FCC: Pai, Staff Did Not Urge Parties to Appeal Small Cell Order

摘要

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has said "that neither he nor his staff urged any FCC licensee to challenge the Wireless Infrastructure Order, nor did they make any threats, implied or otherwise, against any licensee regarding such challenges," according to letters from FCC Office of Legislative Affairs Director Timothy Strachan to House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pal-lone Jr. (D., N.J.) and communications and technology subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D., Pa.). The letters, which were released March 4, added that "as indicated in the attached documents, the Office of General Counsel only had standard communications with litigants related to its role in collecting petitions for review for transmission to the Judicial Panel on Multi-district Litigation. As you know, this is a multi-member agency, and Chairman Pai cannot speak on behalf of his colleagues." The letters to the lawmakers noted that petitions for review challenging the small cell order "were filed in the First, Second, Ninth, and Tenth Circuit Courts of Appeals, with the last being randomly selected as the circuit court to hear the consolidated petitions. On motion, however, the consolidated petitions were subsequently transferred to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals."