By Adam R Jacobson
Leave it to the House Energy & Commerce Committee to give the five voting members of the FCC one week — including the Independence Day holiday — to prepare for a just-announced oversight hearing convened by outgoing Republican Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers.
News of the hearing, titled “Fiscal Year 2025 Federal Communications Commission Budget,” came on Tuesday afternoon via House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Rodgers, the Republican from the Spokane area who is not seeking reelection, and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chair Bob Latta, the Ohio Republican.
Don’t expect much discussion about key regulatory matters involving radio at the July 9 meeting scheduled for 10am on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
Rather, Rodgers and Latta will be focuses their discussion on the Commission’s decision to bring Title II classification to broadband, establishing “net neutrality” — something that Republicans erased after the FCC under Democratic Chairman Tom Wheeler wrote it into effect.
Given the Supreme Court’s decision last week to do away with the “Chevron deference,” which left ambiguous challenges in a court of law up to agency “experts” until now, a lawsuit by any party against the FCC for its decision to bring back “net neutrality” could now leave it up to a federal judge to decide what’s right.
“We look forward to discussing with FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and the other Commissioners how we can return the FCC to its mission of ensuring universal access to broadband services and closing the digital divide,” Rodgers and Latta said in a joint statement.
