Simington Expected to Announce Departure From FCC
Numerous industry and FCC officials told us Tuesday that FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington is expected to leave the agency or announce an imminent departure this week. Simington and his office didn’t respond to requests for comment. Simington’s term expired last year, but he was expected to stay until the end of 2025.
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The makeup of the agency is already in flux: Current Democratic Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said he will leave before the FCC's planned June 26 meeting (see 2505220043), and Senate confirmation of Republican Olivia Trusty isn’t expected until late June or July (see 2505290053). Some observers said it's unlikely that Simington would exit before Starks and leave the FCC with a Democratic majority. However, if he departs after Starks but before Trusty’s confirmation, it would leave just two commissioners. The Communications Act requires a quorum of three. An announcement Wednesday from Simington would precede FCC Chairman Brendan Carr’s expected announcement of his agenda for the June 26 meeting, lobbyists said.
Two communications industry lobbyists who follow GOP deliberations told us Simington has signaled he wants to depart the FCC as soon as this week. A former FCC official said the commissioner contacted the White House Presidential Personnel Office late last week to inform the administration of his intentions to do so, but it was unclear whether Trump officials accepted or acknowledged that plan. The White House didn’t immediately comment. Multiple industry and FCC officials also said they had been told that Simington is expected to step down or announce departure plans this week.
Several officials told us they would be surprised if Simington left before the Senate confirms Trusty. Joe Kane, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation director-broadband and spectrum policy, said the departure should “coincide with confirmation of Olivia Trusty, since Republicans likely want to keep the majority.” If Simington does leave after Trusty's confirmation, the need for a quorum at the agency could insulate Democratic Commissioner Anna Gomez from being fired by President Donald Trump, industry officials told us.
A telecom lobbyist who follows Democratic deliberations said Simington's resignation would prompt top Senate Democrats to amplify their push to pair Republican FCC nominees with a candidate to succeed Starks (see 2504300047). The lobbyist said four Democratic senators would likely lead that push: Commerce Committee ranking member Maria Cantwell of Washington, Communications Subcommittee ranking member Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota.
It's unclear who would replace Simington, but there's some speculation that the White House could choose Simington’s recently hired chief of staff, Gavin Wax. A prominent Republican activist before he joined Simington’s office in April, Wax has co-authored a blitz of op-eds with Simington and is credited with a recent massive increase in Simington’s media appearances. Trump and Vice President JD Vance have amplified posts by Wax and Simington on social media (see 2505130050), and Wax wrote a Daily Caller op-ed last week touting Vance’s qualifications to succeed Trump. Wax didn’t respond to a request for comment.