This Week: E-Rate Notice, FirstNet Details, ICANN’s Future, and more

By Mitch Herckis posted Mar 17,2014 11:43 AM

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Lots to cover this week, but first, let me wish everyone a good Saint Patrick's Day / Purim. It's the best holiday mash-up since thanksgivukkah. On to the news...
Key Takeaway: FCC Seeks More Information on E-Rate Modernization

The FCC is continuing its look at how to support the President’s ConnectED initiative and reform an aging E-Rate program to ensure more students can receive high-speed broadband. On March 6, the FCC released a new public notice on the E-Rate Program. The goal of the notice is to delve deeper on three issues raised in the original E-rate Modernization Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).

These questions (which are explained in detail over 23 pages) boil down to 3 areas: (1) how best to focus E-rate funds on high-capacity broadband, especially high-speed Wi-Fi and internal connections; (2) whether and how the Commission should begin to phase down or phase out support for traditional voice services in order to focus more funding on broadband; and, (3) whether there are demonstration projects or experiments that the Commission should authorize as part of the E-rate program that would help the Commission test new, innovative ways to maximize cost-effective purchasing in the E-rate program.

The third question regarding demonstration projects could be an excellent opportunity for a state or region to highlight the power of bulk purchasing of equipment or large scale (“consortia”) planning for fiber deployment. NASCIO is reviewing the FCC public notice (available here), and deciding whether to respond. You can review NASCIO’s previous comments on reform from September here.

Other Buzz FirstNet Releases More Info To States

FirstNet showed that it is continuing to make progress in bolstering staff and planning. FirstNet held its latest board meeting on Tuesday, March 11, along with a meeting in Phoenix with key officials from western states. Out of these meetings, came a few new nuggets of information, including an overview of the state-FirstNet consultation and planning process, outlined in a very detailed flow chart. In addition, the General Manager Update (slides here) provided greater detail, including an updated organizational chart of FirstNet and a “Strategic Process Planning Overview” slide, which displays how FirstNet hopes to develop its business plan and roll out the network. Several State CIOs, as well as members of their staff, were in attendance at the Phoenix meeting. Washington State Point of Contact (SPOC) for FirstNet Bill Schrier provided some perspective on the meeting, available here.

U.S. to give up control of Internet naming and routing system

In what is sure to be a controversial decision, the Commerce Department has announced it plans to relinquish its oversight role of the organization responsible for managing the internet’s naming and routing architecture (press release here). By September 2015, the U.S. plans to develop a governance framework that moves Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), already an international stakeholder organization, out from under U.S. government jurisdiction. The group would then exist as an independent international entity. ICANN controls the assignment of domain names from “.com” to the newly minted general Top Level Domains (gTLDs) that allow registrants to create areas addresses that end anything from a particular place, like “.berlin,” to corporate addresses, like “.microsoft.” The move to relinquish control is already getting mixed responses.

For state governments, it’s important to note that ICANN does not have control over “.edu,” “.us,” or “.gov.” The .edu top level domain is managed by a non-profit, and the latter two are overseen by the the U.S. government. More info on that available here.

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