivered to school 'classrooms' and libraries. Connectivity and devices supplied to students at home unfortunately do not qualify for E-rate support under the law."

Congressional Dems have countered that his reading of the statute is too narrow and that Congress is OK with him interpreting classroom to mean the new home classroom necessitated by COVID-19.

Pai on Thursday (Sept. 10) praised ISPs for working to extend broadband to more students by offering discount service to schools. 

The House Energy & Commerce Committee Communications Subcommittee has slated a time for next week's FCC oversight hearing. 

The hearing will be Dec. 5 at 10 a.m. with all five commissioners--FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, fellow Republicans Michael O'Rielly and Brendan Carr, and Democrats Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks.  

The subcommittee's last FCC oversight hearing was May 15.  

“The FCC is considering a number of actions that could have serious consequences for the American people,” Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) said in a joint statement last week. “As the Committee with jurisdiction over the FCC, we must ensure the Commission is fulfilling its mission to protect consumers and act in the public interest." 

More info, including the Committee Memorandum and witness testimony, will be available at this link closer to the hearing date.  

They did not say which actions they were referring to, and a spokesperson for the subcommittee had no comment, but clearly one of them is the decision by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, revealed to Hill leaders Monday (Nov. 18), to hold a public auction of C-Band spectrum. Legislators are probably generally happy with that choice over a private auction, but may have some questions about the auction framework and timing. 

Legislators on the House Communications Subcommittee appeared to be clearly favoring an FCC-led public auction of C-Band spectrum rather a private sale, something cable operators are backing as well. 

That came in a legislative hearing in the House Communications Subcommittee Tuesday (Oct. 29) on the  bipartisan Clearing Broad Airwaves for New Deployment (C-BAND) Act, sponsored by Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.), chairman of the Communications Subcommittee, Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), subcommittee vice-chair, and Reps. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), and Greg Gianforte (R-Minn.). 

That bill would mandate an FCC auction. 

The C-Band Alliance (CBA), comprising foreign satellite companies, has instead proposed a private-market sale rather than that FCC public auction, saying it will get the spectrum into the hands of carriers for 5G faster while still protecting the incumbent cable operators and broadcasters who get their network programming from distributors via C-Band satellite spectrum and providing some money to the treasury. 

The key issues for legislators on both sides are freeing up as much spectrum for 5G as quickly as possible, and preferably with lots of the proceeds going to the Treasury for broadband deployment and next-gen 911.

Doyle, who presided over the hearing, said that he found a lot about the CBA proposal "deeply disturbing," primarily that those companies would get the lion's share of a potential $60 billion a public or private auction could generate, money that could go to rural broadband buildouts, telehealth and next-gen 911. 

Doyle said the FCC and Congress needed to get the C-Band repurposing right because the spectrum was a "precious national resource." He said that if Congress gave away most of that $60 billion to foreign satellite companies, the American people would never forget it. 

Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), chairman of the parent Energy & Commerce Committee said he did not necessarily believe the CBA argument that a private sale would get the spectrum to 5G faster than an FCC auction, and said there would be novel enforcement issues of CBA's proposal to turn over some undetermined amount of the proceeds to the Treasury. He said an FCC auction would be more likely to be fair, transparent and competitive and pointed to the FCC's expertise in holding over 100 spectrum auctions.

Latta reiterated his support for the FCC auction legislation, but said that there were a number of complex issues that needed to be resolved, including protecting incumbents, getting it into the hands of carriers expeditiously, insuring a fair and transparent process, promoting auction participation by smaller users, and avoiding litigation.  

Johnson said he preferred the FCC auction because he thought it would insure that transparency and competitive process, as well as insuring that taxpayers were the primary beneficiaries. 

Rep. Johnson said FCC licenses don't confer property rights and that while he was all behind speeding 5G, he said he was focused on those without basic broadband access, which he said was hollowing out communities in his district and nationwide.

Johnson said he is tired of the "closing rural divide talk" and wants some action, which a public auction could provide in the form of billions for the Treasury and Congress allocating funds for closing the digital divide.  

Witnesses from ACA Connects and Citizens Against Government Waste made their own cases for a public auction. ACA SVP Ross Lieberman also plugged its proposal for freeing up 370 MHz by migrating satellite delivery of network programming to fiber.  

CAGW director of technology and telecommunications policy Deborah Collier said that the spectrum at auction was the American public's and that the FCC could not allow private sales with most of the proceeds going to satellite operators rather than the Treasury. 

She said the FCC did not have the authority to turn over a public asset, the American taxpayers' spectrum, to a private sale. She also pointed out that there would be lawsuits if the FCC approved a private sale, which would delay the repurposing and the argument that a private sale would be more expeditious.

Also arguing for a public sale was Public Knowledge policy director Phillip Berenbroick. He said it supports what it called the common sense C-Band Act for the speedy repurposing of spectrum via a public auction that will produce revenues for that public. He said the benefits of any reallocation must redound to the public, which includes freeing up spectrum for 5G, making the spectrum more efficient, and recouping tens of billions for the Treasury to, among other things, close the digital divide. 

He said an FCC auction is the faster, proven, legal approach.  He said the best way to speed the auction would be for Congress to push the FCC to expedite it, which might include giving it money to update the auction process if that is necessary.

Something of a lone voice in the hearing was James Frownfelter chairman of ABS and former head of one PanAmSat, which built the C-Band distribution system "from scratch." He was the only witness who explicitly backed a private sale--a Cisco witness said it was not taking a side, but did say that "government-led spectrum transitions have been tremendously difficult and slow." 

CBA has just upped its spectrum reclamation proposal from 200 MHz to 300 MHz. 

Frownfelter said that the FCC reclaiming and auctioning satellite spectrum in a public auction would be tantamount to satellite operators having their spectrum "largely confiscated without compensation."  

Frownfelter said a significant amount of the proceeds from a private sale would be directed by the FCC to the Treasury--Collier had suggested that the CBA's proposed voluntary payment could be as little as a dollar--and suggested that Treasury cut would be about 25%. He also said there would be other conditions to insure a transparent and fair auction that protected incumbents, and said that private sale would be the fastest way to roll out 5G. 

Lieberman said that Frownfelter's suggestion the reclamation and repurposing would be faster with a private auction did not take into account that smaller operators would be shouldering much of the repurposing load because they would have to be switching out head-end tech under the CBA proposal of using compression to be able to repurpose 300 MHz--cable ops want to repurpose 370 MHz via a migration to fiber.  

Frownfelter said Lieberman was overstating the difficulty of the compression upgrade. 

Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) asked whether Cisco would support a public auction if Congress or the FCC could expedite it. Campbell said, yes, if Congress can speed the FCC process or the FCC speed the process, "that would be great." But he also said that one benefit of a private auction might be that it signals to others in bands that the government might be looking to clear that they should be cooperative, providing a carrot rather than a stick.

"As the FCC works to address how the present occupants and new uses may simultaneously be accommodated in 500 MHz of that band, Chairman Doyle is right to inquire about the process which will bring that about," said Claude Aiken, president of WISPA, which represents fixed wireless service providers. 

But Aiken emphasized that the FCC did not have a binary choice.  

"But we’d like to offer a reminder: There are other viable plans to repurpose the C-band than solely auctioning off spectrum to mobile 5G providers for their largely urban clientele. More than 250 entities have supported a competing proposal by the Broadband Access Coalition (BAC), which employs both an auction and sharing of that valuable spectrum to open up the C-band for other uses, too. 

"The BAC (of which we are a member) has put forward a plan which urges the Commission to clear 200 MHz for mobile providers, and, with the remaining 300 MHz, allow sharing between incumbent satellite earth stations and fixed wireless providers, or WISPs. A technical study produced by WISPA, Google and Microsoft shows that sharing can safely and effectively occur in the C-band, giving access to approximately 80 million, mostly rural Americans to blazing fast broadband services."

The House Communications Subcommittee will vet over a half dozen robocall-related bills at next week's (April 30) legislative hearing, the committee leadership said Friday (April 26).

Among the reasons for the flurry of bills on a subject also in the wheelhouse of FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, the hearing memorandum said, was that the FCC received almost a quarter million robocall complaints in 2018, a 34% increase since 2015.

It also pointed to estimates that there were a staggering 48 billion robocalls in 2018.

The memo, produced by the Democratic majority, also pointed out that, while the FCC since 2015 has fined telemarketers $208 million, it has so far collected only $6,790. But it also said the commission had "clarified that carriers are allowed to block certain categories of 'presumptively illegal calls' before they reach consumers’ phones, such as those that start with area codes that do not exist."

Comcast and T-Mobile last week announced a partnership to combat robocalls.

The bills getting the once-over are:

1. H.R. 946, the “Stopping Bad Robocalls Act,” introduced by Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J., chairman of the parent House Energy & Commerce Committee)

2. H.R. 1421, the “HANGUP Act,” introduced by Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.)

3. H.R. 2355, the “ROBO Calls and Texts Act,” introduced by Rep. Eshoo

4. H.R. 721, the “Spam Calls Task Force Act of 2019,” introduced by Rep. Charlie Crist (D-FL)

5. Discussion Draft, the “STOP Robocalls Act,” released by Rep. Bob Latta (R-Ohio), ranking member of the subcommittee

6. H.R. 2298, the “ROBOCOP Act,” introduced by Rep. Speier (D-CA)

7. H.R. 1575, the “Robocall Enforcement Enhancement Act of 2019,” introduced by Rep. Jefferson Van Drew (D-N.J).

The House Energy & Commerce Committee Communications Subcommittee will hold a hearing April 30 on legislation to "Stop the Onslaught of Annoying Robocalls."

Related: Senate Commerce Passes Robocall Bill

Along with closing the digital divide, attacking the "scourge" of unwanted robocalls arguably tops the list of issues of concern to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.

It is high on the list of legislators who hear from their constituents about the issue.

Related: FCC Classified Text Messaging as Information Service

“The robocall epidemic is only getting worse. Americans are understandably demanding action to stop these annoying, and often fraudulent, calls,” said House Energy & Commerce Committee chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.), chairman of the Communications Subcommittee. “It’s time for Congress to act, and next week we will discuss legislation that will protect consumers, stop the abusive practices of robocallers and better restrict unauthorized calls.”

Comcast and T-Mobile last week announced a partnership to combat robocalls.

FCC chair Ajit Pai plans a strong Capitol Hill defense of his Restoring Internet Freedom Order, which rolled back net neutrality regulations as of last month.

That is according to his prepared testimony for a July 25 FCC oversight hearing in the House Communications Subcommittee.

Pai had choice words for those who branded the order, which nullified rules against blocking, throttling and paid prioritization, the death of the internet.

At the time the order was adopted (back in December 2017), "there were many hysterical predictions of doom and gloom," he said. "The sky has not fallen. Indeed, the only thing that has fallen is the credibility of the Chicken Littles' who made such dire predictions."

Pai branded the 2015 Open Internet order and it rules a failed policy that the FCC had now abandoned, turning primary policing powers over ISPs to the Federal Trade Commission, from which it had been stripped by the 2015 order.

Pai said the bottom line is that the internet remains free and open and repealing the rules was the light touch the market needed to invest in the kind of faster, better, cheaper broadband that can help close the digital divide.

Pai's statement was also notable for what it did not talk about in what he billed as "the work of the Federal Communications Commission to advance the public interest." While there were were many references and whole sections devoted to broadband and spectrum for broadband, and wireless broadband, and broadband spectrum auctions, and 5G.

There was no mention of the FCC's broadcast deregulatory efforts or ATSC 3.0, the next gen standard that the FCC is helping roll out, or its recent decision to refer the Sinclair-Tribune merger for hearing.

He did point out that Congress' passage of the RAY BAUM Act did provide extra money to make sure LPTVs and translators got some financial help, and there was enough repack money for a consumer education campaign for all the repack-related channel moves.

WASHINGTON — Internet service providers that have been sparring with congressional Democrats over an opt-in broadband privacy regime now have a Republican to contend with. But the consequences of a new bill backed by House Communications Subcommittee chair Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) would have a bigger impact on edge providers and advertisers.

In trying to prevent the FCC from applying that opt-in to ISPs, one of the bigger arguments providers have made is that those opt-in rules didn’t apply both to them and to edge providers such as Facebook or Google, which have a dominant share of the targeted advertising that relies on such data.

In the Balancing the Rights of Web Surfers Equally and Responsibly [BROWSER] Act, Blackburn has proposed to change that, retaining the FCC’s extension of “sensitive” information that requires opt-in consent for sharing beyond financial and health and children’s data to include web browsing, while moving enforcement of all broadband privacy under the Federal Trade Commission.

Related: Rep. Blackburn Defends Broadband Privacy Bill

ISPs have been quiet on the bill — NCTA-The Internet & Television Association said it was still vetting the measure at press time and would have no comment — but groups representing advertisers and edge providers certainly have not been.

The Association of National Advertisers is no fan of Blackburn’s BROWSER Act, sponsored by the Republican House Communications Subcommittee.

Among other things, the ANA says Blackburn’s bill repeats the “fatal mistake” of overbroad classification of sensitive information (it does not say “of web browsing,” which they feel is key), and what the industry trade group calls a “vague and confusing” opt-in regime that would “bombard consumers with annoying consent notices.”

If FCC chair Ajit Pai succeeds in rolling back classification of ISPs as common carriers under Title II of the Communications Act, the Federal Trade Commission will again have enforcement authority over both edge providers and ISPs. Blackburn’s bill could beat the rollback to the punch, designating the FTC as the sole enforcer of online privacy.

Edge providers don’t want either the FCC or the FTC to start requiring them to get opt-in permission to share and monetize browser histories.

The Internet Association, whose largest members are Google, Amazon and Facebook, said the bill “has the potential to upend the consumer experience online and stifle innovation.”

Blackburn has fired back at her critics. “I thought the Internet Association would be more supportive of protecting consumers,” she told The Hill. Edge providers have, however, made clear their opposition to extending regulations to their neck of the ’net, arguing that ISPs have a unique gatekeeper position.

“I think if you ask the American people if they’re OK with having less control over their online privacy so companies can sell their data, they’d say no,” she said.

Robin Colwell, who has been chief of staff and senior legal advisor to FCC commissioner Michael O'Rielly, has been named chief counsel on the House Communications Subcommittee.

The subcommittee's current chief counsel, David Redl, has been nominated by President Donald Trump to head the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, but remains on staff until he is confirmed in the post.

The subcommittee is also down a deputy chief counsel, as Grace Koh excited earlier this year to become special assistant to the President for technology, telecom and cyber-security.

Colwell is formerly legislative counsel to Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and counsel for the Senate Subcommittee on Tourism, Competitiveness and Innovation.

In addition, the subcommittee announced that Tim Kurth has been named senior professional staff for the subcommittee. Kurth, who has been with lobbying firm Heartland Strategies, is former assistant to then-Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), who at Heartland dealt with, among other things, mergers and acquisitions — specifically telecommunications issues related to Charter's proposed deal with Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks

"I will truly miss Robin because her professionalism and mastery of communications policy is only exceeded by her sound judgment, political acumen and ability to work well with everyone she meets," said O'Rielly of Colwell's departure. "While she maintains sound conservative principles, she is able and willing to reach a deal when appropriate. There is no doubt in my mind that Robin will do very well in the new role."

"I'm thrilled to be joining the incredibly talented team that Chairman Walden and Chairman Blackburn have already put together," said Colwell, who starts in July. "Two and a half eventful and exciting years working for my brilliant friend Commissioner O'Rielly and with his incomparable legal advisors, Amy Bender and Erin McGrath, have prepared me well for this return engagement on the Hill. I look forward to working with my new Democratic colleagues, and I'm hopeful for the prospects of building strong coalitions and lasting policy gains on the communications and technology issues so important to all Americans."

WASHINGTON — Federal Communications Commission chairman Tom Wheeler told a congressional panel Tuesday (March 22) that he believes the agency has the authority to regulate broadband rates after the fact.

Wheeler’s comments were made at an FCC oversight hearing in the House Communications Subcommittee.

He was asked about the matter by Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), whose bill preventing broadband rate regulation passed a divided House Energy & Commerce Committee last week.

Wheeler had initially said he supported the underlying theme of preventing broadband rate regulations, but had since clarified in a letter that he was talking specifically about Congress codifying the FCC's Open Internet order forbearance of ex ante (before the fact) rate regulations, not other authorities like preventing anti-competitive paid prioritization or throttling that might implicate rates.

Wheeler and House Democrats are concerned that Kinzinger's bill is not targeted enough and could sweep in various consumer protections, like those in the Open Internet order.

Following the hearing, the press office for the House Energy & Commerce Committee majority issued a release pointing to Wheeler's support for FCC ex post facto rate regulation authority via enforcement, saying it contradicts prior administration promises not to regulate broadband rates.

David Grossman, from the office of House Communications Subcommittee ranking member Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), is heading to the FCC to be chief of staff to commissioner Mignon Clyburn, according to multiple sources.

Grossman has been senior tech policy advisor for the congresswoman, who has been extremely active on communications issues (her district includes Silicon Valley).

Clyburn chief of staff and media legal advisor Chanelle Hardy exited in January, with Holly Sauer assuming media advisor duties, detailed from the Media Bureau where she has been associate bureau chief.

Hardy had been in the post for only seven months or so, succeeding chief of staff Adonis Hoffman.

WASHINGTON — Federal Communications Commission chairman Tom Wheeler said he does not think his agency has the authority to start shutting down websites used to promote terrorist attacks like those in Paris, but said there might be some things the FCC could or should do when social media is used to promote violence.

He even pledged to use his bully pulpit to call Facebook chairman, CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg to talk about the issue.

During a House Communications Subcommittee FCC oversight hearing, Rep. Joe Barton (R-Tex.), who has issues with how the agency is treating low-power TV stations in the broadcast incentive auction, decided to seek written responses and instead use his time to talk about the Nov. 13 Paris terrorist attacks.

Barton said he was going off-script. He said that terrorist groups such as Islamic State, which took credit for the Paris attacks, can't beat the U.S. militarily, but are trying to use the Internet and social media "to beat us psychologically."

Given that, he said, "Isn't there something we can do under existing law to shut those Internet sites down?" He said that even in an open society, when there was a clear threat, "we could do something about the Internet and social-media side of the equation."

Wheeler said he was "not sure our authority extends to picking and choosing among websites." But he did say there were specific things the government could do.

Barton asked whether Congress should give the FCC authority to shut down the sites. Wheeler said one issue was the question of what is considered a "lawful intercept" — something he said Congress can define, essentially updating the definition in the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) wiretap law, which was passed in 1994.

"You read in the press that they were using PlayStation 4 games to communicate, which is outside the scope of anything ever considered in CALEA," Wheeler said. He said updating the lawful intercept concept might be one avenue worth pursuing.

But network security is also an issue, Wheeler said, citing 17 "mysterious" cuts of fiber links in the San Francisco Bay Area in the last few months.

"We need to have some kind of a 'big data' capability of determining what's happening to our network out there," he said. That’s because network sabotage is as likely as people sending incendiary messages, he said.  

He said the FCC has the only network-outage reporting system in the US., and it is "barely holding together with bailing wire and glue" because it uses "ancient" technology. He said has been asking for appropriations for updates.

"We have the ability inside our systems to use big data to connect the dots, "but we don’t have the capacity to do it," Wheeler said.

The chairman said he would work with the committee to update the laws.

Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) said that the FBI was dealing with the House Select Committee on Intelligence relative to the Bay Area cuts.

Barton and Eshoo agreed that the network threats were a clear and present danger, and Eshoo said she did not think the cuts of the fiber were a coincidence. Barton said terrorists were using the Internet in an "offensive, inappropriate — Eshoo added "effective" — way and, at minimum, the government should make it more difficult, and perhaps "absolutely shut it down."

Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) talked about violence in Chicago and said it was well known that gang leaders are using social media to advance their violent agendas and conflicts.

He said he understood the FCC had limited jurisdiction over Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, but asked if there was anything the FCC could do in the interests of public safety to curtail the violence. He asked if the FCC would add its voice and stature to the discussion.

Wheeler said the issue was similar to terrorist using social media. "We do not have jurisdiction over Facebook and other edge providers, and we do not intend to assert jurisdiction over them, and I don't believe, as legitimate as your concern is, I don't believe we have the jurisdiction to do the kind of thing that you suggest."

Wheeler said he was happy to use his "bully pulpit" to talk to Zuckerberg and others to make the point that this is an important issue that needs to be addressed, but the FCC does not have regulatory authority over social media.

Rush said he was not asking for regulation. "I will call Mark Zuckerberg this afternoon to raise the issues you've raised and the issue that Mr. Barton has raised and I'm sure he [Zuckerberg] is concerned about this as well and has some thoughts," Wheeler said.