On July 30, 2013, the Senate Commerce Committee approved the nomination of Thomas Wheeler to be the next FCC Chairman. The Committee had already held the nomination hearing on June 18th and had discussed issues pertaining to the telecommunications industry as well as Wheeler’s view on the current state of the E-rate program.
At the confirmation, Commerce Chairman Rockefeller (D-WV) stated that he “… congratulates Tom Wheeler on the strong bipartisan support he received in the Commerce Committee today, and went on to say “… with all the important issues before the FCC, it’s critical that the agency has a confirmed chair and strong leader in place. I am confident, given Tom Wheeler’s extensive experience and capabilities in the communications industry, he is the right person for this job.”
The full Senate will need to vote on Thomas Wheeler’s confirmation as the final step in the confirmation process.
