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USA Today
8 hours ago
- Business
- USA Today
Supreme Court turns aside conservative challenge to $8 billion phone and internet subsidy program
WASHINGTON − The Supreme Court on June 27 upheld an $8 billion federal program that subsidizes high-speed internet and phone service for millions of Americans, rejecting a conservative argument that the program is funded by an unconstitutional tax. The case raised questions about how much Congress can 'delegate' its legislative authority to a federal agency and whether the Supreme Court should tighten that standard. Under a law Congress passed in 1996, telecommunications companies are charged a Universal Service Fund fee – passed on to customers − that boosts phone and internet service to households and hospitals in rural areas, to low-income families, and to public schools and libraries. A private administrator overseen by the Federal Communications Commission distributes the funding, collects the fees and estimates how much needs to be raised each quarter. The FCC must approve the estimate before it's used to determine fees for each carrier. The conservative group Consumers' Research, a carrier and a group of consumers challenged this setup, which has been the law for nearly three decades, asserting it's Congress, not the FCC – and certainly not a private entity − that must determine the fee level. "At its heart, this case is about taxation without representation," Trent McCotter, an attorney for the group, told the Supreme Court in March. 'The amount of public revenue to raise is a quintessential legislative determination, not some minor detail to be filled in later.' While appeals courts in Ohio and Georgia rejected those arguments, the Louisiana-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declared the universal service fee unconstitutional. The challenge was part of a conservative effort to curb the 'administrative state' that has often been successful at the high court. But Paul Clement, who served as solicitor general under former President George W. Bush − a Republican − represented a trade association for the telecommunications industry defending the program. He told the justices this was not the right case to revamp Supreme Court decisions that had set a low bar for the non-delegation rule. 'We all benefit from having a communications system that is truly universal,' Clement said. 'I may not live in rural Alaska, but it's nice to be able to place a call there.' And the Justice Department warned that declaring the funding scheme unconstitutional would jeopardize many other programs. The telecommunications law, according to the department, follows the same delegation framework Congress has used in a range of areas, including to prevent unfair competition, oversee the securities industry, ensure the safety of food and drugs, regulate labor relations and set air-quality standards. The lead case of the two that were consolidated for arguments is Federal Communications Commission v. Consumers' Research.
Bloomberg
8 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Supreme Court Upholds FCC's $8.6 Billion Telecom Subsidy Fund
The US Supreme Court upheld the $8.6 billion Universal Service Fund, the annual slate of subsidies that helps cover the cost of telecom services for low-income people, rural residents, schools and libraries. Voting 6-3, the justices rejected contentions that Congress unconstitutionally handed off its taxing powers when it set up the program in 1976. The fund uses a charge imposed on monthly phone bills – in an amount determined by the Federal Communications Commission – to subsidize service for more than 8 million people.
CBS News
8 hours ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Supreme Court upholds FCC fund to expand phone and internet access
Washington — The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the Federal Communications Commission's multi-billion-dollar mechanism for expanding phone and internet access to rural and low-income communities. The high court ruled that neither Congress nor the FCC violated the Constitution with its chosen scheme for administering the Universal Service Fund, which is supported by contributions from communications carriers and funds programs designed to improve access to telecommunications services. Justice Elena Kagan authored the majority opinion for the 6-3 court, with Justices Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito in dissent. This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
Politico
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Politico
👋 Welcome to the final opinion day of the term. Here's what we're expecting.
Good morning from the Supreme Court, where we are expecting the final decisions of the term to be handed down shortly after 10 a.m. Eastern. We'll unpack all the action here and explain the political fallout from the justices' decisions in real time. But first, let's get you up to speed. We await rulings in six cases argued at the high court earlier this year: Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton: The justices consider a First Amendment challenge to a Texas law requiring porn websites to verify that their users are 18 or older. Louisiana v. Callais: Challengers to Louisiana's redrawn congressional map asked the justices to rule that the equal protection rights of 'non-Black' Louisiana voters were violated when the state created a second majority-Black district. Challengers to Louisiana's redrawn congressional map asked the justices to rule that the equal protection rights of 'non-Black' Louisiana voters were violated when the state created a second majority-Black district. Federal Communications Commission v. Consumers Research: The justices weigh whether Congress and the FCC violated the Constitution by ceding too much of their power as they set up a largely privately-run system to subsidize internet and phone service for low-income people and rural communities. Kennedy v. Braidwood Management: The justices consider a legal challenge that would gut the provision of Obamacare that mandates insurance companies cover certain preventive care services like colonoscopies and HIV-prevention drugs. Mahmoud v. Taylor: The justices are set to decide if parents with religious objections have the right to pull their kids out of public school lessons involving LGBTQ+-themed books. Trump v. CASA: This is the big one we're watching for. The Trump administration asked the justices to limit the power of individual district court judges to block federal government policies — like President Donald Trump's executive order purporting to end automatic birthright citizenship — across the country through so-called nationwide injunctions. How do we know today is the last opinion day of the term? Because Chief Justice John Roberts said so at the end of Thursday's court session.
NBC News
12 hours ago
- Politics
- NBC News
Supreme Court set to make rulings and CDC vaccine committee meeting: Morning Rundown
The Supreme Court will mark its final day with rulings on several cases, including the birthright citizenship dispute. A CDC panel meeting hints at the direction of the agency under Robert F. Kennedy's leadership. And why New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's social media campaign was more effective than Kamala Harris' memes. Here's what to know today. Supreme Court set to rule on a flurry of cases on term's final day Today marks the last day of the Supreme Court's nine-month term — and that means the court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, is preparing to issue rulings in six outstanding cases. Of these, the most closely watched case concerns President Donald Trump's attempt to end automatic birthright citizenship, which is guaranteed under the Constitution's 14th Amendment. The longstanding interpretation of the provision is that anyone born on U.S. soil is an American citizen with a few minor exceptions. This is Morning Rundown, a weekday newsletter to start your day. Sign up here to get it in your inbox. The case before the Supreme Court doesn't focus on the lawfulness of the proposal itself, but rather on whether federal judges have the power to block it nationwide while litigation continues. It's a decision that could have wide-ranging impacts, as federal judges have frequently ruled against Trump's broad use of executive power. The five other cases the court has yet to rule on are: → Whether conservative religious parents can opt their elementary school-age children out of LGBTQ-themed books in class → Whether congressional districts in Louisiana are lawful → A law enacted in Texas that imposes age restrictions for using adult websites → A challenge to the Affordable Care Act's preventive care task force → A Federal Communications Commission program that subsidizes phone and internet services in underserved areas More politics news: The White House plans to limit intelligence sharing with members of Congress after an early assessment of damage caused by U.S. strikes in Iran leaked this week. Sen. Tom Cotton, the Republican chair of the Intelligence Committee, is proposing a sweeping overhaul of the intel office led by National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard that would slash its workforce by 60%. Democratic voters in Virginia will head to the polls this weekend in a special primary election to choose a new representative to succeed the late Rep. Gerry Connolly. The candidates' pitch to voters has everything to do with Trump. Former Trump lawyer Kenneth Cheseboro was disbarred in New York over his role in a scheme to overturn Trump's 2020 election loss. The Social Security Administration has hired the 19-year-old former DOGE staffer nicknamed 'Big Balls,' who the White House earlier this week said had left the Trump administration. Subscribe to Here's The Scoop, a new daily podcast from NBC News that will break down the day's top stories with our trusted journalists on the ground and around the world, all in 15 minutes or less. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, and read the stories behind each episode on Republicans suffer setback on Trump's agenda bill The Senate referee ruled yesterday that a series of health care cuts and savings in the One Big Beautiful Bill for Donald Trump's agenda are ineligible for the 'budget reconciliation' process Republicans are using to get around the chamber's 60-vote threshold. The setback throws into question whether senators will be able to start voting on the bill today, as Senate Majority Leader John Thune had hoped to do, with a goal of sending legislation to President Donald Trump's desk by July 4. Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, who adjudicates procedural disputes between Republicans and Democrats, has disqualified several provisions, including Medicaid rules prohibiting funds without verification of immigration status, new limitations surrounding eligibility for Affordable Care Act funding and more. The disqualified provisions total $200 billion to $300 billion in savings over a decade, one expert said. So, now what? Republican aides said the rulings aren't fatal to the overall bill. Senate Republicans will return to the drawing board on some issues and accept the outcome of revoked provisions in other cases. But some conservatives angered by MacDonough's rulings suggested she should be fired. Read the full story here. A sign of CDC's shift under RFK Jr.'s leadership A mercury-based preservative called thimerosal — which is the subject of widely debunked claims linking the ingredient to autism and hasn't been used in nearly all vaccines made in the U.S. since 2001 — was the subject of a presentation at the CDC's vaccine advisory committee meeting. The presentation over an issue that has long been considered settled science signaled how meetings of the panel have already changed drastically under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s leadership. During the meeting, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices heard from Lyn Redwood, president emerita of the Kennedy-founded anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense about thimerosal. Afterward, the committee voted 5-1 to recommend that children, adults and pregnant women get single-dose thimerosal-free flu vaccines. A pediatrician who represented the lone dissenting vote said, 'This is an old issue that has been addressed in the past.' Medical experts who also participated in the meeting questioned the veracity of Redwood's claims. In a separate vote, the committee reaffirmed the existing recommendation that people ages 6 months and older should get annual flu shots. The committee also voted in favor of recommending an RSV drug for infants younger than 8 months. Read the full story here. A fireball seen shooting through the sky in the southeastern U.S. was confirmed to be from a meteor shower. American Vogue is set to hire a new head of editorial content, a role held by Anna Wintour for nearly 40 years. There's a new record for the fastest mile ever run by a woman, but it's 6.42 seconds short of the time Faith Kipyegon hoped to achieve. Staff Pick: Why Zohran Mamdani's online campaign was so effective While the final results won't be known for a few more days, Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old state legislator, appears to have pulled off an upset in the New York City Democratic mayoral primary. I say 'upset,' because whenever a candidate's win seems like a surprise, there are almost always missed signs that victory was likely. In this story, reporters Angela Yang and Bruna Horvath explain how Mamdani's social media presence foretold his apparent primary victory. What really struck me in their reporting is not just that he had built a sizable social media following, but how he did it with substance and how he parlayed his social media virality into money, political engagement and votes. And they explain how his success online differed in key ways from the early social media success of Kamala Harris' failed presidential campaign. Ultimately, it's a nice snapshot of the character and strategic savvy of a man who could wind up running the biggest city in the country. — Richie Duchon, deputy platforms editor NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified If you're looking for an alternative to the Amazon Kindle, the NBC Select team has a roundup of the best e-readers. Plus, we have all the details on the deals to expect during this year's Target Circle Week, which runs from July 6-12 online and in stores.
