Democrats slammed FCC process reform legislation due for markup Wednesday...

p1). The introduced bill “includes some changes recommended by Democratic staff and expert witnesses,” Democrats said in a staff memo Monday. “Nevertheless, the legislation, as introduced, does not address fundamental concerns identified by various administrative law and FCC experts.” Some proposed reforms “may make sense for internal FCC rules or best practices,” but “there are serious concerns regarding codifying provisions as statutory mandates that apply only to the FCC,” the Democrats said. The subcommittee’s oversight powers are sufficient to address problems, they added. HR-3309 “would dramatically alter standard administrative law practice and procedure, the Democrats said. “These provisions have the potential to undo over 40 years of federal court precedents under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and create uncertainty and confusion for the FCC and interested stakeholders going forward.” The Democrats also strongly objected to proposals to limit the FCC’s ability to make conditions on transactions. They said that would go against the public interest standard. “This rewrite of the existing public interest test for transactions is not merely about ‘process’ but directly shapes the substantive role of the agency in the future,” they said. Democrats said they needed more clarity on HR-3310, a bill that would consolidate many of the FCC’s reports and delete others. “Although Democrats support streamlining FCC’s reporting requirements, several provisions of H.R. 3310 raise questions about the FCC’s statutory authority as well as how the Commission is directed to evaluate the communications marketplace.” The hearing is 9 a.m. in Room 2123, Rayburn Building.