Review of Submarine Cable Landing License Rules and Procedures To Assess Evolving National Security, Law Enforcement, Foreign Policy, and Trade Policy Risks

Document 2026-15123 is a Final Rule published by the Federal Communications Commission in the Federal Register on July 27, 2026. In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission or FCC) adopted a Second Report and Order that promotes the deployment of submarine cables while strengthening national security interests in connection with their modern capabilities. The Second Report and Order establishes a regulatory regime for licensing owners and/or operators of submarine line terminal equipment (SLTE), including granting a blanket license to certain current and future SLTE owners and/or operators that are not currently a licensee. The Second Report and Order adopts certain routine conditions and outlines reporting requirements for SLTE owners and operators. The Second Report and Order also adopts further national security-related routine conditions and certification requirements. Finally, the Second Report and Order adopts an approach to expedite submarine cable deployment by presumptively exempting applications that meet ten national security standards from Commission referral to the Executive Branch agencies. View the original at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/07/27/2026-15123/review-of-submarine-cable-landing-license-rules-and-procedures-to-assess-evolving-national-security.

No. Document 2026-15123 is not classified as economically significant under Executive Order 12866. Economically significant rules require OIRA review and are estimated to have impacts of $100 million or more per year.