Congress is investigating Federal Communications Commission regulatory procedures to determine if they are being conducted in a fair, open, efficient, and transparent manner. Follow the debate here.
FCC Reform
Starve the Beast: Monopoly Power and Political Corruption
In 2017, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced his intention to dismantle the FCC’s hard-won network neutrality regulation. The 2015 net neutrality order owed its existence to the millions who submitted comments to the FCC demanding commonsense protection from predatory internet service providers (ISPs). After Pai’s announcement, those same millions flooded the FCC’s comment portal, actually overwhelming the FCC’s servers and shutting them down.
Deaf consumers demand equality in telephone access the US celebrates the ADA's anniversary
Americans who are deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind have been left behind in an increasingly digital communications world. These Americans are now fighting for their human right to have equal access to this world. Countless individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind — and their families and friends — have flooded the Federal Communications Commission's docket with pleas for functionally equivalent communications. Consumers are complaining that relay technologies have continued to stagnate as mainstream communications technologies have flourished.
Ajit Pai apparently mismanaged $9 billion fund—new FCC boss starts “cleanup”
The Federal Communications Commission wants SpaceX to give up a portion of the $885.51 million in broadband funding it was awarded in a reverse auction in December 2020. SpaceX's Starlink satellite broadband division was one of the biggest winners in the FCC's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) grants announced in Ajit Pai's last full month as FCC chairman.
Broadcasters oppose higher fees and funding broadband data collection
Broadcasters are pressing the Federal Communications Commission to change course and not force TV and radio stations to pay for a portion of FCC broadband data collection, from which they do not claim to benefit.
FCC Announces New Consumer Advisory Committee Members and Meeting Date
Federal Communications Commission Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has appointed three additional member organizations to serve on the FCC’s Consumer Advisory Committee (CAC) during its current term.The three additional member organizations along with their primary and alternate representatives are:
Congressional leaders urge FCC to perform equity audit
Congressional leaders and advocacy group Media 2070 urged the Federal Communications Commission to examine how policy decisions and programs have disparately harmed Black Americans and other communities of color in a letter to Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel on June 28.
Republicans' new plan to tax Big Tech
Key Republicans are warming to an idea that was once anathema to the party—leveling taxes on big American companies to pay for internet subsidy programs. An idea from GOP Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr to force tech companies to pay into a pool of money used to fund broadband programs is gaining steam with some key lawmakers, including GOP Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Republican support of taxing Big Tech could help shore up the struggling Universal Service Fund; Commissioner Carr argues that Congress should direct the companies that benefit from using internet networks
FCC Extends Native Nations Communications Task Force, Announces Vacancies
Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced a twelve-month extension of the original three-year term of the Federal Communications Commission’s current Native Nations Communications Task Force.
FCC Acting Chairwoman Rosenworcel Expands Focus of Diversity Advisory Committee
Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced that the Federal Communications Commission will re-charter the Advisory Committee for Diversity and Digital Empowerment under a new name–the Communications Equity and Diversity Council. The Council’s mission will expand from its initial focus on the media ecosystem to review critical diversity and equity issues across the technology sector. This Committee is charged with providing recommendations to ensure that underserved communities are not denied the wide range of opportunities made possible by next-generation networks.
FCC Accelerates Access To New Wireless Tech Devices
The Federal Communications Commission updated its radio frequency device marketing and importation rules to accelerate the timeframe for developing and releasing new wireless devices. The new rules will give innovators more flexibility to engage in crowdfunding and other popular marketing campaigns and, in specific cases, to import devices still under equipment authorization review. These changes will help consumers more quickly access must-have devices that meet the stringent authorization requirements of the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology’s equipment authorization program.