FCC Reform

It is no secret that partisan politics infiltrated and shook the Federal Communications Commission’s decision-making during the waning years of the Obama administration. The rise of political considerations in FCC decisions, and the concomitant decline in substantive considerations, are also symptoms of a larger problem at the FCC; namely an organizational structure that encourages a silo mentality, favors people with legal training over people schooled in analysis, and muffles expert voices. There are several options for restructuring the FCC, but any successful reorganization must emphasi

In written testimomny before the Senate Committee On Appropriations' Subcommittee On Financial Services And General Government, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai outlined the commission's priorities for the next year:

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that the items below are tentatively on the agenda for the May Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, May 9, 2019:

At the Federal Communications Commission’s May meeting, we will take action to advance the goal of security.

The paper builds on a working group report that led to the creation of the Office of Economics and Analytics (OEA), which was formally established in Dec 2018. The Working Paper concludes that organizational consolidation of economists into a single unit, much like the arrangement of the new OEA, can provide more independent and higher quality economic analysis within regulatory agencies.

The Federal Communications Commission recently chose thoughtful and sensible policy reform when an item was circulated to Commissioners to begin a rulemaking that would establish a much-needed and overdue budget for the agency’s Universal Service Fund (USF).  Against the backdrop of special interest groups and uninformed detractors reflexively opposed to any restraint on the agency’s redistributive subsidies, I am proud to lead this effort to inject more fiscal responsibility into the USF. Hardly a revolutionary idea, budgets are precisely what American families and businesses rely on to ma

The Federal Communications Commission is officially moving its Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) team from the Media Bureau to the Enforcement Bureau. The EEO team’s work is primarily focused on periodic random audits of broadcast licensee and multichannel video programming distributors (MVPD) EEO programs, along with any necessary enforcement actions arising from those audits. The team also investigates complaints and takes enforcement action based on those investigations when necessary.

The Federal Communications Commission adopted a change to a rule to incorporate a statutory update to the authorities of the FCC’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) into the FCC’s organizational rules.

A recently introduced Senate bill would create a dedicated office for rural-broadband expansion inside the Federal Communications Commission. If enacted, the legislation would order the FCC to create an Office of Rural Broadband. That new agency would coordinate with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the Agriculture Department’s Rural Utilities Service and the Universal Service Administrative Company — an FCC-backed nonprofit that distributes broadband funds to underfunded areas — to maintain information on federal rural broadband programs.

The Federal Communications Commission has voted to create a Fraud Division within its Enforcement Bureau. This action codifies and reiterates the importance of ongoing work by FCC enforcement staff to combat misuse of taxpayer funds. The new Fraud Division will be dedicated to investigating and prosecuting fraud in the Universal Service Fund (USF). This team will work closely with the FCC’s Office of Inspector General, the US Department of Justice, and other law enforcement agencies to prosecute unlawful conduct.