With hours to spare, the federal government late Saturday averted a shutdown, with an overwhelming number of senators signing the legislation — but not Ted Cruz (R-Texas) — as key Texas GOP House Members also failed to keep the key funding bill from becoming law.
The omnibus legislation’s passage comes along with important confirmations of new terms to two FCC Commissioners, in a separate unanimous vote conducted as Democrats gathered enough support on the funding bill.
The confirmation by the U.S. Senate of FCC Commissioners Brendan Carr and Geoffrey Starks is complete.
That led Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel to congratulate Commissioners Carr and Starks on their unanimous confirmation by the Senate.
“Brendan has been a dedicated public servant during his time at the FCC,” she said. “I look forward to continuing working together to find common ground, including on efforts to improve network resiliency and on critical national security matters.
“In addition, I want to congratulate Geoffrey for his ongoing commitment to public service and for his important contributions to the agency and its work,” Rosenworcel added. “His invaluable insights at the Commission have helped us reach more communities through the Affordable Connectivity Program, and I’m excited to continue our successful partnerships to help more households remain connected.”
And, with a complete Senate-confirmed Commission, Rosenworcel believes the FCC is “now ready to take on our full slate of work and fulfill our commitment to ensuring Americans everywhere have access to the best, most reliable communication services in the world.”
On Sunday evening, NAB President/CEO Curtis LeGeyt offered his congratulations to Carr and Starks. “Broadcasters value their commitment and leadership, and thank them for their work to ensure our ability to grow our life-line service to the benefit of viewers and listeners across the country,” LeGeyt said. “We are eager to continue working with Commissioners Starks and Carr, and the full Commission, to modernize policies that allow local broadcasters to best serve our communities.”
