On July 1, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) released a tentative agenda for the FCC’s July Open Meeting, which is scheduled for Wednesday, July 22 at 10:30 AM ET. The agenda is focused on “speed, simplicity, security, and spectrum abundance” to ensure the future of American communications leadership. Details on the five items expected to be considered at the Open Meeting are summarized below:
- Upper C-Band Auction Rules – Report and Order, Order of Proposed Modification and Order on Reconsideration, GN Docket Nos. 25-59 and 18-122. In furtherance of the directives in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, this Order would reallocate 160 megahertz (MHz) of the 3.98-4.2 gigahertz (GHz) band (Upper C-band) for terrestrial wireless services in the contiguous United States. This Order would also adopt licensing and auction rules for the Upper C-band that largely mirror the Lower C-band framework and harmonize technical and services rules to incorporate these new licenses into a single 3.7 GHz band service. In addition, the Order would establish a mandatory transition framework for incumbent Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) operations and create a reimbursement and incentive eligibility framework tied to compliance with the transition deadlines. Specifically, the Order would require the clearing of the top 75 Partial Economic Areas (PEAs) by December 30, 2030, with wireless operations eligible to commence on December 31, 2030, and the clearing of the remaining PEAs by June 30, 2031, with wireless operations eligible to commence by July 1, 2031.
In addition, the Order would create a rebate program to support the upgrade of aviation radio altimeters to meet forthcoming standards the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is expected to adopt in response to the new Upper C-band terrestrial services. The Order would direct the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau to finalize the details of the rebate program after providing an opportunity for public comment on its proposals. The eligible entities for rebates would be aircraft operators that hold a U.S. operating certificate under 14 CFR part 119 and aircraft owners as determined by FAA’s Aircraft Registry, but foreign-registered aircraft operators and owners would not be eligible for rebates. Notably, the draft Order redacts all information about the incentive payments that would be directed to incumbent FSS operators, the estimated amount of the altimeter rebate program, and data relating to the forthcoming FAA altimeter rule.
Finally, the Order would resolve six pending petitions relating to the 2020 Lower C-band Report and Order, including petitions for reconsideration that were filed by AIA, Intelsat, Eutelsat, ITSO, Charter and Raytheon, by finding that the petitions were either addressed in the Order or rendered moot over time. - Strengthening Rules Governing Dangerous Gear – Third Report and Order and Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM), ET Docket No. 21-232. In an effort to further strengthen the Commission’s equipment authorization program against national security threats, this Third Report and Order (Third R&O) would prohibit entities—regardless of their Covered List status—from receiving an authorization for equipment that incorporate “logic-bearing hardware components” produced by Covered List entities. This prohibition would only apply to those components produced by named entities on the Covered List (and their affiliates and subsidiaries), such as Huawei, ZTE, Hytera, DJI and Autel, but would not apply to Covered unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), UAS critical components or routers. In an effort to prevent unauthorized marketing of Covered List equipment, the Third R&O would clarify that “marketing” includes online marketplaces that list, distribute or offer unauthorized equipment, require online marketplaces to display the FCC ID of certified devices at the online point of sale and find that the FCC has the authority pursuant to Section 302 of the Communications Act to subject online marketplaces to FCC enforcement action for failing to comply with FCC Covered List prohibitions. The Third R&O would also clarify certain rules relating to the modification of Covered equipment, including requiring full certification for any modification or permissive change made by an entity named on the Covered List regardless of whether the equipment is covered. Finally, as required by the D.C. Circuit, the FCC would adopt a new definition for “critical infrastructure.”
The Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (Third FNPRM) seeks comment on, among other things, the FCC’s proposals to modify the equipment authorization application procedures, including: requiring that an applicant provide a written and signed list of all entities that produced the device; requiring an applicant—regardless of Covered List designation—to submit a full bill of materials for each device for which an authorization is sought; creating a rebuttable presumption against authorizing devices incorporating any components produced by Covered List entities; and applying the certification framework to all Covered List entities, rather than allowing for alternatives such as Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity. In addition, the Third FNPRM seeks comment on a series of importation and marketing rules for Covered devices, and on codifying certain definitions related to Covered UAS, UAS critical components and routers. - Space Modernization for the 21st Century – Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, SB Docket No. 25-306. This R&O would replace the existing Part 25 rules—which govern satellite and earth station licensing—with a new Part 100 for “Space and Earth Station Services.” This R&O would simplify and streamline application requirements in order to create an expedited license processing framework which enables an application and licensing “assembly line.” Changes include: the adoption of a presumption that all applications that meet the FCC’s rules are in the public interest and therefore can be granted once found compliant with the rules; reforms to the processing round procedures for non-geostationary orbit satellite (NGSO) systems; a removal of surety bond requirements for most non-processing round licenses; the extension of license terms for most space stations and earth stations to 20 years; the creation of a new Variable Trajectory Space Station license category; and the use of certifications instead of detailed showings for many technical requirements. The new rules also include detailed timelines for application processing in order to provide greater certainty for applicants.
The FNPRM seeks comment on additional reforms, including experimental licensing pathways, call sign consolidation for NGSO systems, and expanded hosted payload frameworks for non-U.S. hosts. The FNPRM also seeks comment on whether—and if so how—it should adopt licensing and operational rules for inter-satellite services. - Improving Broadband Labels – Report and Order, CG Docket No. 22-2; GN Docket No. 25-133. This R&O would modify or remove certain broadband consumer label requirements to ensure that consumers have clear, accurate and concise information about broadband plans. Specifically, the R&O would permit providers to describe label information over the phone and in a conversational style. It would also modify its current rules to permit providers to aggregate rather than itemize passthrough fees and display a hyperlink or icon in their online portal and at the point of sale rather than display the label itself. In addition, the R&O would remove the requirement that providers include information related to the Affordable Connectivity Program, which ended in June 2024, in the broadband label. Finally, the R&O would, among other things, remove the requirement that providers make label contents available in a separate machine-readable spreadsheet and the requirement that providers archive all labels for at least two years after a service plan is no longer available.
- Improving the Effectiveness of the Robocall Mitigation Database – Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, WC Docket Nos. 24-213 and 17-97; CG Docket No. 17-59. The FNPRM would seek comment on how to strengthen the robocall mitigation database (RMD). In particular, the FNPRM would seek comment on defining “voice service” and “voice service providers” to ensure that relevant entities are aware of, among other things, their RMD filing and certification obligations. The FNPRM also would seek comment on ways in which the Commission can strengthen applicant screening to prevent bad actors from entering the RMD, on new tools for supporting audits and enforcement mechanisms, which would allow the Commission to identify and remove non-compliant or bad-actor providers from the RMD, and on how to align the RMD efforts with the know-your-customer obligations.
