FCC officials went back to work along with the rest of the federa...

part, though commuting was a struggle in Washington. Commissioner legal advisors got an update on the National Broadband Plan slated to be finalized March 17. FCC officials said work on the plan has proceeded throughout the week. “Most people seem to be back -- some in the broadband team didn’t miss a day,” with several officials car pooling in an SUV as most of Washington was shut down, an official said. “Things look pretty normal around here today,” said another. Judging from staffing at the Media Bureau and some commissioners’ offices, about half of FCC staffers showed up at the office Friday, a third agency official said. Others are telecommuting and some staffers besides those drafting the broadband plan worked during the government shutdown, the official said. Those working on the state of media project were planning workshops on the subject with a public notice to announce it, the person said. It’s unclear if the commission will issue a public notice clarifying that all comment deadlines were delayed four business days because of the closure, the person said. But most communications lawyers will understand that’s the case, the staffer said. Some sidewalks near the commission’s headquarters were a “disaster” including those outside the L ‘Enfant Plaza Metro stop, the official said. An announcement is expected shortly on a new date for a public forum on an emergency response interoperability center, which was scheduled for Wednesday, but postponed, a Public Safety Bureau spokesman said. Meanwhile, filings at the FCC have piled up like the snow that covers Washington. The commission posted online Friday more than 500 comments and ex parte filings received there through the earlier part of the week.