The FCC’s Democratic majority wants cable and satellite TV consumers to receive rebates when TV stations go dark on their TVs. The plan, unveiled Wednesday by FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel, triggered a strong response from the agency’s two Republicans, Brendan Carr and Nathan Simington.
FCC member Nathan Simington is telling Congress that he and his fellow commissioners need to serve as a check on the power of the chair. According to testimony for the House Energy & Commerce Committee FCC oversight hearing today, Simington, a Republican, said that if the agency does not adopt rules allowing for full commission oversight of decisions made by staffers under authority delegated by the chair, Congress should step in to mandate it.
The GOP commissioner says if deep ties to single-source data are an impediment, they should be severed.
Formerly senior adviser at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Simington was confirmed to the FCC by the Senate in December 2020 on a 49–46 party line vote, with GOP colleagues touting his light-touch regulatory approach. Simington, 42 and a native of Saskatchewan, Canada, holds one of two current Republican seats on the commission. In this Q&A he expresses empathy for broadcasters facing business challenges.
Dynamic spectrum sharing got a boost from FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington at a speech to the Silicon Flatirons conference in Boulder, Colo., though he painted a complex portrait of such a future for which AI is likely no magic bullet.
Exclusives
Nathan Simington got the unexpected nod from President Donald Trump last fall to join the FCC, a nomination he said he was surprised to receive but is clearly determined to make the most of. the former NTIA official talks about his road from rural (and urban) Saskatchewan to a seat on the FCC, outlines his regulatory philosophy, pushes back on criticism from Hill Democrats and explains his take on the hot-button debate over Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, the legal provision that protects social media platforms from liability for what their users post.
New FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington has begun staffing up, though all in “acting” roles. According to his office, he has named Tyler Bridegan as acting media adviser, Erion Boone as acting wireless adviser and Jonathan Cannon as acting wireline adviser.
New FCC commissioner Nathan Simington announced is presence, at least virtual presence, at the FCC Wednesday with the first tweet from is @SimingtonFCC twitter account. “Good morning to all,” he tweeted. “I am very happy to be online as a member of @FCC. I look forward to working with @AjitPaiFCC, @BrendanCarrFCC, @GeoffreyStarks, @JRosenworcel, and the incredible FCC staff to oversee and advance telecommunications in the public interest.”
Nathan Simington is officially an FCC commissioner. Following his nomination by the Senate last week, Simington was sworn in on Dec. 14 by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.
The Senate’s confirmation of Nathan Simington to the FCC on Tuesday guarantees a 2-2 partisan deadlock once Ajit Pai steps down as chairman when President-elect Joe Biden takes office. Democrats and digital rights groups worry that Republicans will try to block any Biden nominee for FCC chairman, effectively hamstringing the agency and delaying the expected reimplementation of Obama-era net neutrality rules.
The Senate on Tuesday confirmed the FCC nomination of Nathan Simington, a senior Trump administration official who has helped lead a regulatory effort seeking to rein in social media companies at the agency. His appointment will lead to a 2-2 partisan deadlock on Jan. 20, when Republican Chairman Ajit Pai steps down and leaves the agency.
A divided Senate has begun the process of voting on Nathan Simington’s nomination to the FCC, expected to draw plenty of floor pushback from unhappy Democrats before a final vote later in the day.
Two Senate Democrats — Richard Blumenthal from Connecticut (l) and Ron Wyden (Ore.) — and a coalition of digital rights groups are hoping to derail the confirmation of telecom lawyer Nathan Simington to the FCC, arguing that his appointment during the lame-duck session would hamper President-Elect Joe Biden’s policy agenda.
The Senate Commerce Committee Wednesday voted 14-12 along party lines to advance the nomination of controversial telecom lawyer Nathan Simington to the FCC. If confirmed by the full Senate, President-elect Joe Biden will begin his term with the FCC evenly split between Democrats and Republicans — which could hamper his goal of restoring net neutrality rules.
The SenateCommerce Committee plans to vote Wednesday on the nomination of Nathan Simington for the Republican FCC seat being vacated by Michael O’Rielly at year’s end, according to a group opposed to his confirmation. If Simington is confirmed by the full Senate, still an open question, the FCC will be at 2-2 when chairman Ajit Pai leaves Jan. 20, putting pressure on the Biden Administration to nominate, vet, and confirm a third Democrat so they have a majority.
FCC nominee Nathan Simington reached out to Fox News this summer in an attempt at “engaging” host Laura Ingraham to support President Donald Trump’s quest to make it easier to sue social media companies like Facebook and Twitter, according to emails obtained by Politico.
It looks like Senate Republicans are going to try and get Nathan Simington confirmed to the FCC before the end of the year and the exit of Commissioner Michael O’Rielly, who he will be replacing. The Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled his confirmation hearing for Nov. 10.
President Trump has announced his intention to nominate Nathan Simington to fill the seat being vacated by Michael O’Rielly, whose renomination was withdrawn by the president apparently because O’Rielly was critical of Trump’s effort to regulate social media. Simington is currently senior adviser at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
