The Senate Commerce Committee is delaying a vote on NTIA administrator nominee David Redl at a senator's request, aiming to place it on the docket at the committee's next scheduled markup session after its planned Thursday meeting, a committee spokesman said. He said the senator didn't place a full-blown hold on Redl's nomination, instead seeking “additional time to review information.” Informed sources said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, sought the delay over his ongoing concerns about implications of the now-completed Internet Assigned Numbers Authority oversight transition.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has rejected public interest groups’ request for an emergency stay of the FCC’s restoration of the UHF discount, and ended the administrative stay of the rule. “Petitioners have not satisfied the stringent requirements for a stay pending review,” said the order, issued Thursday. “This is not very surprising, since stays are rarely granted. However, it is extremely disappointing,” said Georgetown Law Institute for Public Representation Senior Counselor Andrew Schwartzman, who represented Free Press, Prometheus Radio Project, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, Prometheus Radio Project and the other groups in the case. Since the restored discount’s effective date of June 5 passed during the administrative stay, the rule is effective immediately, an FCC spokesman told us. “We are pleased by the court's decision,” the spokesman said. The case will continue on the merits, attorneys told us.
President Donald Trump plans to nominate Jessica Rosenworcel to again be an FCC member, as expected (see our May 26 report), the White House said just before midnight last night. It noted that she was a commissioner from 2012 until January.
Federal judges struck down FCC intrastate rate caps on inmate calling services and several other provisions of a 2015 ICS order. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Tuesday also vacated the commission's use of industry-averaged cost data and the imposition of video visitation reporting requirements in Global Tel*Link v. FCC, No. 15-1461. It said FCC exclusion of site commission payments from its cost calculus couldn't stand as currently constituted, and vacated and remanded that decision for further proceedings, but it denied challenges to site commission reporting requirements.
Judges Friday morning rejected incumbent Neustar's challenge to FCC decisions choosing Telcordia (iconectiv) as the next local number portability administrator.
House Commerce aide David Redl was picked to be this administration's nominee to head the NTIA, the White House said Tuesday evening. The plan to nominate him was expected, as we previously reported.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear en banc an FTC appeal of a panel ruling that threw out the commission's case against AT&T Mobility alleging it inadequately informed customers of its data-throttling program (see 1608290032).
A federal court denied appeals of a 2016 panel ruling that upheld the FCC's net neutrality and broadband reclassification order under Title II of the Communications Act. The petitions for rehearing en banc of the June three-judge ruling were rejected by a majority of the active judges of the U.S Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in an order Monday in USTelecom v. FCC, No. 15-1063.
The FCC issued a draft rulemaking notice that proposes to reverse broadband Title II reclassification under the Communications Act and eliminate an internet conduct standard, as expected. It's also seeking comment on how to address open internet rules. Chairman Ajit Pai, who previewed the item in a speech Wednesday, put the draft NPRM on the tentative agenda Thursday for commissioners' May 18 meeting.
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said in a speech at the Newseum Wednesday he is circulating to the two other commissioners a rulemaking notice that would reverse the 2015 reregulation of broadband as a Communications Act Title II service, as expected. Pai said he will release the full text of the draft NPRM Thursday afternoon for a vote at the May 18 commissioners’ meeting. The FCC later posted on its website two fact sheets (here and here) and a copy of Pai's Newseum speech, which we attended.