NPRM

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Key Takeaways: The Treasury Department is seeking to equip CFIUS with greater enforcement and oversight authority. These new powers include the ability to request more information from transaction parties and also to assess more significant penalties—in some cases, potentially greater than the transaction value—against companies who fail to comply with mandatory filing requirements or violate mitigation agreements.Continue Reading Treasury Department Proposes to Sharpen the Teeth of CFIUS Enforcement

As yet another example of the U.S. government’s ongoing concerns about the potential vulnerability of U.S. telecommunications networks and supply chains, the FCC recently released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) proposing to prohibit the use of funds disbursed from the Universal Services Fund (USF) to purchase equipment or services from any providers posing a national security threat to the U.S. The USF distributes funds and subsidies to companies who provide service to unserved and underserved locations and low-income consumers. The NPRM dovetails with recent governmental actions targeting perceived Chinese threats to U.S. telecommunications infrastructure, including the passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2018 (which prohibits the Department of Defense from using the equipment or services of certain Chinese telecommunications companies), the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ (CFIUS) blocking of chipmaker Broadcom’s hostile takeover bid for Qualcomm, and the Department of Commerce’s denial of export privileges against a Chinese telecommunications manufacturer for seven years. It also precedes a recent report by the Wall Street Journal on May 2, 2018 detailing the possibility of executive action by the Trump administration to restrict Chinese companies’ ability to sell telecommunications equipment in the U.S. Chinese companies have already taken action as a result of this increased focus on Chinese telecommunications equipment, including one firm’s request for a stay of a U.S. order banning American companies from selling to the firm.
Continue Reading FCC Sets Sights on China

Under new Chairman Ajit Pai’s leadership, the Federal Communications Commission (the “Commission”) is taking its first steps toward reforming its rules interpreting the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). On Wednesday, May 17, the Commission published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) for a proposed rule that would allow all voice service providers – including wireless providers and VoIP providers – to block illegal robocalls before they reach consumers. Comments on the NPRM are due by July 3, 2017, and Reply Comments are due by July 31, 2017.
Continue Reading TCPA Update: FCC Seeks Guidance on Proposed Robocall-Blocking Rule

Following the D.C. Circuit’s decision in Verizon v. FCC, which struck down several key elements of the Federal Communication Commission’s 2010 Open Internet Order, the Commission yesterday released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that initiated a renewed effort to foster and protect an “open” Internet. In what is likely to become a highly-contested proceeding, the FCC is proposing regulations to guard against the “real threat” posed by the power of broadband providers while remaining within the bounds of its authority as recently clarified by the D.C. Circuit.[1]
Continue Reading Once More Unto the Breach: the FCC Calls for Comments on Revamping Net Neutrality Regulations