Media's Back Pages or Buried Bad News
White House picks two FCC nominees
Move could end regulatory delays
By Jeffry Bartash, MarketWatch
Last Update: 7:30 PM ET Nov. 9, 2005
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - After a long delay, the White House on Wednesday nominated two people to fill seats on the federal agency that regulates phone and media companies.
President Bush selected Deborah Taylor Tate, a Tennessee regulator, to fill an open seat on the five-member Federal Communications Commission. He also reappointed Michael Copps, who has served on the commission since 2001
The nominees, if approved by the Senate, would become part of a five-member panel at the FCC that sets the nation's communications laws. One seat has been vacant since March. Another seat, now held by Kathleen Abernathy, could open up soon.
To ensure Republicans maintain control of the FCC, Abernathy has been waiting for the White House to choose a replacement before stepping down as planned. Her term expired in June 2004, but was allowed to stay on through 2005.
The FCC commission is now split 2-2 between Democrats and Republicans. By law, the party controlling the White House - in this case the Republicans - is given three of the agency's five seats.
By and large, the 2-2 split has not prevented resolution of minor issues before the agency. Yet the FCC commission has struggled to resolve more controversial topics.
Just last week, Martin was forced to make concessions to the panel's two Democrats before approving two mega-mergers in the phone industry -- the tie-up between AT&T Corp. and SBC Communications Inc. and the marriage of MCI Inc. and Verizon Communications. Democrats demanded wholesale price freezes and other measures before giving their assent.
And earlier this year, the agency postponed a seemingly perfunctory vote on a new review of the nation's media ownership rules. The FCC commissioners could not agree on how to begin. Republicans want to ease some rules on how many outlets a media company can own, while Democrats want to retain stricter limits.
Tate has developed some expertise with Internet-phone technology in her position at the Tennessee Regulatory Authority.
Then-FCC Chairman Michael Powell named Tate in 2003 to a state-federal panel assigned to develop a joint approach to regulating new technologies.
Tate also served as an adviser to former Tennessee Gov. Don Sundquist and current U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, both Republicans.
Copps, a Democrat, served in the Commerce Department under President Clinton. For 12 years, he was chief of staff for former Sen. Ernest Hollings, D-S.C.
With a firm Republican majority on board, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is expected to tackle some of the agency's most pressing issues.
The 38-year-old Martin, a former adviser to President Bush, was elevated to chairman in March after Powell left. He has served as FCC commissioner since 2001.
While Martin clashed with Powell in several instances and joined Democrats on a few key votes, he mostly pursued a deregulatory approach favored by the White House.
Jeffry Bartash is a reporter for MarketWatch in Washington.
Move could end regulatory delays
By Jeffry Bartash, MarketWatch
Last Update: 7:30 PM ET Nov. 9, 2005
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - After a long delay, the White House on Wednesday nominated two people to fill seats on the federal agency that regulates phone and media companies.
President Bush selected Deborah Taylor Tate, a Tennessee regulator, to fill an open seat on the five-member Federal Communications Commission. He also reappointed Michael Copps, who has served on the commission since 2001
The nominees, if approved by the Senate, would become part of a five-member panel at the FCC that sets the nation's communications laws. One seat has been vacant since March. Another seat, now held by Kathleen Abernathy, could open up soon.
To ensure Republicans maintain control of the FCC, Abernathy has been waiting for the White House to choose a replacement before stepping down as planned. Her term expired in June 2004, but was allowed to stay on through 2005.
The FCC commission is now split 2-2 between Democrats and Republicans. By law, the party controlling the White House - in this case the Republicans - is given three of the agency's five seats.
By and large, the 2-2 split has not prevented resolution of minor issues before the agency. Yet the FCC commission has struggled to resolve more controversial topics.
Just last week, Martin was forced to make concessions to the panel's two Democrats before approving two mega-mergers in the phone industry -- the tie-up between AT&T Corp. and SBC Communications Inc. and the marriage of MCI Inc. and Verizon Communications. Democrats demanded wholesale price freezes and other measures before giving their assent.
And earlier this year, the agency postponed a seemingly perfunctory vote on a new review of the nation's media ownership rules. The FCC commissioners could not agree on how to begin. Republicans want to ease some rules on how many outlets a media company can own, while Democrats want to retain stricter limits.
Tate has developed some expertise with Internet-phone technology in her position at the Tennessee Regulatory Authority.
Then-FCC Chairman Michael Powell named Tate in 2003 to a state-federal panel assigned to develop a joint approach to regulating new technologies.
Tate also served as an adviser to former Tennessee Gov. Don Sundquist and current U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, both Republicans.
Copps, a Democrat, served in the Commerce Department under President Clinton. For 12 years, he was chief of staff for former Sen. Ernest Hollings, D-S.C.
With a firm Republican majority on board, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is expected to tackle some of the agency's most pressing issues.
The 38-year-old Martin, a former adviser to President Bush, was elevated to chairman in March after Powell left. He has served as FCC commissioner since 2001.
While Martin clashed with Powell in several instances and joined Democrats on a few key votes, he mostly pursued a deregulatory approach favored by the White House.
Jeffry Bartash is a reporter for MarketWatch in Washington.
posted by TheFuriousGourmet | 3:34 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home