[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 14911]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      FCC MUST BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE

  (Mr. FILNER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my concern and many 
of our concerns over the regulatory uncertainty wrought by the recent 
Federal Communications Commission so-called triennial review decision. 
In fact, the FCC has made so many mistakes recently, I think that the 
initial stands for ``Forget Consensus in Congress.''
  In this case, the FCC missed the opportunity to bring clarity to the 
rules that promote facilities-based competition and would spur 
investment and create jobs. Instead, it has punted the decision to the 
States, all 50 of them. This move will force more State proceedings, 
more regulatory uncertainly, and without a doubt, more delay.
  The telecommunications sector has certainly had its meltdown. It has 
already lost more than half a million jobs and $2 trillion in market 
value. And immediately after the February decision, the industry lost a 
total capital value of $15 billion. Wall Street certainly took note and 
downgraded the outlook for telecommunications companies. With this 
regulation stranglehold, these companies cannot effectively recover 
from recent losses, they cannot invest in expansion, and they cannot 
create or save American jobs. As many recent decisions show, we must 
hold the FCC more accountable.

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