Telecom Business Alert – Open Internet Rules, FirstNet, Antenna Structures, FCC Field Offices , Vol XII, Issue 24
Open Internet Rules
Last week the D.C. Circuit denied the motions for stay of the Open Internet Order (Order)filed by USTelecom, AT&T, NCTA, and CTIA, and other broadband providers (Petitioners).The rules adopted in the Order went into effect on Friday, June 12, 2015.Click here for a summary of the Open Internet Order. The D.C. Circuit did grant Petitioners’ request for expedited consideration of their appeals of the Order. Please contact Doug Jarrett (Jarrett@khlaw.com; 202.434.4180) with questions.
FirstNet Activities
FirstNet released its first set of Questions and Answers pertaining to the Special Notice and draft Request for Proposal (RFP). Questions were submitted by the public to the FirstNet board last May. FirstNet responded to questions 1 through 95, and subsequent responses to additional questions may be released later. Comments to the draft RFP are due by July 27, 2015. Tomorrow, the House Communications and Technology Subcommittee will hold a hearing on FirstNet, entitled, Progress Toward a Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network. The hearing will be webcast live here. Keller and Heckman will provide an overview of the hearing in our next Alert. Please contact Al Catalano (Catalano@khlaw.com; 202.434.4207) with any questions, including how to become involved in the FirstNet proceedings.
Antenna Structure Monetary Forfeiture
Last week the Enforcement Bureau issued a Forfeiture Order affirming a $10,000 penalty against Global Tower, LLC (Global Tower) for failing to comply with the antenna structure lighting requirements. Under Part 17 of the Commission’s rules, antenna structure owners must monitor tower lighting daily or maintain a lighting alarm system. In the Forfeiture Order, the Enforcement Bureau emphasized that Global Tower failed to monitor its antenna structure lighting, noting the tower was unlit for several days. For additional information, please contact Greg Kunkle (Kunkle@khlaw.com; 202.434.4178).
FCC Field Office Closings
The FCC and House Energy and Commerce Committee (Committee) leaders agreed to amend the Commission’s plans to close 16 of 24 Field Offices. Under the amended plan, 9 offices will be closed and 15 will remain open. For additional information, please contact Wes Wright (wright@khlaw.com; 202.434.4239).
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Keller and Heckman LLP's Telecom Business Alert is a complimentary weekly electronic update created by the Telecommunications and the Business Counseling and Transactional practice groups of Keller and Heckman LLP. All articles, videos, and quotations are on topics of general interest and do not constitute legal advice for particularized facts. Keller and Heckman LLP's Telecom Business Alert © 2015. All rights reserved. Articles may be copied with attribution. To sign up for our weekly alert, please send us an email at telecomalert@khlaw.com and provide us with your name and email. Please follow us on twitter at @KHtelecom.