The U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority surprised no one Friday, issuing a decision decided on ideological lines that overrules the Chevron doctrine. Chevron gave agencies like the FCC and FTC deference in interpreting laws that Congress approved. On the penultimate day of its term, the court released a decision that wraps together Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless v. Commerce. Both cases concern fishing regulations but were used as a vehicle for overturning Chevron.
House Democrats rang alarm bells Wednesday over the Appropriations Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) Subcommittee’s proposal reducing FY 2025 allocations for NTIA and other Commerce Department agencies. The subpanel advanced its FY25 bill on a voice vote Wednesday after Republicans defended the proposed cuts, including a significant slashing of annual funding for the DOJ Antitrust Division. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo fielded repeated questions during a House Innovation Subcommittee hearing Wednesday about Republicans’ claims that NTIA’s requirement that broadband equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program participants offer a low-cost connectivity option constitutes rate regulation.
The House Innovation Subcommittee plans a June 26 hearing with Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo about her department’s FY 2025 budget request, the Commerce Committee said Tuesday night. President Joe Biden in March proposed funding increases for NTIA and other Commerce agencies in excess of what they received for FY 2024 (see 2403040083). Biden sought $65 million for NTIA, $4.5 billion for the Patent Office, $1.5 billion for the National Institute of Standards and Technology and $233.4 million for the Bureau of Industry and Security (see 2403110056). The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn.
The House Commerce Committee’s bipartisan privacy bill doesn't properly preempt state law, CTA, TechNet, NetChoice, Computer & Communications Industry Association and a coalition of industry groups wrote Monday in a letter to Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and ranking member Frank Pallone, D-N.J. The House Innovation Subcommittee advanced a draft version of the American Privacy Rights Act (APRA) to the full committee in May (see 2405230056). APRA “falls short of creating a uniform national standard due to its inadequate federal preemption of the ever-growing patchwork of state privacy laws,” they wrote. “Without full preemption of state laws, APRA will add to the privacy patchwork, create confusion for consumers, and hinder economic growth.” The group behind the letter, the United for Privacy Coalition, includes ACT | the App Association, Chamber of Progress, Engine, Interactive Advertising Bureau, Information Technology Industry Council, Software & Information Industry Association and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They urged the committee to pass a “single, uniform national privacy standard.”
The FCC urged the 6th U.S. Circuit Appeals Court Friday to move the challenge to the FCC’s net neutrality order to the D.C. Circuit (docket 24-3450). The FCC also issued an order declining to stay the rules, which take effect July 22, pending judicial review.
Republican lawmakers blasted NPR CEO Katherine Maher during a House Commerce Oversight Subcommittee hearing Wednesday and suggested that Congress should conduct more regular oversight of NPR and CPB or defund them (see 2405070044).
Congressional Republicans’ recent renewed interest in ending federal funding for NPR is a major issue in a memo from House Commerce Committee GOP aides and in written testimony from witnesses ahead of a Wednesday Oversight Subcommittee hearing on recent claims of pro-Democratic Party bias at the public broadcasting network (see 2405010081). Several Republican lawmakers filed legislation or are eyeing crafting measures aimed at ending NPR’s federal funding (see 2404190060), including the Defund NPR Act (HR-8083). The Commerce Oversight hearing will begin at 10 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn.
Space operations need more data sharing and openness about who is operating where, satellite operators and space industry representatives and regulators said Tuesday in an FCBA CLE. Multiple speakers expressed the need for more global, integrated rules as well as added consistency in space situational awareness (SSA) data.
A measure regulating children’s social media use has sufficient bipartisan support for the Senate Commerce Committee to approve it, ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told us last week.
Industry groups largely questioned the wisdom of using the voluntary cyber mark program for IoT devices, approved in March, to further clamp down on international security threats. But the proposals also received some support from the Internet Protocol Video Market (IPVM) and Whirlpool. FCC commissioners approved 5-0 a Further NPRM, along with the implementing order, asking about software and hardware from countries of national security concern and whether data from U.S. citizens will be stored abroad (see 2403140034). Comments were posted Thursday in docket 23-239.