UPDATE Expect Gigi Sohn to get an early nomination hearing. That’s according to New Street Research Policy Advisor Blair Levin.
Inside Towers reported that the White House renominated Sohn as the third Democratic Commissioner to the FCC on Tuesday. Hers was one of 100 nominations submitted to the Senate, including picks to head the IRS and FAA.
New Street Research predicts Sohn will receive an early vote from the Senate Commerce Committee — “likely this month — and, as she did last time, gain approval for the nomination to be sent to the full Senate,” Levin writes in a client report.
Odds now favor her approval, given that now Senate Democrats have a 51-49 majority. Look for Sohn’s Senate floor vote in February or early March, Levin predicts.
Biden first nominated Sohn to the position in October 2021, but her nomination stalled in Committee for, among other reasons, tweets critical of Fox News, Inside Towers reported. Sohn previously served as counselor to former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler.
Traditionally the five-member FCC is headed by the party that’s in the White House. However, since January 2021, Democrats have been unable to command a majority at the Commission, preventing them from moving forward on key priorities, including reinstating net neutrality rules revoked under former President Donald Trump, notes Reuters.
“No other nominee in the FCC’s history has had to wait so long for a confirmation vote, and none have been better qualified to serve the needs of the public,” advocacy group Free Press CEO Craig Aaron told Ars Technica. “But the Senate buckled to industry pressure and kept her in limbo for more than a year.”
The Communications Workers of America — which represents workers for AT&T, Lumen, CenturyLink, Frontier and Windstream — urged swift Senate confirmation for Sohn. “We are in a critical period of increased federal investment in broadband networks and digital equity initiatives, and the FCC has gone for too long without a fully seated Commission. CWA cited Sohn’s 30 years in communications policy as the union pushed for Senate action. It called “continued delay” on her nomination “inexcusable.”
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
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