Overview of the Circulated Submarine Cable Rules
The Federal Communications Commission released a draft Second Report and Order and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in OI Docket No. 24-523 and MD Docket No. 24-524, prepared for consideration at its June 25, 2026 Open Meeting. The draft builds on the 2025 Submarine Cable First Report and Order to modernize oversight of undersea cable systems and streamline licensing procedures while protecting national security.
Under the draft Second Report and Order, the Commission asserts authority under the Cable Landing License Act of 1921 (47 U.S.C. 34-39) and Executive Order 10530 to regulate owners and operators of Submarine Line Terminal Equipment (SLTE). The draft establishes a blanket licensing regime for qualifying SLTE owners and operators, establishes national security certifications and routine license conditions, and sets up a 10-point standard to presumptively exempt qualifying cable applications from referral to Executive Branch review.
- Docket Nos.: OI Docket No. 24-523, MD Docket No. 24-524
- Document Number: FCC-CIRC2606-04 (DOC-422173A1)
- Statutory Authorities: Cable Landing License Act of 1921 (47 U.S.C. 34-39), Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.), and Executive Order 10530
SLTE Licensing Framework and Routine Conditions
The Commission concluded that SLTE represents a core component that converts optical signals to electrical signals between wet infrastructure and terrestrial networks, meaning SLTE entities operate submarine cables under 47 U.S.C. 34. To minimize administrative burdens, the Commission grants blanket licenses to current and future SLTE owners and operators not already licensed under 47 CFR 1.70003.
However, the draft order excludes from the blanket license grant any entity seeking to own or operate new SLTE after the effective date if it meets the foreign adversary presumptive disqualifying conditions in 47 CFR 1.70004(a) or character disqualifying conditions in 47 CFR 1.70002(c). Excluded entities must submit individual applications that are subject to an adverse presumption against grant.
- Routine conditions for blanket SLTE licensees include compliance with FCC rules, treaties, and Section 214 authorization requirements.
- SLTE licensees must submit annual circuit capacity reports pursuant to 47 CFR 43.82.
- SLTE licensees must formulate, implement, and maintain cybersecurity and physical security risk management plans addressing logical, physical, and supply chain risks, submitting them to the FCC upon request.
- SLTE owners and operators meeting specified foreign adversary or Covered List criteria must file an annual SLTE Foreign Adversary Annual Report under newly added 47 CFR 1.70018.
National Security Certifications and Prohibitions on Equipment and Services
The draft Second Report and Order introduces strict routine conditions and certification mandates for all cable landing licensees under 47 CFR Part 1, Subpart FF. Newly licensed systems cannot use or add 'principal equipment' produced by foreign adversary-controlled entities, while existing licensees are barred from adding such equipment.
The draft also prohibits licensees from engaging third-party service providers that are foreign adversary-controlled, listed on the FCC Covered List, or able to access the cable system from a foreign adversary country. A narrow exception is provided for wet segment repair and maintenance by specialized vessels, provided the licensee files an informational certification letter with the FCC within 30 days of initiating service. Additionally, licensees, direct customers, and downstream customers are prohibited from entering into Indefeasible Rights of Use (IRU) or capacity leases with Covered List entities where the arrangement permits installing, owning, or managing SLTE.
- Principal equipment includes domestic communications infrastructure, wet infrastructure, SLTE, repeaters, power feed equipment, routers, switches, and network management systems.
- Licensees must notify the Commission within 30 days of changes to geographic coordinates or landing station addresses.
- Licensees must certify compliance within 60 days following any addition of equipment or services to the FCC Covered List.
- Licensees must provide at least 60 days advance notice before retiring a submarine cable system or letting a license expire without renewal.
Fast-Track Exemption from Executive Branch Referral
To expedite deployment and reduce licensing delays, the Commission established a framework to presumptively exempt qualifying submarine cable applications from referral to the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the United States Telecommunications Services Sector (Team Telecom).
To qualify for the exemption, an applicant (or all joint applicants) must certify compliance with ten distinct national security standards. Committee members are provided a 30-day window following public notice of the filing to object by identifying credible, articulable security concerns on the record. A separate 3-year exclusion from referral is established for renewal and extension applications where the system was previously reviewed by Executive Branch agencies and meets specific stability criteria.
- Standard 1: Recurring applicant in good standing subject to a mitigation agreement entered into within the previous 5 years with no new 10% or greater foreign owners.
- Standard 2: No ownership below 5% held by foreign adversary entities, and no foreign adversary debt, financing, strategic partnerships, or mergers affecting the system.
- Standard 3: No senior officials owned by, controlled by, or subject to a foreign adversary, or performing cable duties from a foreign adversary country.
- Standard 4: Contractual prohibitions barring all downstream customers from entering into IRUs or capacity leases granting foreign adversaries SLTE management rights.
- Standard 5: Initial reporting of capacity and IRU arrangements within 60 days of service commencement, followed by annual reports.
- Standard 6: No direct or branching unit interconnections with cables owned, operated, or landing in a foreign adversary jurisdiction.
- Standard 7: Enhanced cybersecurity plans structured under the NIST Cybersecurity Framework and conforming to CISA CPGs or CIS Controls.
- Standard 8: Mandatory 72-hour reporting of security incidents and unauthorized logical or physical access, followed by detailed 15-day remediation reports.
- Standard 9: Heightened logical and physical access controls, mandatory 5-year background checks, and 30-day advance notice before activating acoustic or sensor capabilities (such as DAS).
- Standard 10: Consent to ongoing monitoring, facility inspections, annual compliance reporting, and potential biennial third-party audits.
Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
In the accompanying Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Commission seeks comment on potential further routine conditions to oversee SLTE owners and operators. The FNPRM considers whether conventional landing licensees should be required to implement standard contractual mechanisms binding all SLTE entities on their cables to specific security rules.
The Commission also invites comment on extending enhanced NIST and CISA cybersecurity requirements to all submarine cable licensees, the regulatory impact on small entities, and general cost-benefit considerations.
- Comment Deadline: 30 days after publication in the Federal Register
- Reply Comment Deadline: 60 days after publication in the Federal Register
- Proceeding Type: Permit-but-disclose ex parte rules apply