FCC Chairman Ajit Pai

The DC Circuit reversed the Commission’s Anda Order, which had been adopted in relevant part on a 3-2 party-line vote. FCC Chairman Pai issued the following statement: “Today’s decision by the DC Circuit highlights the importance of the FCC adhering to the rule of law. I dissented from the FCC decision that the court has now overturned because, as I stated at the time, the agency’s approach to interpreting the law reflected ‘convoluted gymnastics.’ The court has now agreed that the FCC acted unlawfully. Going forward, the Commission will strive to follow the law and exercise only the authority that has been granted to us by Congress.”

To bring the benefits of the digital age to all Americans, the Federal Communications Commission needs to make it easier for companies to build and expand broadband networks. We need to reduce the cost of broadband deployment, and we need to eliminate unnecessary rules that slow down or deter deployment. At next month's Commission meeting on April 20, the FCC will be voting on a number of proposals to do just that. That's why we are calling April "Infrastructure Month" at the FCC.

Today’s signing ceremony is the capstone to many years of hard work by the public safety community. So I’d like to thank them as well, and especially Chief Harlan McEwen, for helping get us to this point. I’d also like to thank all of those in Congress who acted on a bipartisan basis to get this project off of the ground. And finally, I’d like to congratulate AT&T for being selected as the entity that will build out the network.

The FCC remains committed to supporting FirstNet and the public safety community. We’ve given FirstNet a license for 20 MHz of broadband spectrum in the 700 MHz band. We transmitted basic technical requirements to FirstNet for the network. And our spectrum auctions have produced billions of dollars that will be used to fund construction of the public safety network. Going forward, we look forward to working with FirstNet and doing what we can to help ensure the success of this project.

On March 7, a dozen US senators wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai with “serious reservations” about his decision to “set aside, rescind, and retract” the FCC’s E-rate Modernization Progress Report.

On March 22 Chairman Pai replied saying, “The report at issue was released in the last days of the previous Administration. Not only were Commissioners not given the traditional 48 hours to review it, but it was not shown at all to Commissioners before being released. This was unacceptable and an abuse of the FCC's processes. Reports like this should not be (and henceforth, will not be) issued without advance notice being provided to Commissioners. Revocation simply affirms that a report issued improperly has no legal or other effect going forward and does not necessarily reflect the views of a majority of Commissioners. With that said, the report will remain available on the agency's website for public review.”

As we implement the Lifeline program—as with any program we administer—we must follow the law. And the law here is clear: Congress gave state governments, not the FCC, the primary responsibility for approving which companies can participate in the Lifeline program under Section 214 of the Communications Act. This is how the program worked over two decades, over three Administrations, and over eight Chairmanships. However, the FCC last year rejected this bipartisan consensus, snatching this legal responsibility away from states and deciding to create its own federal ‘Lifeline Broadband Provider’ designation process.

At the time, I explained why the Commission lacked the authority to do this. Twelve states, from Vermont to Wisconsin, are currently challenging the legality of the FCC’s order in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In my view, it would be a waste of judicial and administrative resources to defend the FCC’s unlawful action in court. I am therefore instructing the Office of General Counsel to ask the D.C. Circuit to send this case back to the Commission for further consideration. And the FCC will soon begin a proceeding to eliminate the new federal designation process. In the meantime, we must consider the Lifeline Broadband Provider applications that are pending at the FCC. In last year’s order, the Commission delegated to the Wireline Competition Bureau the authority to address such applications. I do not believe that the Bureau should approve these applications.

Our top priority so long as I serve as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is to close what I’ve called the digital divide—the gap between those with access to next-generation technologies and those without. We will work bring the benefits of the digital age to all Americans, no matter who they are or where they live.

How do we do that? We believe the most powerful tool for unleashing investment and innovation is a competitive free market—and are thus focused on rules that promote it. That’s why—consistent with decades of bipartisan tradition—we are pursuing a light-touch regulatory approach. This approach suggests that the Internet should be free from heavy-handed government regulation. It seeks to eliminate unnecessary barriers to infrastructure investment that could stifle broadband deployment. It aims to minimize regulatory uncertainty, which can deter long-term investment decisions. It favors facilities-based competition—that is, creating an incentive to build one’s own network instead of relying on another’s (which depresses the deployment incentives of each). It encourages competition among companies using any technology and from any sector—cable, telco, fixed wireless, mobile, and satellite. It embraces regulatory humility, knowing that this marketplace is dynamic and that preemptive regulation may have serious unintended consequences. And it places demands on the FCC itself—to be responsive to the public and to act as quickly as the industry it regulates. This regulatory approach, not the command-and-control rules of the 20th century, is most likely to promote digital infrastructure and opportunity.

Last year, the Federal Communications Commission pushed through, on a party-line vote, privacy regulations designed to benefit one group of favored companies over another group of disfavored companies. Appropriately, Congress has passed a resolution to reject this approach of picking winners and losers before it takes effect.

It is worth remembering that the FCC’s own overreach created the problem we are facing today. Until 2015, the Federal Trade Commission was protecting consumers very effectively, policing every online company’s privacy practices consistently and initiating numerous enforcement actions. However, two years ago, the FCC stripped the FTC of its authority over Internet service providers. At the time, I strongly opposed usurping the FTC, and the FCC’s struggles to address the privacy issue over the past couple of years (along with its refusal to recognize consumers’ uniform expectation of privacy) has only strengthened that view.

Moving forward, I want the American people to know that the FCC will work with the FTC to ensure that consumers’ online privacy is protected though a consistent and comprehensive framework. In my view, the best way to achieve that result would be to return jurisdiction over broadband providers’ privacy practices to the FTC, with its decades of experience and expertise in this area.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai issued the following statement on the announcement by Charter Communications on broadband investment: “The FCC’s top priority is making sure that any American who wants high-speed Internet access, or broadband, is able to get it. To do that, since January, we have been working to set rules of the road that encourage companies to build and upgrade broadband networks across the country. I’m pleased to see that our investment-friendly policies, along with the Administration’s overall regulatory approach, are already producing results. I applaud Charter Communications for its announcement today that it intends to spend $25 billion in broadband infrastructure and technology over the next four years. I am optimistic that this massive investment will help to close the digital divide and to strengthen our economy.”

Inspired a bit by Kerouac, I hit the road last week. I visited Pittsburgh (PA), Youngstown (OH), Cleveland (OH), and Detroit (MI). Some might not think of these as glamorous travel destinations — but that's precisely why I went. I had a chance to see these principles in action during my trip through the Industrial Midwest. I heard firsthand about the promise and perils of broadband deployment; about the entrepreneurship that was sprouting up along the way; and about the established companies that are creating jobs and innovating in these cities.

I welcome the opportunity to reiterate my strong support for the First Amendment rights of the media and all Americans. A free media is vital to our democracy. That is why during my time at the FCC I have consistently opposed any effort to infringe upon the freedom of the press and have fought to eliminate regulations that impede the gathering and dissemination of news. So long as I am privileged to serve as Chairman, I will continue to respect the First Amendment. As Chairman of the FCC, I take my oath to defend and protect the Constitution seriously. And the preservation of the First Amendment is the foundation of that commitment.