Public Knowledge Acknowledges Improvement in GOP Transparency Bills

Transparency in Federal Communications Commission proceedings is an important value that must be balanced with other concerns, such as the ability to have open dialogue and negotiation among commissioners, and the ability of the FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to move a proceeding to a final vote without creating an endless loop of notice and comments. We appreciate House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Walden’s (R-OR) willingness to listen to our concerns and that he and Rep Adm Kinzinger (R-IL), who originally introduced this amendment, included edits to address some unintended consequences.

The bill as reported still meets the goal of sharing language with all stakeholders but does so without granting legal standing to any publication of circulated orders. Removal of the "good faith" standard for changes after publication also preserves the ability for commissioners to negotiate and alter language up to the final vote without fear of legal challenge. That is a significant improvement. Ultimately, this is a bill about process, and few government processes are wholly perfect. We still believe that this bill, although less concerning than before, remains unnecessary. The current FCC Chairman has demonstrated well how, when the Administrative Procedures Act is adhered to faithfully, the public can have adequate time to comment and influence the outcome. We appreciate the House Commerce Committee Majority team’s collaboration and look forward to working with Congress on this issue.