In Short Hearing, Lawmakers Look for FCC Transparency

The House Commerce Committee’s Communications and Technology Subcommittee held a hearing on improving Federal Communications Commission transparency. In recent years, members of subcommittee have voiced concern with the lack of predictable process and consistent transparency at the FCC. During the 112th and 113th Congresses, the House unanimously approved a number of bills designed to minimize the potential for procedural failings and abuse of process, and to improve agency transparency, efficiency, and accountability. In the 114th Congress, the House passed the Federal Communications Commission Consolidated Reporting Act (H.R. 734) for the third time with unanimous approval on February 24, 2015. Up for discussion at this hearing are four bills still in draft form:

A discussion draft of the FCC Process Reform Act, authored by Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR), Ranking Member Anna Eshoo (D-CA), and Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), that aims to increased transparency and predictability at the commission.

A draft bill, authored by Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY), that would require the FCC to report quarterly to Congress and to post on the FCC website data on the total number of decisions pending categorized by bureau, the type of request, and how long the requests have been pending. The report also includes a list of pending Congressional investigations and their cost to the agency.

A draft bill, Rep. David Loebsack (D-IA), that would require the chairman to post the commission’s internal procedures on the FCC website and update the website when the chairman makes any changes.

A draft bill, authored by Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), that would require the FCC to coordinate with the Small Business Administration and issue recommendations to improve small business participation in FCC proceedings.

Chairman Walden said, “The FCC is structured to give the chairman the ability to operate in secret.” He added, “The Commission regulates an incredibly dynamic and innovative sector in the American economy. It ought to serve the public in a transparent and predictable manner.” Ranking Member Eshoo said is crucial to “modernize the FCC without jeopardizing regulatory certainty.”

Because of some technical difficulties and pending floor votes, the hearing was usually brief. It consisted of testimony from three witnesses, a few questions and a gavel. Among the key takeaways from the mini-session were that Democrats, including the Rep Eshoo and full committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ), are unhappy that the Republicans have not yet brought up a Democrat bill that would require the FCC to boost political ad disclosures, and Rep Eshoo is unhappy that the draft legislation delayed the trigger for her Collaboration Act, which would allow more than two FCC commissioners to meet in private, with the appropriate transparency safeguards. The Collaboration Act portion of the bill does not trigger until the other reforms are instituted as a way for Republicans to insure those other reforms get made, and as a check and balance. Transparency first, the thinking goes, then let the commissioners meet in private.

The three witnesses, Free State president Randolph May, Duke University law professor Stuart Benjamin and former FCC commissioner Robert McDowell, generally agreed that it would make sense to do the reforms all at once rather than delay one of them. May said he had been a longtime backer of the move. Benjamin said he saw no reason to delay, and McDowell said, "in an ideal world," that would be the case, but suggested there were other things in play.