Policymakers

The Federal Communications Commission heard reports from leaders of the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, International Bureau, Office of Engineering and Technology, and Office of Economics and Analytics on their work over the last four years. The Wireless Telecommunications Bureau’s presentation summarized the accomplishments of its staff in contributing to the Commission’s efforts to make 5G deployment a reality.

It would certainly make sense for me to use today’s platform to detail all the ways that we have cleared out the Federal Communications Commission’s regulatory underbrush since I spoke to Free State one month before taking this position. But I’d like to go in a less obvious direction. Instead, I’d like to lay out my theory for good governance and how the reforms we’ve made since January 2017 have fundamentally transformed the agency’s operations for the better. Along the way, I’ve picked up a few lessons about what I believe to be the keys to effective governance.

For the bulk of his tenure, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has avoided wading into the relentless controversies that defined President Trump's presidency.

The Capitol began processing a massive shift in the balance of power as Democrats prepare to take unified control of Congress. That means these key Democrats are primed to take the gavels on the committees overseeing technology and telecommunications issues, ranging from data privacy to 5G to antitrust:

• Net Neutrality: A Democratic Federal Communications Commission will likely first move to reclassify broadband as a service under Title II of the Communications Act. That will allow it to restore rules requiring Internet service providers to treat all internet traffic equally, and take other actions to regulate broadband providers’ business practices amid the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Here are the top reforms and nominations that could stand a chance in the new Congress assuming — as now seems likely — Democrats control both chambers and the White House.

The office of Federal Communications Commissioner Nathan Simington said it is uncertain if he could participate in any Section 230 proceeding. Simington’s office said FCC ethics counsel advised “as there is no currently-pending Section 230 matter before the commission to be discussed with specificity, it could not comprehensively rule out potential recusal in the future. However, no grounds were identified for recusal on this topic at this time.”

Democrats for years have pressured Silicon Valley companies to address their poor track records on workforce diversity. Now they’re calling on President-elect Joe Biden to do the same for federal agencies that oversee the tech industry.

Michael Pack's stormy tenure over the federal agency that oversees government-funded broadcasters abroad - including the Voice of America - appears to be coming to a close. Yet President Donald Trump's appointee has sparked an internal outcry by taking bold steps to try to cement his control over at least two of the networks and to shape the course of their journalism well into the Biden administration. Pack, the CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media, also serves as chairman of the boards of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia.

The Federal Communications Commission appoints the Honorable Michael A. Caron, Commissioner, Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority; the Honorable Karen Charles Peterson, Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications and Cable; and the Honorable Brandon Presley, Commissioner, Mississippi Public Service Commission, to serve on the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service. These appointments fill the positions held by the Honorable Stephen Michael Bloom, Commissioner, Oregon Public Utility Commission; the Honorable Sally A.