Today’s Regulatory Mix: Federal Judge Temporarily Halts the Affordable Internet Program in New York, FEMA and FCC Plan Nationwide Emergency Alert Test 

Federal Judge Temporarily Halts the Affordable Internet Program in New York 

A federal judge issued a temporary injunction against New York’s recently enacted Affordable Broadband Act that was to go in effect on June 15, 2021. The act requires internet service providers that serve New York to provide high-speed Internet to low-income families for $15 a month.

In granting the  injunction, District Judge Denis R. Hurley agreed that the new law’s rate  regulation conflicted with a 2018 FCC decision, which was upheld by a D.C. Circuit in relevant part, that broadband is an interstate information service.  Furthermore, the court concluded that the New York is likely preempted by the federal Communications Act.

FEMA and FCC Plan Nationwide Emergency Alert Test

FEMA, in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission, have announced that they will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) this summer. The scheduled date for this test is August 11, 2021. 

Both FEMA and the FCC are coordinating with EAS participants, wireless providers, emergency managers, and other stakeholders in preparation for this national test to minimize confusion and to maximize the public safety value of the test. The test is intended to ensure public safety officials have the methods and systems that will deliver urgent alerts and warnings to the public in times of an emergency or disaster. 

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The Regulatory Mix, Inteserra’s blog of telecom related regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of an Inteserra Briefing.

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