Reminder: Federal Communications Commission – October And November Filings

Each month, Kelley Drye's Communications Group offers this reminder of upcoming filing deadlines that may affect our clients and friends. Please review the deadlines below and contact us if you would like assistance or have any questions, particularly with respect to determining revised deadlines in view of the current federal government lapse in funding. 

Notice regarding U.S. Federal Government Lapse in Funding.

Effective 12:00:01 a.m. EDT on October 1, 2025, the FCC suspended most of its operations pending resolution of the appropriations process (the “Suspension”). As discussed more thoroughly in a September 30, 2025, Public Notice, with limited exceptions (primarily “filings related to the spectrum auction activities authorized by section 309(j) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. §309(j), and filings necessary for the protection of life and property” as well as filings with fund administrators, such as the Universal Service Administrative Company (“USAC”)) and subject to any grants of requests for specific extensions, FCC filing deadlines occurring during the Suspension, or on the day normal operations resume, are extended until the next business day after the day that normal operations resume. Please note that (with limited exceptions) where a filing's due date is extended due to the Suspension, the due dates for any subsequent reply or responsive pleadings will be similarly extended. Prospective filers should carefully review the September 30, 2025 Public Notice for guidance and remain vigilant for when the Suspension ends, with respect to any matters with relevant deadlines occurring during the Suspension. 

In view of the Suspension, this advisory continues to list certain items with early October deadlines that will be due following resumption of FCC operations. Kelley Drye attorneys are also available to assist with any questions you may have that are engendered by the Suspension. 

All items that are subject to an automatic extension as a result of the Suspension, as of the date of this E-Alert, are marked “EBS.” If the Suspension continues, other deadlines identified herein may be similarly extended.

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I. Featured Upcoming Compliance Deadlines

II. Filing Deadlines in Select Rulemakings, Inquiries, and Other Proceedings

III. Select Ongoing Filing Requirements

I. FEATURED UPCOMING COMPLIANCE DEADLINES (in chronological order)

A. 911 ANNUAL RELIABILITY CERTIFICATIONS (due October 15, 2025)  EBS 

Covered 911 service providers (as defined in Commission Rule 9.19(a)(4)) must certify annually regarding their compliance with the requirement to take reasonable measures to provide reliable 911 service with respect to: (i) 911 circuit diversity; (ii) central office backup power; and (iii) diverse network monitoring. Certifications shall be filed through the Commission's online portal at https://apps2.fcc.gov/rcs911/. Instructions regarding how to file the report and how to register new users in the portal are provided in an August 11, 2025, Public Notice.

B. Form 499-Q Quarterly Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet (due November 3, 2025)  [This deadline is not affected by the Suspension.] 
Carriers and providers of interstate and international telecommunications, including, but not limited to, interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol providers, providers offering interstate telecommunications for a fee on a non-common carrier basis, and payphone providers that are aggregators, are required to file the FCC Form 499-Q on a quarterly basis. Carriers and providers must report their actual and projected end user and carrier's carrier interstate and international revenues for each calendar quarter by filing the Form 499-Q. 

The Form 499-Q filing reporting historical revenue for July 1 through September 30 of 2025 and projected revenues for January 1 through March 31 of 2026 must be submitted to the Universal Service Administrative Company on or before November 3, 2025 (because the due date, November 1 falls on a Saturday).

Carriers and providers do not have to submit the Form 499-Q provided they are not required to contribute directly to the universal service support mechanisms, including but not limited to carriers and providers whose annual interstate and international revenues will be de minimis or which are international-only carriers and providers. 

Note: Post-filing revisions to this Form 499-Q filing, if any, must be filed within 45 days after November 3, 2025; i.e., by December 18, 2025.

As a reminder, Form 499-Q filers are required to submit the form electronically through USAC's E-File system, available at https://www.usac.org/service-providers/. 

II. FILING DEADLINES IN SELECT
RULEMAKINGS, INQUIRIES, AND OTHER PROCEEDINGS:

A.  RULEMAKINGS and INQUIRIES

Disaster Information Reporting System (“DIRS”). On August 6, 2025, the FCC released the Third FNPRM in PS Dkt. Nos. 21-346 and 15-80; ET Dkt. No. 04-35, seeking comment on proposals to ensure continued collection of information necessary for effective disaster response through the DIRS system while (i) streamlining the reporting process to eliminate duplicative or unnecessary data collection; (ii) eliminating the reporting requirement for resellers and mobile virtual network operators; and (iii) incorporating a limited amount of new information with “significant public safety value” into the reports, among other possible reforms. Following publication in the September 2, 2025,  Federal Register, comments are due on October 2, 2025, with reply comments due on November 3, 2025. EBS 

National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) Regulations. On August 14, 2025, the FCC released a  Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) in WT Dkt. No. 25-217, seeking comment regarding how the FCC should revise its rules to “streamline the environmental review process, promote efficiency, and encourage deployment of infrastructure that results in more competition and technological innovation.” The NPRM also requests comment on possible effects upon the FCC's historic preservation rules and recommendations whether any parts of the current rules should be deleted. Following publication in the August 19, 2025,  Federal Register, comments were due on September 18, 2025, with reply comments due on October 3, 2025. EBS (reply comments only) 

Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act (“TRACED Act”).  On August 27, 2025, the Wireline Competition Bureau released a Public Notice, in WC Dkt. No. 17-97, seeking (i) input for its annual statutory reevaluation of existing undue hardship implementation extensions; and (ii) comment to inform the FCC's 2025 triennial assessment of “the efficacy of the technologies used for [the] call authentication frameworks” and whether it is in the public interest to revise or replace these frameworks. Following publication in the September 3, 2025,  Federal Register, comments are due on October 3, 2025, with reply comments due on October 20, 2025. EBS

Supplemental Coverage from Space (“SCS”) Authorization Applications and Waiver Requests. On September 5, 2025, the Space Bureau, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, and Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (together, the “Bureaus”) issued a Public Notice in SB Dkt. No. 25-201, ICFS File Nos. SAT-MOD-20250612-00145, SAT-AMD-20250718-00181, and SAT-AMD20250903-00248, requesting comment on the applications for SCS authorization filed (1) jointly by AST & Science, LLC (“AST” aka  AST Space Mobile) and various indirect subsidiaries of AT&T, AST's partners; (2) jointly by AST and Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless and its affiliates (“Verizon”); and (3) jointly by AST and First Responder Network Authority (ULS File Nos. 0010538493, 0011607666, and 0011654129). The Bureaus also request comment on waiver requests associated with the applications intended “to allow AST, AT&T, and Verizon to deploy SCS in areas within the Continental United States (CONUS) and Hawaii geographic independent areas (GIAs) where the terrestrial wireless carriers do not hold spectrum and for AST to provide SCS on certified but not authorized devices.” Filing instructions are provided in the Public Notice. Comments and petitions are due on October 6, 2025; responses to comments and oppositions to petitions are due on October 16, 2025; and replies to responses or oppositions are due on October 23, 2025. EBS

Business Data Services. On August 8, 2025, the FCC released an  NPRM and Third FNPRM in WC Dkt. Nos. 21-17 and 17-144, seeking comment on proposals to update the regulatory framework for incumbent local exchange carriers' business data services to reflect changes in technology and the marketplace as well as “recent Executive Orders and Commission initiatives.” Proposals include the elimination of (or forbearance from) certain rate regulation and tariffing obligations and other deregulatory steps as well as possible updates to the FCC's competitive market tests.to rely on more current data. Following publication in the September 4, 2025,  Federal Register, comments are due on October 6, 2025, with reply comments due on October 20, 2025. EBS 

Emergency Alert System (“EAS”) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (“WEA”). On August 8, 2025, the FCC adopted an NPRM in PS Dkt. No. 25–224, seeking input for its “reexamination” of the EAS and WEA, particularly addressing the purposes of these alerting systems, their current level of effectiveness and how they might best be modernized to enhance their usefulness while reducing stakeholder burdens. Following publication in the August 26, 2025,  Federal Register, comments were due on September 25, 2025, with reply comments due on October 10, 2025. EBS (reply comments only)

Telecommunications Relay Services (“TRS”). On June 27, 2025, the FCC released an NPRM in CG Dkt. No. 03-123 and RM-11931, seeking comment on the proposed elimination of an FCC rule requiring that Text Telephone (TTY)-based TRS be capable of communicating in the American Standard Code for Information Interexchange (“ASCII”) format, which the NPRM characterizes as “outdated and rarely used today. Following publication in the August 27, 2025,  Federal Register, comments were due on September 26, 2025, with reply comments due on October 14, 2025. EBS  (reply comments only) 

5.35-5.46 GHz Restricted Band Emissions – Waiver Request. On August 27, 2025, the Office of Engineering and Technology issued a Public Notice in ET Dkt. No. 25-260, requesting comment on the July 11, 2025, petition for waiver of Securaplane Technologies, Inc. for a certification waiver of FCC Rule 15.205(a) requirements “to allow its Range Controlled Radar (RCR) system that operates with a center frequency of 5.8 GHz to radiate non-spurious emissions into the 5.35-5.46 GHz restricted frequency band.” The RCR is an intrusion detection sensor installed in aircraft wheel wells. Comments were due on September 26, 2025, with reply comments due on October 14, 2025. EBS (reply comments only) 

E-Rate Program Eligible Services List. On September 30, 2025, the Wireline Competition Bureau issued a  Public Notice in WC Dkt. No. 13-184, requesting comment on the proposed eligible services list for the schools and libraries universal service support mechanism in funding year (“FY”) 2026. Along with a number of proposed changes, the amended list reflects the removal of Wi-Fi services for school buses and hotspots as eligible services. Comments are due on October 15, 2025 with reply comments due on October 30, 2025. EBS 

Signal Booster Operations – Petition for Rulemaking. On September 16, 2025, the Wireless Telecommunications and Public Safety and Homeland Security bureaus issued a Public Notice, requesting comment on the petition  filed by the Safer Buildings Coalition (“SBC”) for a rulemaking to adopt a “comprehensive authorization framework” for obtaining the consent of spectrum licensees for signal booster operations.” The bureaus specifically seek comment on whether improperly deployed signal boosters cause interference to public safety radio communications and, if so, whether the problem is as pervasive as SBC claims, whether SBC's proposed revisions would be effective in addressing the issue, and whether alternative solutions would be more effective. Comments are due, in RM-12009, on October 16, 2025, with reply comments due on October 31, 2025. EBS

Interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (“VoIP”). On September 16, 2025, the Wireline Competition Bureau issued a  Public Notice, in WC Dkt. No. 25-288, seeking comment on the  Petition for Declaratory Ruling of Far Homes, Inc. d/b/a Tin Can, which requests that the FCC declare the Company's service (described as restricted access to whitelisted contacts provided through the Public Switched Telephone Network) “does not constitute interconnected [VoIP] for purposes of the applicability of “VoIP-related provisions of Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.” In the alternative, Tin Can requests a good-cause waiver of regulatory requirements applicable to interconnected VoIP. Comments are due on October 16, 2025, with reply comments due on October 31, 2025. EBS

Broadband Pole Attachments. On July 25, 2025, the FCC released the Fourth FNPRM in WC Dkt. No. 17-84, seeking comment on various proposals intended to facilitate deployment of broadband facilities on utility poles. Following publication in the August 22, 2025,  Federal Register, comments were due on September 22, 2025, with reply comments due on October 21, 2025.  EBS (reply comments only) 

Slamming and Billing Rules. On July 25, 2025, the FCC adopted an NPRM  in CG Dkt. No. 17-169 and CC Dkt. No. 98-170, seeking comment whether the current carrier change (“slamming”) rules, truth-in-billing rules and billing format rules, which apply to common carriers, are still necessary for consumer protection. The NPRM also requests comment on proposals to “modify and simplify” these rules to reduce regulatory burdens. Following publication in the August 22, 2025,  Federal Register and issuance of a concurrent Public Notice, comments were due on September 22, 2025, with reply comments due on October 21, 2025. EBS (reply comments only) 

Reducing Barriers to Network Improvement and Service Changes. On July 25, 2025, the FCC released an NPRM  in WC Dkt. Nos. 25-209 and 25-208, seeking comment on “deregulatory options to encourage providers to build, maintain, and upgrade their networks,” including proposals to reduce or eliminate network change filing/notice requirements and proposals for forbearance relief and/or rule revisions to reduce the burdens of telecommunications service discontinuance obligations. Following publication in the August 28, 2025,  Federal Register and issuance of a concurrent Public Notice, comments were due on Sept. 29, 2025, with reply comments due on Oct. 27, 2025.

EchoStar Spectrum Transactions (x2). On September 30, 2025, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and the Space Bureau issued two public notices establishing the pleading cycles for EchoStar's proposed sales of spectrum: 1) The Public Notice in WT Dkt. No. 25-303 addresses the applications of AT&T and EchoStar for assignment of 3.45 GHz and 600 MHz band spectrum and related waivers and 2) the Public Notice in GN Dat. No. 25-302 addresses the applications of Spectrum Business Trust 2025-1, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (“SpaceX”), and EchoStar for assignment of AWS-4 and AWS-H block spectrum licenses and certain earth station licenses as well as related waivers. In both proceedings, petitions to deny are due on October 30, 2025; oppositions are due on November 14, 2025, and replies are due on November 24, 2025.

Alaska Connect Fund (“ACF”). Pursuant to the November 1, 2024 Alaska Connect Fund Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which established the ACF high-cost plan for remote Alaska, beginning on January 1, 2027 for eligible mobile-provider participants, the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau issued a  Public Notice in WC Dkt. No. 23-328 on September 30, 2025, requesting comment on the initial Eligible-Areas Map and the Performance Plan Template for the ACF. Comments are due on October 31, 2025, with reply comments due on November 14, 2025.

Eliminating Barriers to Wireline Deployments. On September 30, 2025, the FCC adopted a Notice of Inquiry (“NOI”) in WC Dkt. No. 25-253, requesting comment on obstacles that wireline telecommunications service providers experience when seeking access from state and local governments to public rights-of-way, including delays, fees, and in-kind compensation requirements, and whether these factors “have the effect of prohibiting the provision of wireline telecommunications services in violation of section 253.” The NOI also requests commenters to more broadly address additional forms of state and local requirements “that have a prohibitive effect on wireline telecommunications deployments and services within the meaning of section 253” and to suggest specific state or local statutes, regulations, or legal requirements that the Commission should consider for preemption. Comments are due on November 17, 2025, with reply comments due on December 17, 2025.

III.  SELECT ONGOING FILING REQUIREMENTS

Pro Forma Assignments and Transfers

 Assignments of Authorization and Transfers of Control can be filed either as pro forma applications or non-pro forma applications.

A pro forma assignment or transfer is one in which the form of ownership changes but actual control of the license remains with the same entity or person. Most pro forma assignments and transfers may be approved under streamlined Forbearance procedures in the case of most telecommunications carriers (e.g., Section 214 authorization holders, wireless licensees (excluding those with installment payment or designated entity issues) and earth station licensees). Unlike non-pro forma assignments and transfers of control, where there is a substantial change in direct or indirect ownership or control, i.e.,  a de jure or de facto change introducing a new party or person with a controlling interest, requests regarding pro forma  changes where the ultimate control and ownership remains the same do not require prior FCC approval provided that the parties notify the FCC of the change within 30 days. Note that private licenses are not subject to forbearance such that FCC advance approval generally is required for pro forma transfers and assignments of private licenses.

Additional Requirements for International Section 214 and Subsea Cable Landing License Applications for Authority or Involving Substantive Assignments, Transfers of Control, or Modifications of such Authority, and for Section 310(b) Petitions

Pursuant to an August, 2024, Public Notice, additional requirements are now in effect for all applications for international Section 214 authorizations and submarine cable landing licenses as well as any applications for assignment, transfer of control or modification, in connection with such authorizations and licenses, where applicants have direct or indirect foreign ownership above threshold levels (generally 10% or more equity or voting interests, or based upon other FCC-recognized indicia of control). The requirements also apply to petitions for declaratory ruling related to foreign ownership under section 310(b) of the Communications Act. Parties making such filings must submit responses to a set of “Standard Questions” to the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the United States Telecommunications Services Sector (the “Committee”) prior to, or concurrent with, filing their application with the FCC and also must submit a copy of their FCC application to the Committee within three business days after filing. Additional information and the Standard Questions (which vary by category of applicant) are available on the Office of International Affairs (“OIA”) dedicated  webpage. 

Additionally, specified certifications and point of contact information must now be included in all applications involving international Section 214 authorizations or submarine cable landing licenses (regardless of ownership) as well as petitions for declaratory ruling relating to foreign ownership. Details for this required content are available at the OIA dedicated  webpage. 

Change in FCC Form 499 Filer Information
Filers must update their registration information, including a DC Agent for Service of Process in accordance with these instructions to the FCC Form 499-A. Filers must file updated information within one week of the contact information change. Filers wishing to update Preparer information, headquarters address, billing contact information, or DC Agent for Service of Process, can submit either an FCC Form 499-A or an FCC Form 499-Q or, for billing-related matters only, email USAC's billing department. Filers wishing to update any other information must submit a revised FCC Form 499-A. For more information, see  https://www.usac.org/service-providers/contributing-to-the-usf/making-revisions/. 

Filers that cease providing telecommunications must deactivate their Filer ID with USAC by submitting a letter with termination date and information on their successor entity to USAC. Filers must also update their CORES ID information with the Commission 

Filers must file within 30 days of the date that the company ceases to provide telecommunications service or telecommunications.

FCC: https://apps.fcc.gov/cores/userLogin.do 

USAC:  https://www.usac.org/service-providers/contributing-to-the-usf/manage-your-499-id 

Change in Robocall Mitigation Plans

Voice service providers, gateway providers, and non-gateway intermediate providers are required under the FCC's Caller ID Authentication rules (47 C.F.R. § 64.6300 et sec.) to implement an appropriate robocall mitigation program and remit information about that program in the FCC's Robocall Mitigation Database (“RMD”). Providers are required to update their filings in the RMD within 10 business days of any change to the information provided, including the following: 

• Certification as to the implementation of STIR/SHAKEN in the provider's network;
• The extension(s) that apply to the provider's implementation of the STIR/SHAKEN framework;
• The specific reasonable steps the provider has taken to avoid originating, carrying, or processing illegal robocall traffic as part of a robocall mitigation program;
• The provider's commitment to respond to all traceback requests and law enforcement requests for information on illegal robocalling; and
• The provider's business name, d/b/a name(s), former name(s), its legal address and contact information for one person within the company responsible for addressing robocall mitigation-related issues.

The link for remitting the required RMD filing is available here.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.