In the spirit of transparency and further speeding the Commission’s decision-making, FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly suggests updating the voting process for circulated items. These are often lower profile, less controversial, or more technical proposals than those voted on during public meetings.
Circulation items can often languish for several months without a majority vote, according to O’Rielly; He suggests in a blogpost making these documents public too (as Commission meeting items now are) and dramatically shortening their voting time-frame. Under previous Chairman Tom Wheeler, the agency began posting a list of items on circulation on its website with a brief description, but no details. If adopted, O’Rielly’s proposal would go further.
Now, even if all Commissioners vote in favor of an item on the day it’s circulated, it can take between 34 to 45 days for that vote to be concluded under the “must vote” procedures. “The timeline, which is not required by law or the Commission’s rules, can be reduced by eliminating the requirement that an item sit around for 21 days before the voting deadline is triggered,” according to O’Rielly.
“At a minimum, this 21-day wait period could be trimmed by at least a week, but I would argue that it could be shortened even more,” he states. “Speaking from experience, doing so still gives Commissioners plenty of time to consider and vote on an item.”
If an item has been sitting on circulation for six months with only one or two votes, it’s typically because the majority doesn’t support it. O’Rielly previously suggested that after six months, a draft is stale and should be removed from circulation so it can be re-written and a compromise worked out.
January 15, 2018
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