Eshoo Rejects Budget Amendments, Other Attacks on FCC
Good oversight doesn’t include “wholesale attacks against agencies … for political purposes,” House Communications Subcommittee Ranking Member Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., told reporters Thursday. She rejected amendments to the Continuing Resolution -- debated Thursday -- that would affect FCC operations. Eshoo said at a media briefing that her priorities for this Congress include spectrum reform, overhaul of the Universal Service Fund and building a public safety wireless broadband network.
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The Commerce Committee should engage in oversight of federal agencies, but Eshoo said debates on whether the commission and other agencies should exist are time wasters. Congress should allow and empower agencies to do their work, she said. On most issues, the Communications Subcommittee is one of the least partisan in the House, she said. “We have the opportunity to get some important things done in this Congress.”
Eshoo opposes amendments to the Continuing Resolution to stop the FCC from acting on net neutrality rules (CD Feb 17 p12), she said. “It’s a march to folly on the part of any member who undervalues or underestimates not only the power of the Internet, but how empowered people are by it.” Consumers “don’t want to see it wrecked,” she said. Eshoo also called “rank” an amendment to cut the FCC’s chief diversity officer. Eshoo said she was surprised by amendments by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., to kill wireless subsidies for the poor under the USF Lifeline and Link-Up programs. With the high cost of utilities, “of course [poor people] are going to use wireless,” Eshoo said. “Here’s an amendment that just yanks that form of communication right out of their hand."
Eshoo hopes to bring a “fierceness about the public interest,” she said. Eshoo wants the U.S. to be No. 1 in broadband. “There’s kind of a mantra around here, ‘Jobs, jobs, jobs.’ I say ‘broadband, broadband, broadband.” Eshoo also wants the subcommittee to promote competition, she said: “We have essentially a duopoly today.” Eshoo and Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., “like each other and respect each other,” Eshoo said. While Walden filed one of the CR amendments, Eshoo said he is a “very able, intelligent and lovely person."
Eshoo is examining voluntary incentive auctions, she said. “On an initial glance, it’s attractive.” The idea “is quite fascinating to me,” because “everybody has a price and this has value to it.” It’s predicted that the auctions could bring in $33 billion, she said. Eshoo doesn’t know how that figure was determined, “but that’s some serious money,” she said. It’s not often that large swaths of spectrum are available, she added. The CTIA and CEA said this week that incentive auctions could bring in $33 billion (CD Feb 16 p6).
"Shame on us” for not having a public safety network yet, Eshoo said. “It’s dangerous.” But Eshoo said she has not decided what the right approach is, and wants to have more hearings. “We need to do a deep dive on spectrum and what the upsides and the downsides are on the various ideas that are out there,” she said. If the 700 MHz D-block is reallocated to public safety, it’s unclear who would pay for maintenance and upgrade of the network, Eshoo said. “Are [public safety] going to do that? They haven’t been able to come up with a system on their own.” Public safety has many strengths, but it’s “not good at telecommunications,” she said.
Eshoo applauded work on USF revamp legislation by former Rep. Rick Boucher and Rep. Lee Terry, R-Neb. “I'll take a look at that,” but Eshoo said she thinks an overhaul ought to also include reform of the low income program.