“Improving and Increasing Broadband Deployment on Tribal Lands”

1. “Improving and Increasing Broadband Deployment on Tribal Lands” Description of the Native Nations Communications Task Force of the Federal Communications Commission Presentation to the Tribal Self-Governance Task Force April 24, 2019 Will Micklin, 3rd Vice President Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska CEO, Ewiiaapaayp Band of Kumeyaay Indians

2. Improving and Increasing Broadband Deployment on Tribal Lands The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 SEC. 508. TRIBAL DIGITAL ACCESS. (a) TRIBAL BROADBAND DATA REPORT.— (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report evaluating broadband coverage in Indian country (as defined in section 1151 of title 18, United States Code) and on land held by a Native Corporation pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. (2) REQUIRED ASSESSMENTS.—The report required by paragraph (1) shall include the following: (A) An assessment of areas of Indian country (as so defined) and land held by a Native Corporation pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act that have adequate broadband coverage. (B) An assessment of unserved areas of Indian country (as so defined) and land held by a Native Corporation pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. (b) TRIBAL BROADBAND PROCEEDING.—Not later than 30 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall complete a proceeding to address the unserved areas identified in the report under subsection (a).

3. Improving and Increasing Broadband Deployment on Tribal Lands • Process • Seeking Tribal input to inform the preparation and content of the report, as well as the subsequent rulemaking • FCC Tribal Work Shop was held on November 14, 2018 at the Nez Perce Event Center  • After the report, the Commission will initiate a proceeding seeking public input • Aim to identify current obstacles to deployment and potential solutions, as well other issues that may be appropriate to discuss in the NPRM

4. Improving and Increasing Broadband Deployment on Tribal Lands Examples of obstacles to deployment and adoption discussed at Nez Perce Events Center on November 14, 2018 • Geographic • Checkerboard ownership, land rights, terrain, access to electricity • Demographic • Sparse population, understanding location of housing units, language barriers, computer literacy and understanding technological developments • Economic • Lack of financial incentives, cost to enter into agreements with carriers, carriers expecting Tribes to pay, affordability of service and equipment, communities often paying more than they should • Regulatory • Tribal codes burdensome, approvals from multiple jurisdictions, siloed nature of USF, 477 data overstating coverage, E-rate and RHC applications confusing, FCC obligations do not require deployment on Tribal lands

5. Improving and Increasing Broadband Deployment on Tribal Lands • Continuing the Discussion • Geography and demographics, permitting process and acquiring land rights, Tribal data, Tribal engagement, technology (middle-mile, last-mile), and broadband adoption and consumer demand • Success Stories to Emulate • Examples of Tribal lands with significant broadband deployment • Potential Areas for Improvement  • Providing the FCC more granular data • Improving process for permitting • Facilitating ability to leverage all USF programs • Improving the Tribal engagement rules

6. NNCTF Members On October 24, 2018 Chairman AjitPai announced the appointment of nineteen (19) Tribal members and eight (8) FCC members to the FCC’s renewed Native Nations Communications Task Force. The newly appointed Tribal Task Force members are: • Honorable Susie Allen, Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation • Honorable Cheryl Andrews-Maltais, Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) • Honorable Michael Conners, St. Regis Mohawk Tribe • Honorable Joe Garcia, OhkayOwingeh Pueblo • Honorable Frankie Hargis, Cherokee Nation

7. NNCTF Members • Honorable Jefferson Keel, Chickasaw Nation • Honorable Andy Teuber, Tangela Native Village • Honorable Joey Whitman, Gila River Indian Community • Joelynn Ashley, Navajo Nation • Bill Bryant, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community • Crystal Hottowe, Makah Tribe • Kristan Johnson, Tohono O’odham Nation • Donald Long Knife, Fort Belknap Indian Community • Robert A. Lucas II, Tanana Chiefs Conference • Peter McCaslin, Kenaitze Indian Tribe • Will Micklin, Ewiiaapaayp Band of Kumeyaay Indians

8. NNCTF Members • Theron Rutyna, Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians • Danae Wilson, Nez Perce Tribe, Tribal Co-Chair • Karen Woodard, Morongo Band of Mission Indians The Federal Communications Commission members are: • Matthew Duchesne, Office of Native Affairs and Policy, Commission Co-Chair • Janet Sievert, Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau • Sue McNeil, Wireline Competition Bureau • Suzanne Tetreault, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau • Lisa Scanlan, Media Bureau

9. NNCTF Members • David Furth, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau • Lisa Gelb, Enforcement Bureau

10. NNCTF Draft Report • The draft report is a record of the Native Nations Communications Task Force. Its disclosure to the public is governed by the federal Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552. Consult with the Federal Communications Commission prior to releasing this record under state and Tribal records laws. • The draft report cannot be shared outside the Task Force and the Commission.  Once the report is finalized and submitted to the Commission, it will decide whether and how it can be distributed to outside entities. 

11. Indian Country Broadband Challenges • The Commission has recognized that “members of federally-recognized American Indian Tribes and Alaska Native Villages and other residents of Tribal lands have lacked meaningful access to wired and wireless communications services.” See Improving Communications Services for Tribal Nations by Promoting Greater Utilization of Spectrum over Tribal Lands, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 26 FCC Rcd 2623, 2624, para. 1 (2011) (Wireless SpectrumTribal Lands NPRM). • See also: Inquiry Concerning Deployment of Advanced Telecommunications Capability to All Americans In a Reasonable and Timely Fashion, 2018 Broadband Deployment Report, Docket 17-199, FCC 18-10 at 3, 27-28, paras. 6, 57-58 (rel. Feb 2, 2018) (noting that Tribal areas continue to lag behind with respect to broadband deployment).

12. Challenges • FCC rules that present barriers to the entry of Native Nation-owned and/or controlled service providers, and in allocating and assigning spectrum and other services; • obstacles to the establishment of broadband infrastructure serving tribes and sustainable funding; • the lack of tools necessary for Tribes to effectively build sustainable business and deployment models; • the need to resolve barriers to the deployment and utilization of broadband, including that anchor tribal anchor institutions, such as schools, libraries, healthcare facilities, tribal government offices, and tribal enterprises may play in adoption and utilization;

13. Challenges (5) the lack of comprehensive definitions for “tribal lands” that omit many tribes that lack tribal trust lands, or are remote; (6) the lack of a role for tribal governments in the designation of eligible telecommunications carriers; (7) the lack of public safety and emergency communications services in Indian Country, and the necessity for provisioning of these services and their interoperability; (8) the need for further collaboration with tribes on the Commission’s process for Section 106 consultation; (9) the need to better utilitize satellite-based services to remote, unserved and underserved areas, or to collaborate to co-locate media and transmission facilities;

14. Challenges (10) the significant barriers to the provision of telecommunications services over the “middle mile”; and (11) the FCC’s lack of meaningful consultation and collaboration with tribal governments.