Broadband Access

Yesterday, Axios published an article detailing how the clock is running out for the Senate to confirm Gigi Sohn, President Biden’s nominee to be a commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission. President Biden nominated Ms. Sohn over six months ago and the vacancy has been open for over a year, keeping the FCC deadlocked in a 2-2 split. A deadlocked FCC is unable to fully address broadband affordability or move forward on a host of other communications reforms vital to our democracy.

Former acting FCC chairman and Common Cause special adviser Michael Copps was on the same page when it came to Sohn being a key piece in the broadband connectivity puzzle. “[N]one of the White House’s initiatives around halting ongoing consolidation in the broadband sector, restoring a free and open internet, and ensuring marginalized communities have equitable access to communications services can be fully achieved if the FCC remains deadlocked,” he said in a statement following the event. “Congress must take action now to ensure Ms. Sohn receives a vote,” Copps said.  Copps said those gatekeepers were conducting a “sleazy” campaign to undermine Sohn because they knew that “a functional FCC would hold them accountable and prevent them from engaging in anticompetitive and discriminatory practices that undermine our ability to get online.”

On May 9th, the White House held an event on broadband affordability, highlighting new service plans that numerous internet service providers will offer as part of their participation in the Federal Communications Commission’s Affordable Connectivity Program. The program helps ensure low-income households can afford broadband connectivity. The White House’s latest event on broadband affordability signals the need for Gigi Sohn, President Biden’s nominee to serve as FCC commissioner, to receive a vote in the United States Senate. President Biden nominated Ms. Sohn over five months ago and the vacancy has been open for over a year, keeping the FCC deadlocked in a 2-2 split. A deadlocked FCC is unable to fully address broadband affordability or move forward on a host of other communications reforms vital to our democracy.

Today, Common Cause submitted comments in response to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s Request for Comment on the implementation of broadband programs found within the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Implementation. The programs include the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program and Digital Equity Act programs. 

“The ‘big lie’ about the 2020 election has metastasized, with disinformation about our elections used as a pretext for state laws making it harder for voters to cast their ballots,” said Karen Hobert Flynn, president of Common Cause, a watchdog group with chapters in 35 states.

Former FCC chairs Ajit Pai, Tom Wheeler, Julius Genachowski, Michael Copps, Michael Powell and Mignon Clyburn said in a joint letter they were "concerned" about the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) recent efforts to revisit the FCC’s 2020 decision to allow use of the C-Band spectrum for wireless use. The former officials said the agencies should work to "resolve the FAA’s concerns expeditiously, but this debate should not be fought publicly in a way that undermines consumer confidence in the process."