Telecom Alert: Call to Reclassify 911 Telecommunicators; Over $25M in Tribal Broadband Grants; CPF Grants; ECF Funding [Vol. XX, Issue 16]
Rosenworcel Calls to Reclassify 911 Telecommunicators
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel issued a letter to the director of the Office of Management and Budget last week reiterating her support to reclassify public safety telecommunicators as first responders. Currently, public safety telecommunicators are categorized as “office and administrative support” in the government’s Standard Occupational Classification system. Several states have updated their definitions of “first responders” to include telecommunicators and Chairwoman Rosenworcel believes the federal government should do the same. For more information, please contact Wes Wright (wright@khlaw.com; 202.434.4239).
Over $25 Million in Tribal Broadband Grants
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”) announced it awarded two grants totaling over $25.7 million through the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (the “Program”) (Vol. XIX, Issue 42). These grants will go to the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe in Minnesota and the Pueblo of Acoma in New Mexico and will help directly connect more than 1,500 unserved Tribal households. To date, the Program has awarded over $1.75 billion to 135 Tribal entities. For more information, please contact Sean Stokes (stokes@khlaw.com; 202.434.4193).
$540 Million in CPF Grants
Last week, the Department of the Treasury announced the award of $540.2 million in funding for California for broadband projects through the Capital Projects Fund (the “Fund”) (Vol. XX, Issue 14). The Fund provides $10 billion to states, territories, and Tribal governments to fund critical capital projects that enable work, education, and health monitoring. California’s plan will support approximately 127,000 households and businesses, or about sixteen percent of locations that still lack high-speed internet access in the state. For more information, please contact Jim Baller (baller@khlaw.com; 202.434.4175).
ECF Funding
The FCC announced that it is committing over $2.5 million in a new funding round through the Emergency Connectivity Fund Program (the “Program”). The Commitment will support applications from all three filing windows and will support approximately fifteen schools, one library, and one consortium. To date, the Program has provided support for roughly 11,000 schools, 1,000 libraries, and 100 consortia. For more information, please contact Casey Lide (lide@khlaw.com; 202.434.4186).
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