Chairman Genachowski 'hopeful' Congress will pass auction legislation

Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski remains hopeful that Congress will pass spectrum auction legislation as the number of remaining legislative days shrinks.

House members have yet to draft and rally around a spectrum auction proposal, and some Commerce Committee Republicans are at odds with Senate Democrats on how spectrum policy should look. But Chairman Genachowski said that the economic benefits of the auctions have resonated with members and that the proposal — a central aspect of his tenure — is gaining bipartisan support. He did not say how auction legislation should look and said there are various "good models" in play. Many auction proponents hope the FCC will get a broad mandate to shape the auctions as it wishes.