The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Friday deferred a request from a quartet of Democrats running for elected office in the 2026 mid-term cycle that would have forced the FCC to issue a swift ruling on whether or not the “lowest unit rate” includes Political Action Committees or is limited to the candidates themselves.
The Order from the Richmond-based appeals court, a 2-1 decision, deferred action on a petition for writ of mandamus filed by Sherrod Brown, the former Ohio Senator and now Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Ohio seeking to fill Vice President J.D. Vance’s old seat; Georgia Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff; former North Carolina Governor and Democratic Senate Candidate Roy Cooper III; and Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-Mich.).
What does this mean? Nothing will happen between now and October 1, and that’s crucial for those seeking to woo voters ahead of Election Day, on November 3. That said, the court said, “If action during the deferral period renders the mandamus petition moot, the court will issue an opinion dismissing the petition on that basis.”
Importantly, the court asked the Democrats led by Brown and the National Republican Congressional Committee, which joined the Commission as defendants, “to keep in mind that the Federal Communications Commission ‘is required to resolve every application it receives,’ citing NRCC v. Brown. By that statute, the Fourth Circuit continued, “the Commission is required to conduct its business ‘prompt[ly] . . . with the objective of rendering a final decision (1) within three months from the date of filing in all original application . . . cases in which it will not be necessary to hold a hearing, and (2) within six months from the final date of the hearing in all hearing cases.”
As such, the FCC can move forward with “procedures and other requirements” governing an application for review filed by the four Democrats pertaining to the Commission’s “lowest unit charge” political advertising rules. That would be the opening of a public comment window on the matter, which came three business days after the Fourth Circuit ordered the Commission to answer a petition from the politicians to comply by September 15.
A new docket for the Application for Review was announced by acting Media Bureau Chief Alex Sanjenis, who established both comment and reply comment dates on the AFR:
MB Docket No. 26-253
Comment Date: September 25, 2026
Reply Comment Date: September 30, 2026
Judges King and Wynn voted to defer action on the petition; Judge Wilkinson, appointed by President Reagan in 1984, voted to deny the petition. King was appointed by President Clinton; Wynn was appointed by President Obama.
MORE FROM THE RBR+TVBR ARCHIVES:
Fourth Circuit Reignites ‘LUR’ Fight With FCC Response Order
