Clyburn Says FCC Getting Ready if Government Closes in October
The FCC is getting ready to shut down most of its operations if there’s an overall government shutdown, acting Chairwoman Mignon Clyburn told reporters Tuesday after a lunch address to the FCBA. Clyburn spoke for about 20 minutes, touching on the big issues she has addressed at the helm of the agency, including 700 MHz interoperability and prison calling reform.
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Clyburn declined to provide other details on shutdown preparations during a brief scrum after her speech. Absent agreement between Congress and President Barack Obama on a continuing resolution, the government could shut down Oct. 1, furloughing all but essential employees. “We also are poised” for a shutdown, Clyburn said. “We have been meeting for a long period of time. This is not the first time that we've been faced with this. The agency is poised and hopeful for the best ... but we've got a plan in place.” Other FCC officials told us they received an email Friday saying the commission was preparing for all contingencies.
The Office of Management and Budget released a memo Sept. 17 laying out broad federal plans for a shutdown and directing the heads of all federal agencies to make necessary preparations. “The Administration does not want a lapse in appropriations to occur,” the memo said (http://1.usa.gov/1am34KT). “There is enough time for Congress to prevent a lapse in appropriations, and the Administration is willing to work with Congress to enact a short-term continuing resolution to fund critical Government operations and allow Congress the time to complete the full year 2014 appropriations. However, prudent management requires that agencies be prepared for the possibility of a lapse. To that end, this guidance reminds agencies of their responsibilities to plan for agency operations under such a contingency."
The government’s last lengthy budget-related closure occurred Nov. 14-19, 1995, and from Dec. 16, 1995, to Jan. 6, 1996, for a total of 28 days. A former FCC official said that at the time most FCC staff were furloughed. The FCC started the PCS C-band auction Dec. 18, during the shutdown, and FCC staff involved in the auction still reported for work as essential staff, the source said.
Another veteran of the last major shutdowns said rules are strict for furloughed federal employees. “You can’t take your BlackBerry and you basically have to leave and have no contact whatsoever with the office,” the lawyer said. “You can’t check your email, you can’t check your voicemail, you're just out."
Clyburn was also asked about a Wireless Bureau order scheduling an H-block auction Jan. 14, closing off the possibility the spectrum will be paired with the AWS-3 M block for a bigger auction later in the year (CD Sept 16 p1). Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel had pushed hard for the spectrum to be paired. “To be systematic and to be forward-thinking and to keep things moving I thought it was necessary ... for the management of the entire ecosystem to get that moving,” Clyburn said of the auction.
During her speech, Clyburn stressed the importance of expanding the USF E-rate program. “E-rate has helped connect almost every school in America to the Internet,” she said. “But having a broadband connection doesn’t mean having the broadband capacity to support the latest digital learning tools. About half of E-rate recipients report lower connection speeds than the average American home. That’s just not good enough."
Clyburn said a settlement between AT&T and smaller carriers on device interoperability in the lower 700 MHz band (CD Sept 11 p1) will be good for the economy. “This is a big win for consumers, especially in rural areas, who will see more competition and more choices,” she said. “Also, by making it easier for small wireless carriers to compete, this interoperability solution will spur private investment, job creation, and the development of innovative new services and devices.”