WASHINGTON, D.C. - With the FCC poised to rule very soon on controversial proceedings that could have major impacts on the ailing telecommunications sector, The Progress & Freedom Foundation is holding a Congressional Seminar this Friday to help policymakers anticipate and assess the agency’s actions. The seminar – “The FCC & Telecom Recovery: A Scorecard for Evaluating the Rules” – will be held in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room B-340, beginning at noon.

Speakers include Randolph J. May, senior fellow and director of communications policy studies, PFF; Thomas M. Lenard, vice president for research and senior fellow, PFF; Solveig Singleton, senior policy analyst, Competitive Enterprise Institute; and Adam Thierer, director of telecommunications studies, CATO Institute. PFF President Jeffrey A. Eisenach will provide an introduction.

Will the FCC choose a future of “dynamic deregulation” or “static regulation”? That is one of this city’s billion dollar questions, according to May, who recently published a “scorecard” for evaluating the agency’s actions as it nears rulings on the UNE Triennial Review, Cable High-Speed Access and Wireline Broadband proceedings.

“It is not hyperbole to say the FCC is truly at an important crossroads,” May writes. “The Commission will be forced to choose between two competing visions of telecommunications regulation” going down “two divergent paths.

Lenard will discuss the results of a soon-to-be-released study showing the significant adverse impact of the current UNE regime on the economy.

Those interested in attending the Congressional Seminar should register by contacting Rebecca Fuller at 202-289-8928 or rfuller@pff.org.

The Progress & Freedom Foundation is a market-oriented think tank that promotes innovative policies for the digital age. It is a 501(c)(3) research & educational organization founded in 1993.