WASHINGTON-The remaining private sector board members of the congressionally mandated Telecommunications Development Fund have been named, capping an eight-month controversy that had the White House trying to mediate a fight between the Congressional Black Caucus and Federal Communications Commission Chairman Reed Hundt over the makeup of the board.
Thomas A. Hart Jr., a communications lawyer and creator of the fund that Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.) incorporated into the sweeping telecom rewrite of 1996, won a seat on the TDF despite lacking support from Hundt.
Strong backing from industry and the Congressional Black Caucus forced Hundt to reluctantly put Hart on the TDF board. The two men will have to work with each other if Hundt serves as the FCC representative on the TDF.
Towns is “very pleased about the private sector member appointments,” said Khalil Munir, spokesman for Towns. “It is a giant step toward implementing the Telecommunications Development Fund.” Towns was a strong advocate for Hart.
The fund gets interest from spectrum auction down payments. About $6 million is available in the fund today, but the amount is expected to grow to $10 million after interest from D-, E- and F-block personal communications services auction down payments is received.
The monies will be used to assist small businesses in gaining access to capital for wireless and wireline telecom projects.
Debra L. Lee, president and chief operating officer of Black Entertainment Television, and Richard L. Fields, managing director of the Allen & Co. Inc. investment firm and director of Omnipoint Corp., will join Hart and interim TDF Chairman Solomon Trujillo, president and chief executive office of
U S West Communications, as private sector board members.
A move is underway to get Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin, a former Wall Street investor, and Philip Lader, head of the Small Business Administration, to join Hundt to fill the three public sector TDF board seats.
The hope is including the two men will give TDF more credibility in the industry and the financial community.
