Reps Introduce Federal Communications Commission Collaboration Act

Reps Anna Eshoo (D-CA), John Shimkus (R-II) and Mike Doyle (D-PA) have introduced a bill, the Federal Communications Commission Collaboration Act, that would allow more than two commissioners to meet privately outside of public meetings.

The bill would allow three or more commissioners to meet for "collaborative discussions," so long as no agency actions were taken at the meetings and so long as a member of each political party was a party to the discussions, which, in this case, would mean no meeting among the three Democrats making up the majority. The FCC's sunshine rules currently prevent that, so negotiations on items and issues are often through staffers and e-mails.

FCC Commissioner Michael Copps has been a long and strong voice for allowing commissioners to reason together outside of public meetings. "I am thrilled that Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, Congressman John Shimkus, and Congressman Mike Doyle have introduced the Federal Communications Commission Collaboration Act," said Commissioner Copps.

"If there is only one action we could take this year to reform the FCC, this should be it." "The FCC has the responsibility to tackle the nation's most pressing communications issues, from spectrum reform to universal service and public safety," said Rep Eshoo. "But the Closed Meeting Rule prevents simple collaboration or discussion of these issues, outside of a formal setting. I'm pleased to introduce legislation to modify this restrictive rule to promote greater discussion among the five FCC Commissioners so they can benefit from each other's expertise and experience."