D.C. Memo: Trump Wins - What's Ahead for Telecom Policy

◾ Trade Group: FCC Speed Test App Not Being Used Over Privacy ◾ Consolidated Posts Small Broadband Sub Gain ◾ ACI: Unlocking Has a Loper, Bright Problem ◾ CAWG: NTIA Short Changed Rural BEAD States

GOP D.C: As of this morning, Republicans will control the White House, the Senate, and quite possibly the House — an alignment that will likely trigger a new approach to national communications policy in 2025. The $42.45 billion BEAD program – under heavy GOP criticism for failing to fund a single broadband project in three years and for favoring fiber over other technologies – is likely to get a facelift, with more funding allocated to unlicensed fixed wireless, Elon Musk’s Starlink, and Amazon’s Project Kuiper once operational. At the FCC, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel’s agenda – from Net Neutrality and Junk Fees to Digital Discrimination and bulk billing bans – is no longer the threat to industry as it once appeared. If tradition holds,  Rosenworcel will step down around the time of Trump’s second inauguration on January 20 – at which point it will be up to Trump to decide whom he wants to lead the agency. Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr has been given the inside track. Over the next 75 days, it’s entirely possible Rosenworcel could call for a vote on her 60-day mobile phone unlocking mandate, tweak pole attachment rules, impose retransmission consent blackout reporting requirements, or ban restrictive clauses in cable programming contracts. But she might find that pointless because some or all of it could be reversed by a Carr-led FCC or voided under the Congressional Review Act. With the Senate going Republican, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who won reelection Tuesday, is in position to become Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee and take the discussion on Universal Service Fund reform in a major new direction.