Statement of FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai on the Decision to Delay Consideration of the Incentive Auction Procedures Order

In early June, wireless carriers and broadcasters asked the Federal Communications Commission to disclose data regarding the results of six staff simulations of the initial clearing target optimization procedure proposed by the FCC in December in connection with the upcoming incentive auction. Instead of releasing this data promptly and giving stakeholders a meaningful opportunity to comment on the implications of the staff simulations, the FCC's leadership did nothing for over a month. Then, on the evening of July 10, just three business days before the FCC was scheduled to vote on the procedures for the incentive auction, the staff released some of the data, and the Chairman's Office unilaterally waived the Sunshine period prohibition so that parties could comment on it until the night before the FCC meeting.

To say the least, there were numerous problems with this approach. I am therefore pleased that the incentive auction procedures item has been pulled from the agenda for the FCC meeting and thank the leadership of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, whose intervention was critical to reaching this result.