[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 81 (Monday, May 23, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H2891-H2892]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TIMELY AVAILABILITY OF ITEMS ADOPTED BY VOTE OF THE FEDERAL
COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 2589) to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to require the
Federal Communications Commission to publish on its Internet website
changes to the rules of the Commission not later than 24 hours after
adoption, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2589
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. TIMELY AVAILABILITY OF ITEMS ADOPTED BY VOTE OF
THE COMMISSION.
(a) Amendment.--Section 4 of the Communications Act of 1934
(47 U.S.C. 154) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(p) In the case of any item that is adopted by vote of
the Commission, the Commission shall publish on the Internet
website of the Commission the text of such item not later
than 24 hours after the Secretary of the Commission has
received dissenting statements from all Commissioners wishing
to submit such a statement with respect to such item.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section
shall apply with respect to an item that is adopted after the
date that is 30 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Oregon (Mr. Walden) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oregon.
General Leave
Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
insert extraneous materials in the Record on the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Oregon?
There was no objection.
Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, the Federal Communications Commission regulates an
incredibly dynamic and innovative sector of the American economy. The
communications technology sector directly impacts the lives of
consumers in meaningful ways. Consumers are able to map their ways to
new places like, frankly, I did this morning; find information and
enriching content; and reach their loved ones who might live in the
most remote places.
Communications technology also enables other industries to reach
their audiences in new and life-changing ways. Health care, finance,
manufacturing, agriculture: all of these industries are leveraging
communication technologies in ways to better serve the American
consumer.
We can't afford to allow this functional sector of the economy to
languish or fail under outdated regulations or a faulty regulatory
process. That is why the Committee on Energy and Commerce has focused
on improving the process at the FCC so that it operates in an effective
and more transparent manner.
This House passed a comprehensive FCC process reform bill back in
November, H.R. 2583, but we continue to work on improving the FCC's
communications with the public. Hence, H.R. 2589. This is one such
improvement.
Sponsored by my colleague, Representative Ellmers of North Carolina,
this bill is targeted at the FCC's struggle to make its newly adopted
rules available to the public in a timely fashion. The bill requires
the FCC to show the public what it has just voted on by publishing the
text of the rules within 24 hours of the filing of the last dissenting
statement.
This should not be too difficult. Normally, the FCC does a reasonable
job in
[[Page H2892]]
publishing its new rules fairly quickly after adoption. However, on
more controversial items, the documents are not available until much
later. For example, the Lifeline Order, adopted on March 31, was not
available for 27 days. That is nearly a month. The FCC should not be
delaying publication on controversial items. It should seek to add
information and facts to the debate rather than appearing to hide the
ball.
At the same time, we recognize that the FCC must have the ability to
respond to dissenting statements that criticize its decisions.
Accordingly, we worked with our colleagues across the aisle to ensure
that the Commission had a fair opportunity to address dissents to
dissents and still make sure that new rules became available to the
public in a timely way. In other words, so the Commission can do its
work back and forth among Commissioners and finish their product. But
once they do, they need to make it available to the public. By the way,
that is who they work for.
I would like to thank my colleagues on the committee for their work,
particularly Representative Ellmers and Representative McNerney. I
believe the bill strikes the right balance, and I urge my colleagues to
support Representative Ellmers' bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2589.
For the past several years, Republicans have been focused on changing
procedures at the Federal Communications Commission. The bill we are
considering today demonstrates that Democrats are willing to work with
Republicans on these ideas when the proposals are reasonable.
The original bill had some issues. It would have required the FCC to
post within 24 hours of adoption any final rules that were modified by
the Commission. Such a requirement was inconsistent with the
Administrative Procedure Act, which requires that any rule changes are
accompanied by an explanatory text.
Additionally, the original bill failed to take into account the fact
that in many cases where there is a delay in the release of FCC
decisions, it is usually due to late receipt of dissenting statements
from some Commissioners. To fix these issues, Democrats proposed an
amendment during markup to provide the FCC to post, in its entirety,
the text of any actions within 24 hours after dissenting Commissioners
file their statements. The improvements ensure that this bill will not
force the FCC to act in conflict with other laws, such as the
Administrative Procedure Act.
I urge my colleagues to support the bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of this fine piece of
legislation.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Brooks of Alabama). The question is on
the motion offered by the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden) that the
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2589, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not
present.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this question will be postponed.
The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.
____________________