New documents could prolong probe into Martin’s management

The Federal Communications Commission delivered to House Commerce Committee investigators at least 40 boxes of documents as part of a probe of agency activities under Chairman Kevin Martin, sidetracking any possibility of a hearing this month and virtually guaranteeing the controversy will remain alive for the rest of Martin’s term.
“The committee’s investigation is ongoing,” said a spokesperson for the Commerce panel. “We received additional documents from the FCC recently. The committee cannot hold hearings until we’ve reviewed all pertinent materials.”
An FCC spokesman declined to comment on the massive production of documents for the committee.
With many high-profile telecom issues – many wireless – before the FCC and Congress, the Oversight and Investigation subcommittee’s wide-ranging examination of FCC management practices had seeming dropped off official Washington’s radar in recent months.
Late last year, House Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell (D-Mich.) put Martin on notice about the lawmaker’s concerns with how the agency was being run. In particular, Dingell focused on whether agency policymaking was as open and transparent as it should be. That was followed by the launch of a formal investigation in early January and, two months later, a sweeping request for documentation on a wide array of agency operations.
Martin has taken hits for FCC meeting delays and allegedly giving fellow commissioners insufficient time to review new initiatives and proposed orders, but he argues that such delays are due to his desire to reach agreements with the FCC’s Republican and Democratic commissioners.
Martin has responded by giving the public earlier notice of items up for scheduled votes, and has held regular briefings with reporters on issues pending before the FCC. In addition, Martin has sought to work with Democrats – who control Congress – on some of their pet telecom and wireless issues.
The possible fallout for Martin as a result of the congressional investigation is unclear. He is a short-timer for all practical purposes, with the next president likely to name his own FCC chairman next year. But an industry source who once worked at the commission said that the investigation and accompanying findings could create problems, or at become a minor irritant, if Martin goes on to seek public office.