WASHINGTON, D.C. — It was a wide-ranging conversation that saw the ideological divide between budget-conscious Republicans and Democrats committed to doing what it takes to eliminate the nation’s broadband and data service deserts. The purpose, however, of the House Appropriations Committee hearing on Thursday morning in Rayburn House Office Building was to discuss the FCC‘s proposed FY 2025 budget.
Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel defended it. Republican Commissioner Brendan Carr did not, noting how he voted against the agency’s request for a 14.8% increase in its budget request.
Opening the hearing was Ohio Republican David Joyce, who chairs the Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government.
He made it clear that the FCC’s fiscal year 2025 Congressional budget justification, released on March 21, goes beyond the range of where the agency’s funding total should be.
The Commission requests $448,075,000 in budget authority from regulatory fee offsetting
collections.
Carr says that’s too high; Rosenworcel believes it is appropriate.
The FCC’s 2025 budget request represents an increase of $57,883,000 from fiscal year 2024. And, it comes alongside a request for $139 million in budget authority for the Spectrum Auctions program — a 5.1% year-over-year dollar increase that Carr also does not support.
It is the 14.8% budget hike that led the House Appropriations Committee, headed by Tom Cole, to hold the hearing, delayed out of respect for the recent passage at age 89 of Rosenworcel’s father.
Discussion was wide-ranging, with “Rip and Replace” and 911 policies being discussed by Rosenworcel some 35 minutes into the hearing.
That said, testimony offered by Rosenworcel and by Carr illustrates just how the FCC vote-makers differ when it comes to the agency’s FY 2025 budget request. In his first appearance before the Appropriations Committee and the subcommittee led by Joyce, Carr reviewed the accomplishments of the FCC during his time there. He then shared that he agrees “with a number of the asks included in the Administration’s budget requests,” sending the message that the FCC’s fiscal 2025 budget is the result of President Biden’s direct influence.
Carr just doesn’t believe the year-over-year dollar hike is in the best interests of the federal government.
For starters, he said, Carr agrees that Congress should reauthorize the FCC’s spectrum auction authority. And, he believes Congress should fully fund the “rip and replace” initiative that would dump equipment and services provided by Huawei and ZTE due to their close ties to the Chinese Communist Party. “A $3.08 billion funding shortfall now threatens the success of this initiative, so I would encourage Congress to look for ways to close that funding gap,” Carr said.
He then turned from the “Biden Administration requests” that are relevant to the FCC’s work to the agency’s own budget request for FY 2025. “Although all Commissioners are asked to vote on a budget proposal prepared by the FCC Chair, I have not been asked to participate in the development of the agency’s budget request,” Carr said. After reviewing it, he’s unable to support it and voted against it.
First, he believes the 14.8% increase in budget authority represents “a significant departure from recent agency precedent,” as the FY 2018 budget under President Trump saw a requested 5.2% decrease from FY 2017. Increases came with a change in administration, with incremental growth in the budget since FY 2022. But, Carr points out, the FY 2025 request seeks a budget increase that is nearly three times larger than the increase sought in FY 2024.
For Carr, this is in direct opposition to the focus Congress has taken to rein in government spending.
Carr also said the budget request would lead to a hiring frenzy, with 1,600 full-timers covered under the FY 2025 ask. “If the FCC were to hire up to that number, it would represent the largest percentage increase in agency [Full Time Equivalents] since Congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996,” Carr said.
In her prepared testimony, Rosenworcel noted that communications technologies power one-sixth of the nation’s economy, and everyone needs access to them to have a fair shot at 21st century success. “As a fee-funded agency, the FCC has worked hard to develop a budget of just over $448 million,” she said. “This will uphold the core values in our laws,” including consumer protection and universal service.
