Remarks of FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly Before the Hudson Institute, "A Conservative Perspective"

I would like to discuss how my approach to select communications policies is informed by certain conservative principles, with a fair hint of libertarianism. In my first visit to Hudson, I declared preserving and advancing economic freedom to be my primary goal
and the paramount lens by which I would examine issues at the Commission.  Fast forward four years and economic freedom has generated some subcomponents worthy of discussion, thereby allowing a more fulsome examination of certain policy matters. So, with your indulgence, I’d like to explore some of these this afternoon:

• Promotion of a Smaller Government
• Focus on Core Mission 
• Funding Comes from Consumers

To explore these subcomponents further, I’d like to apply them to two policy measures I have long advocated at the Commission: a renewed focus on sound cost-benefit analysis throughout the agency’s decision-making process and Universal Service Fund contribution reform. If done right, both can lead to a smaller government, a focus on our core mission, and most of all, they serve as reminders that funding ultimately comes from consumers.