The FCC shouldn’t consider reclassification at its Sept. 16 open...
The FCC shouldn’t consider reclassification at its Sept. 16 open meeting, said House Communications Subcommittee Ranking Member Cliff Stearns, R-Fla. At a Commerce Committee markup Wednesday, he urged House Commerce Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., to direct FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski…
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not to take the issue up until at least October. “Given the behind-the-scenes that would have to take place at the commission, such a move would indicate that little or no analysis or consideration was given to the comment or reply comments that were filed on the issue during the comment period,” Stearns said. It would also be “disrespectful” to bicameral, bipartisan talks on the Hill, which seem to be leading to a “narrow, targeted bill.” With Congress recessing in August, legislators would only have “a few days to react upon our return in September.” Also at the hearing, Commerce Committee Ranking Member Joe Barton, R-Texas, slammed Tuesday’s FCC broadband deployment report (CD July 21 p1), which found that the U.S. isn’t deploying broadband in a “reasonable and timely” fashion. “The FCC seemed to ignore the developments that have actually happened in the marketplace,” Barton said.