Spotlight on NTIA: Jim McConnaughey, Chief Economist

National Telecommunications and Information Administration Chief Economist Jim McConnaughey is, as one would expect from an economist, passionate about economics and its use in public policy.

Yet, McConnaughey’s first job out of college as a junior-level economist at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was more serendipity than strategic career planning. McConnaughey said he sought a job at the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) but due to a misunderstanding was given a phone number to call about an opening at the FCC. He quickly realized his mistake but was intrigued by the work the FCC was engaged in at the time, which included an in-depth look at the Bell System’s monopoly of the U.S. phone market – a probe that eventually helped lead to its breakup. His nine-year stint at the FCC cemented his interest in communications policy issues. After leaving the FCC in 1983, McConnaughey went to work as the research manager at a public policy consulting firm, where he co-authored two books and testified in rate cases. After six years he wanted to return to the government. He eventually landed at NTIA as its senior economist, working on a variety of issues including universal service, competition, and regulatory reform and has remained with the agency for 24 years.