Ajit Pai will step down from his position as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) effective Jan. 20. Beginning Jan. 15, Truth on the Market will host a symposium exploring Pai’s tenure, with contributions from a range of scholars and practitioners.
As we ponder the changes to FCC policy that may arise with the next administration, it’s also a timely opportunity to reflect on the chairman’s leadership at the agency and his influence on telecommunications policy more broadly. Indeed, the FCC has faced numerous challenges and opportunities over the past four years, with implications for a wide range of federal policy and law. Our symposium will offer insights into numerous legal, economic, and policy matters of ongoing importance.
Under Pai’s leadership, the FCC took on key telecommunications issues involving spectrum policy, net neutrality, 5G, broadband deployment, the digital divide, and media ownership and modernization. Broader issues faced by the commission include agency process reform,including a greater reliance on economic analysis; administrative law; federal preemption of state laws; national security; competition; consumer protection; and innovation, including the encouragement of burgeoning space industries.
This symposium asks contributors for their thoughts on these and related issues. We will explore a rich legacy, with many important improvements that will guide the FCC for some time to come.
Confirmed Participants
As in the past (see examples of previous TOTM blog symposia here), we’ve lined up an outstanding and diverse group of scholars to discuss these issues, including:
- Seth Cooper, Free State Foundation
- Jerry Ellig, Former FCC / GWU Regulatory Studies Center
- Harold Feld, Public Knowledge
- Thomas Hazlett, Clemson University, Department of Economics
- Justin “Gus” Hurwitz, Nebraska College of Law
- Mark A. Jamison, University of Florida, Warrington College of Business; Visiting Scholar, American Enterprise Institute
- Daniel Lyons, Boston College Law; Visiting Fellow, American Enterprise Institute
- Randy May, Free State Foundation
- Geoffrey A. Manne, International Center for Law & Economics
- Robert M. McDowell, Former FCC Commissioner; Cooley Law
- Thomas B. Nachbar, University of Virginia School of Law
- Brent Skorup, Mercatus Center
- Kristian Stout, International Center for Law & Economics
- Josh Wright, Antonin Scalia Law School
Series Posts (in order of posting)
- Introductory Post (Stout)
- Great Job, Kid! (And Welcome to the Private Sector) (McDowell)
- Why Restoring Internet Freedom Was a Landmark Accomplishment (May)
- The (Conventional) 5G Chairman (Feld)
- How Chairman Pai Restored the FCC’s Independence (Jamison)
- Chairman Pai’s FCC Followed a Sound Process in Approving L-Band Wireless Services (Cooper)
- Pai Dedicated His Tenure to Improving US Broadband (Skorup)
- Pai’s Legacy of Progress in Closing the Rural Digital Divide (Hurwitz)
- A Reflection on Commissioner Pai, Chairman Pai, and Public Service (Wright)
- Chairman Pai’s Legacy of Transparency (Lyons)
- Chairman Pai’s Organizational Legacy (Ellig)
- Ajit Pai and Risk-Taking at the FCC (Nachbar)
- Ajit Pai Brought the FCC’s Media Ownership Rules into the Modern Age (Manne)
- The Ajit Pai FCC on Radio Spectrum Allocations (Hazlett)
- Chairman Pai Symposium: Wrap-Up and Thoughts for the Future FCC (Stout)
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