Courts still “respect” technical expertise at agencies like the FCC despite the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of the Chevron doctrine, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said Friday.
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is pushing back against House GOP criticisms (see 2410070040) of the commission’s September approval of radio broadcaster Audacy’s request for a temporary waiver of foreign-ownership requirements to complete a bankruptcy restructuring that includes George Soros-affiliated entities purchasing its stock. The waiver vote was 3-2, with Republican Commissioners Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington claiming the agency deviated from normal procedure (see 2409300046).
The FTC violated the Constitution and exceeded its rulemaking authority when it issued a rule aimed at making it easier for consumers to cancel subscriptions, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, NCTA, the Interactive Advertising Bureau and other industry groups said in three different lawsuits filed Tuesday in three separate appeals courts.
The FCC released its order approving 3-2 radio broadcaster Audacy’s request for a temporary waiver of its foreign-ownership requirements. The dissents from both FCC Republicans condemn the order as a deviation from normal FCC procedure, but neither mentions by name the involvement of the Soros family in the deal, though that has been the main focus of Republican lawmakers and conservative media critical of the restructuring. Commissioner Brendan Carr previously called the waiver a “Soros shortcut.” To suggest that Audacy is receiving special treatment is “cynical and wrong,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, pointing to numerous similar grants from the FCC going back to 2018. “Our practice here and in these prior cases is designed to facilitate the prompt and orderly emergence from bankruptcy of a company that is a licensee under the Communications Act.”
House Oversight Committee GOP leaders said Thursday night they launched an investigation into the FCC’s handling of radio group Audacy’s request for a temporary waiver of FCC foreign-ownership rules to complete a bankruptcy restructuring that includes George Soros-affiliated entities purchasing its stock. Panel Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., and Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., claim the FCC’s expected approval of Audacy’s request (see 2409170015) represents a politicization of the review process just more than one month before the Nov. 5 presidential election. Langworthy briefly raised the issue during a House Oversight hearing earlier this month (see 2409190063).
ATLANTA -- The U.S. is taking an increasingly hard line against all connected Chinese and Russian devices, not just those from particular manufacturers such as Huawei, cybersecurity expert Clete Johnson told attendees at SCTE's annual TechExpo Wednesday. Meanwhile, cable providers at TechExpo discussed why it's imperative that there is better convergence in wireline and mobile services.
House leaders will likely take up kids’ privacy legislation, but not before more legislative work is done on the House Commerce Committee-passed bills, a high-ranking Senate Commerce Committee staffer said Wednesday.
The growing pace of launches in the U.S. is stressing launch site capabilities, particularly Florida's Cape Canaveral, launch operators said Wednesday at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce aerospace conference in Washington. Meanwhile, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said SpaceX could pose a monopolistic threat in commercial space and that more competition is needed. In addition, the FAA was criticized for its launch regulatory regime.
House Communications Subcommittee members traded partisan barbs about NTIA’s implementation of the $42.5 billion broadband equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program, as expected (see 2409040040). Republicans delivered most of the criticism, in part blasting NTIA for what they view as an unnecessarily long timeline for rolling out the money. House Commerce Committee panel GOP leaders launched a probe in July of NTIA’s BEAD-related communications with state broadband offices (see 2407090057). Democrats defended NTIA’s management of the program and blasted GOP lawmakers for obstructing recent broadband funding efforts.
ASPEN -- The president should have broad discretion without interference from Congress to remove commissioners at independent agencies when they commit offenses the White House deems "fireable," FTC Commissioner Andrew Ferguson said Tuesday.