Enacting the FCC Process Reform Act, HR-3675, “would...

Enacting the FCC Process Reform Act, HR-3675, “would increase direct spending by $197 million over the 2014-2023 period,” according to a four-page Congressional Budget Office analysis last week. The House Commerce Committee cleared the bill in December in a unanimous voice vote after reaching bipartisan compromise (CD Dec 12 p2). Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., has said he prefers such process updates happen internally at the agency. CBO said pay-as-you-go procedures would apply and that the proposed law wouldn’t affect revenue. “Further, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 3675 to amend the FCC’s operating procedures would cost $15 million over the next five years, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts,” CBO added. “However, the FCC is authorized to collect fees sufficient to offset the cost of its regulatory activities each year.” So net costs for those provisions “would not be significant, assuming annual appropriation actions consistent with the agency’s authorities,” it said.