Eighty Civil-Society Groups Urge Senate to Confirm President Biden's Nominees to FCC and NTIA

80 civil-rights, media-justice, community-media, workers-rights and consumer-advocacy groups sent a letter urging Senate leadership to swiftly confirm Jessica Rosenworcel as chairwoman and Gigi Sohn [Senior Fellow and Public Advocate at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society] as a commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission, and Alan Davidson as the director of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. “These agencies urgently need Senate-confirmed leaders to address the critical need for affordable and resilient access to the open internet in the midst of a global pandemic and worsening climate crisis,” reads the letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Roger Wicker. “Through bipartisan infrastructure legislation, Congress has given these agencies enormous tasks on tight deadlines.” The Senate Commerce Committee has scheduled a confirmation hearing for Rosenworcel on Wednesday, November 17. “[T]here can be no delay in confirming [these nominees] and getting started in earnest on all of that urgent work,” the groups wrote. “These three nominees each bring decades of experience, a commitment to the public interest, and the skills necessary to fulfill the missions of these agencies.”