Elon Musk: FCC Put Lives in Danger by Not Awarding Funds to Starlink

Elon Musk is stepping up his attack on the FCC with claims that US regulators are putting lives in danger by refusing to give $886 million in funding to SpaceX’s Starlink.

“If the FCC had not illegally revoked the SpaceX Starlink award, it would have probably saved lives in North Carolina,” Musk tweeted Wednesday. “Lawfare costs lives.”

SpaceX and the US government have sent hundreds of Starlink dishes to help provide internet access in areas hit by Hurricane Helene. On Tuesday, SpaceX began offering residents living in hurricane-hit areas a month of free access to satellite internet service.

At the same time, Musk argued that SpaceX might have been able to do more if the FCC hadn’t denied it $886 million in federal funding two years ago.

On Monday, Musk accused the FCC of practicing “political contempt,” or the act of using the legal system to cripple opponents. On Wednesday, the SpaceX CEO took his attack to a new level by pointing out the FCC’s decision put people at risk because catastrophic flooding left them without phone or internet access and limited options for contacting emergency services. The death toll now stands at 180, AP reports.

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However, the FCC says $886 million in fees was never removed; SpaceX cleared the initial regulatory hurdle only for the FCC to reject the company’s bid after further review.

“Chairman Rosenworcel stands by the FCC’s thorough review of programs intended to provide long-term access to reliable and affordable broadband in rural communities,” the commission said in a statement. “In this instance, the agency denied public funding to more than a dozen companies—not just Starlink—that did not meet the program’s requirements. As an independent agency, the FCC takes seriously its duty to ensure that taxpayer money goes only to entities that comply with the rules and laws .

The FCC also told us that although $886 million in funding has been awarded, construction is not expected to begin until after 2025. Another problem is that SpaceX initially requires users in 2022 to pay a one-time upfront fee of $599 to purchase a Starlink dish – a condition that prevents the technology from becoming readily available. for customers based on funding areas.

The commission further asked what was stopping SpaceX from offering Starlink to storm-hit areas without using taxpayer dollars.

Although SpaceX has temporarily reduced the cost of meals to $299 in recent months, the upfront costs for Starlink are also the main reason why the FCC has denied federal funding. “Starlink’s proposal would require each customer to purchase a $600 dish just to receive the service,” Rosenworcel told US lawmakers in a February letter. “No other service supported by the program includes high start-up costs for rural customers.”

Rosenworcel sent the letter after a group of Republican lawmakers questioned why the FCC denied funding and rejected SpaceX’s appeal. In response, the FCC Chairman said: “Among other things, our technical review shows that Starlink has difficulty meeting the uplink and downlink speed standards for the program. Our findings have been confirmed by the most recent publicly available company performance data.

The main goal of FCC funding is to provide gigabit internet speeds to more than 85% of selected rural locations and at least 100Mbps in download speeds for all 99.7% of locations. Currently, SpaceX’s official website for Starlink indicates that the satellite internet service offers a variety of speeds, which can vary from 50Mbps to more than 200 Mbps, depending on the location.

Despite the pushback from the FCC, musk can get the last word. Presidential candidate Donald Trump says he plans on raise Musk will run a “government efficiency commission” if he wins reelection in November.

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