WASHINGTON-It’s either back to the future or a sign of the times as the wireless industry tries to digest a possible reorganization of the Federal Communications Commission. Two scenarios floating around the nation’s capital would disband the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and spread its functions across the commission.
Word leaked out last week and was first reported on RCRNews.com that FCC Chairman Kevin Martin appeared to be reorganizing the commission by disbanding the wireless bureau and moving its functions to various other bureaus, including a new homeland security bureau.
The FCC declined to comment.
A reorganization would answer the question of why Martin, who began his chairmanship March 18, has yet to announce a chief for the wireless bureau. The departure of John Muleta, the former wireless bureau chief, coincided with the departure of former FCC Chairman Michael Powell.
Speculation is that the reorganization would create a homeland security bureau with the functions performed by the public-safety and critical-infrastructure division of the wireless bureau and other homeland-security functions scattered about in the agency in the Office of Planning and Policy and the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau. A new spectrum bureau would be created with the functions of the wireless bureau licensing division and the FCC’s Office of Engineering & Technology. The wireless bureau’s policy functions would be largely shifted to the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau.
It is not unusual for new chairmen to reorganize the agency to fit their policy objectives, but Martin has yet to specify his priorities except for general statements about broadband and homeland security.
Rumors have circulated for months about who might be named to lead the wireless bureau, with many names being batted down as having conflicts of interest. Anyone with clients or responsibilities in the wireless industry, the wireline industry or the media industry would be conflicted because of the various issues handled either directly or indirectly by the wireless bureau. By creating a homeland security bureau and a spectrum bureau, Martin could solve these conflicts-of-interest issues.
Any Martin reorganization would require approval by Congress and his fellow commissioners. It does not appear that Martin has sought yet comment from any of these parties.
Martin has already been warned about the need to answer to Congress. In April, Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.), chairman of the House commerce appropriations subcommittee, told Martin during a hearing on the FCC’s budget that he wanted more detail in the budget about how money was being spent and that any “reprogramming” of funds needed to be approved first.
“I know this congressional oversight is a pain the neck,” Wolf said.
The Wynn bill
Meanwhile on Capitol Hill, with little fanfare, an influential Democrat on the House Commerce Committee introduced legislation last month to reorganize the FCC.
“The FCC originally created and organized its bureaus at a time when individual companies offered single, discrete telecommunications services,” according to the bill authored by Rep. Albert Wynn (D-Md.). “The organization of the FCC’s bureaus based on the type of technology is an obsolete model and is no longer relevant since new technologies provide multiple services.”
The Wynn legislation has striking similarities but is much broader in scope than the Martin plan.
Not only would the wireless bureau be disbanded-apparently a key feature of the Martin plan-but the Wireline Competition Bureau would see itself morphed into the economic regulations bureau and get responsibility for the hot-button media-ownership issue.
The Wynn bill would not create a homeland security bureau but would create a public interest bureau with responsibilities over disabilities access, enhanced 911 and the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act implementation.
While Martin would have all spectrum functions in one bureau-the spectrum bureau-Wynn would have all of the functions except licensing in a spectrum management bureau with a separate licensing bureau.
Wynn introduced his bill June 17. It is unclear whether this is what prompted Martin’s office to begin discussions of its own reorganization.
