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anna gomez
FCC Chair Rosenworcel Finally Has a Majority; Will She Deliver?
If Gomez, Starks, and Rosenworcel prove ready to follow President Biden’s lead in cracking down on dangerous concentrations of private power and control, there is no shortage of items they can quickly address.
Sep 16, 2023
After spending the last two and half years deadlocked 2 to 2, the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, has reentered the policy battlefield with the confirmation of new commissioner Anna Gomez last week. Democratic appointees now hold a majority for the first time since the Obama administration. The standoff has meant that few regulatory decisions of importance have been made since President Joe Biden took office.
Gomez’s quiet ascension follows a year-plus-long battle over former nominee Gigi Sohn, who withdrew from consideration in March, after a scorched-earth campaign against her nomination by large technology and telecommunications corporations undermined support among centrist members of the Senate Democratic caucus.
In recent months, FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel has shown signs she is willing to challenge platform and telecom monopolists, and Democratic commissioner Geoffrey Starks has demonstrated strong reformist instincts. This means the FCC’s direction appears to hinge on Gomez’s appetite for taking on these powerful corporations. Gomez’s mix of experience in both the public and private sectors smoothed her path to confirmation but led to some questions about whether she is up for big fights.
With every Democratic commissioner previously voicing support for re-reclassification, the restoration of net neutrality appears to be a foregone conclusion.
If Gomez, Starks, and Rosenworcel prove ready to follow President Biden’s lead in cracking down on dangerous concentrations of private power and control, there is no shortage of items they can quickly address, including:
1. Restoring Net Neutrality to Internet Service Providers
In most advocates’ view, the commission’s top priority is to again categorize the internet as a “common carrier service” under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934. The 2015 implementation of net neutrality provisions under Obama-era FCC chair Tom Wheeler was the crowning achievement of the open internet movement, before being reversed by Trump-appointed FCC chair Ajit Pai in 2018. Net neutrality is a rare issue where public advocates and large tech companies mostly align, sharing distrust of a regulatory regime that gives ISPs the power to discriminate against some internet content by controlling the speed at which it is accessed. With every Democratic commissioner previously voicing support for re-reclassification, the restoration of net neutrality appears to be a foregone conclusion.
2. Applying Net Neutrality Principles to Google, Facebook, and Twitter
In a November 2017 speech sponsored by the Open Markets Institute, Senator Al Franken said the FCC’s authority under the Federal Communications Act of 1934 can also serve as a model for regulating big tech platforms. A reinvigorated FCC could swiftly move to take up this challenge from Franken, who earlier had been a leading champion of net neutrality, by declaring the platforms to be essential online communications infrastructure, and regulating them accordingly. Most importantly this would include requiring them to provide the same service at the same price to all users.
Taking this path would also enable the FCC to work more effectively with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in addressing some of the threats to democracy posed by Facebook and Google. For instance, the FCC could target Facebook’s threat to block access to news in California, as Facebook is already doing in Canada, as punishment for legislation to force the platforms to pay the news publishers who employ the journalists who actually create the information that gives the platforms value. Such a move would also enable the FCC to join the DOJ and FTC in addressing the threats to democracy posed by Elon Musk’s control of Twitter and Starlink, as the Open Markets Institute called for them to do last November. Since taking control of Twitter, Musk has moved to throttle access to news sites and competing platforms and to directly interfere in Ukraine’s war of defense against Russia.
3. Reversing Trump-Era Deregulation of Television Broadcast Stations
Under former chair Ajit Pai, the FCC drastically cut restrictions limiting cross-ownership of print media and television broadcast entities, allowing for greater concentration in smaller media markets. Building on the Obama-era FCC’s questionable decision to scale back restrictions on foreign investments in broadcast stations, the Trump-era FCC also took broad steps to make it easier for American television stations to bring on foreign investors, and weakened rules for reporting their identities. Rosenworcel has recently demonstrated an interest in combatting consolidation in the sector: When hedge fund Standard General moved to buy broadcast television giant Tegna Inc., Rosenworcel used regulatory maneuvers to block the deal without a full vote of the deadlocked commission.
4. Ensuring Fair Distribution of New Infrastructure and IRA Benefits and Funds
The FCC can also ensure that the expansions of telecom infrastructure under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act are implemented equitably. Pending rulemaking around “digital discrimination of access” language in the infrastructure bill will clearly indicate whether the new Democratic majority is willing to challenge telecommunications providers and large platforms on behalf of the public.
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Progressives Applaud Senate Confirmation of Anna Gomez to FCC
"We've waited for far too long for a fully functional FCC, and there's so much crucial work before the agency," said Jessica González of Free Press Action.
Sep 07, 2023
After nearly 1,000 days without a full panel of commissioners at the nation's top telecommunications regulator, the U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed State Department policy adviser Anna Gomez to join the Federal Communications Commission.
Progressives expressed hope that the end of the deadlock will allow the FCC to swiftly reinstate net neutrality rules, end "digital redlining" by internet service providers (ISPs) that provide low-income communities with slower service for the same rates as wealthier customers, and take other steps to regulate the telecom industry fairly.
"We applaud the Senate for confirming Anna Gomez today, filling the final seat on the commission that's necessary to take action to restore net neutrality," said Maria Langholz, communications director for Demand Progress, referring to the Obama-era rules that kept ISPs from creating internet "fast lanes" for companies that could afford them and throttling other content. "Anna Gomez is eminently qualified to serve in this role, and will bring immense expertise."
As Common Dreams reported in May when Gomez was nominated, the communications policy adviser has previously worked at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, whose work addresses broadband and internet policy, in addition to lobbying work within the telecom industry.
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said he was "proud" to have voted for Gomez, who he said will join a "Democratic majority that will make critical progress on the communications challenges communities across the country face."
"The challenges we face are too great for the FCC to face alone. We need laws on the books that empower regulators and protect consumers," said Markey. "I look forward to partnering with Chairwoman [Jessica] Rosenworcel, Commissioner [Geoffrey] Starks, and Ms. Gomez in our shared fight to undo the damage of the Trump-era FCC by restoring net neutrality protections and protecting consumers from another Republican assault on the free and open internet."
Gomez was confirmed six months after longtime consumer advocate Gigi Sohn withdrew her nomination for the commissioner seat following a smear campaign by telecom industry lobbyists and dark money groups which accused her of being insufficiently committed to expanding broadband in rural areas, among other claims.
After a deadlock that was the result of "concerted efforts by the phone, cable, and broadcast lobbies to hamstring the agency that oversees their businesses," said public interest group Free Press Action, "Gomez's confirmation restores the agency's full complement of commissioners and provides a tie-breaking vote on issues related to diversifying media ownership, promoting broadband affordability, and protecting the rights of internet users."
The group said Starks, who was renominated by President Joe Biden in May, must also be reconfirmed by the Senate by the end of the year or he'll be required to step down.
"We've waited for far too long for a fully functional FCC, and there's so much crucial work before the agency," said Jessica González, co-CEO of Free Press Action. "With Gomez now seated, the agency must start the process of reinstating its authority over broadband under Title II of the Communications Act. It must also complete its work to prevent digital discrimination and ensure that everyone in the United States has reliable and affordable broadband."
"The FCC has a mandate to increase the diversity of local media ownership and to ensure that broadband access is affordable, open, and reliable for all," she added. "We need all five FCC commissioners to get to work as soon as possible to achieve these laudable goals."
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To Return FCC to 'Full Strength,' Progressives Call for Swift Confirmation of Anna Gomez
"The FCC has a mandate to increase the diversity of local-media ownership and to ensure broadband access is affordable, open and reliable for all," said one advocate. "We need all five FCC commissioners as soon as possible to fully move this work forward."
May 22, 2023
Eager to end more than two years of deadlock at the Federal Communications Commission, digital rights advocates on Monday expressed relief at U.S. President Joe Biden nomination of former FCC legal adviser Anna Gomez and called on the U.S. Senate to confirm her appointment as quickly as possible.
"Finally!" tweeted media and technology advocacy group Free Press when the nomination was announced. "The agency has been deadlocked since January 2021 and this delay has harmed millions of people."
Gomez currently serves as a senior adviser for international information and communications policy at the State Department and worked for more than a decade at the FCC as a senior legal adviser to then-Chairman William Kennard.
She also worked in leadership roles at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, whose work addresses broadband and internet policy.
The American Prospect's David Dayen noted that he recently wrote about Gomez's career, detailing her work within the telecom industry—which the FCC regulates—as well as her work in government.
\u201cAnna Gomez is announced to fill the vacancy on the FCC. The White House attempts a consensus choice. I wrote about Gomez last week:\nhttps://t.co/cvFcoTeOI0\u201d— David Dayen (@David Dayen) 1684771173
"Gomez has plenty in her background to interest industry," wrote Dayen. "She was the vice president of government affairs (a nice term for lobbyist) at Sprint Nextel. She was an associate early in her career at corporate law firm Arnold & Porter, and more recently she spent several years as a partner at Wiley Rein, the biggest and most influential law firm that represents clients at the FCC."
Communications on unmanned aerial systems, or drones, were a large focus of her work at Wiley Rein, Dayen reported.
Gomez's nomination comes two months after longtime public advocate Gigi Sohn withdrew her nomination, which had been championed by progressives, after months of attacks by the telecom lobby.
More than 60 digital rights groups wrote to Biden after Sohn's withdrawal, calling for another nominee who would fight forcefully at the commission for net neutrality rules, the rights of low-income and rural communities, and privacy rights.
"We're now approaching two-and-a-half years without a fully functional Federal Communications Commission. Never before has the American public had to wait so long for a commissioner's seat to be filled," Jessica Gonzalez, co-CEO of Free Press, which signed the letter, said on Monday after Gomez's nomination was announced. "In addition to her corporate experience—which has often entailed working for competitive carriers instead of incumbents—Gomez has a long track record of public service, including high-ranking positions at the FCC and Commerce Department. She is eminently qualified for this role at the FCC."
Dayen noted that some of Gomez's positions on communications issues have not been publicized, including her views on congressional rules that punish internet service providers (ISPs) for underinvestment in low-income communities and on net neutrality rules, which prevent ISPs from creating internet "fast lanes" for companies that can pay for them and throttling other content by slowing down speeds.
"We expect Gomez to help restore the proper legal framework for broadband and the net neutrality protections that the FCC repealed during the Trump administration," said Gonzalez. "In poll after poll, people in the United States of all political stripes say they want enforceable rules for an open internet. We're confident that Gomez will give weight to this overwhelming public support and be responsive to public input on the full range of issues before the agency."
The 2-2 deadlock at the FCC has made it impossible for the commission to stop ISPs from "digitally redlining" low-income communities with slower service for the same rates as wealthier customers, as Common Cause said last October, and to restore net neutrality rules.
"The FCC has a mandate to increase the diversity of local-media ownership and to ensure broadband access is affordable, open and reliable for all," said Gonzalez. "We need all five FCC commissioners as soon as possible to fully move this work forward."
"Any further delay means big companies will have an easier time engaging in unjust, unreasonable, and discriminatory actions, because they know this vital watchdog agency isn't operating with the majority it needs," she added. "If these leaders want to improve the lives of internet users, cellphone customers, TV watchers, and radio listeners—meaning everyone—they need to speed up confirmation before the clock runs out at the FCC."
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