Senate confirms Olivia Trusty to the FCC to fill out Rosenworcel's term
This is the first of two votes. This vote will result in a quorum for the June open meeting.
By a vote of 53 to 45, mostly along party lines, the US Senate has confirmed Olivia Trusty to the Federal Communications Commission. According to Reuters, this vote was to fill out the remainder of the term formerly held by Jessica Rosenworcel which expires at the end of this month. An second vote will need to be taken to confirm her for a full five-year term.
Today’s vote assures that the Commission will have a quorum for the next Open Meeting, which is scheduled for June 26, 2025. On the agenda for that meeting, the Commission will consider a Report and Order that would streamline cable television rules through a reduction in regulation and forms used by providers. The Commission will also consider a Report and Order that would eliminate the professional engineer certification requirement for the biannual Broadband Data Collection filing process. Finally, the Commission will consider a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that deletes a provision of the rules that require providers of telephone relay services for those with speech and/or hearing impairments from having to support the ASCII transmission format.
Statement of REC Networks
REC congratulates Ms. Trusty on her confirmation for the short term. As we had previously mentioned, her recent position on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation has already given her a view into the world of telecommunications, further contributing to her overall qualifications for the job.
We hope that she does follow the path of former Commissioner Nathan Simington and view issues from a more analytical approach and offers a level of moderation in comparison to Carr.
We urge President Trump to restore the Commission to its full strength by nominating two more Commissioners, one from each party to the bench.
REC does remain concerned about the future of Anna Gomez on the bench, especially in light of the recent actions taken by the President in other federal agencies. The right to speak freely and dissent are foundations of American public administration and they must be protected, no matter which party is in the majority.