The Senate Commerce Committee advanced White House Office of Science and Technology Policy director nominee Michael Kratsios and FTC nominee Mark Meador on Wednesday, with some panel Democrats joining all Republicans in supporting President Donald Trump’s picks. Senate Commerce ranking member Maria Cantwell of Washington and seven other Democrats voted against Meador. Cantwell noted that Meador “hedged” in his responses to questions from her and other Democrats about whether he would “refuse to carry out illegal orders from” Trump. “The answer from any nominee should simply be ‘no,’” she said: “I just don’t believe today that [Meador] is the right person for the FTC. We need somebody who believes that they’re not just a rubber stamp for the president, but have responsibilities and duties to carry out.”

Senate Commerce Committee member Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., said during Tuesday's Incompas event (see 2503110058) that until mid-December, he “expected” that the Senate Communications Subcommittee chairmanship would be “my job.” That reflects comments he and then-Chairman Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., made during a December hearing on the Salt Typhoon Chinese government-affiliated effort at hacking U.S. telecom networks (see 2412170053). Sen. Deb Fischer of Nebraska ultimately got the job after she became eligible for it by relinquishing her role as lead Rules Committee Republican to now-former Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Moran said.

House Appropriations Committee Republicans bowed a continuing resolution (HR-1968) Saturday that would extend current federal funding levels for the FCC, NTIA and other agencies through Sept. 30, the end of FY 2025. The measure, if passed, would avert a government shutdown that would otherwise begin when an existing CR expires after midnight Friday. HR-1968 would also extend through Sept. 30 some temporary rules changes that give Medicare recipients eligibility for telehealth services. Lawmakers raised concerns last month that Congress’ failure to extend the temporary rules change via the current CR would mean Medicare eligibility for telehealth services would expire April 1 (see 2502200065). Congress enacted the expanded telehealth rules during the COVID-19 pandemic (see 2006170065).

Senate Armed Services Committee member Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., on Sunday urged deputy defense secretary nominee Stephen Feinberg to recuse himself from all DOD interactions involving Ligado amid the company’s L-band lawsuit against the department. Feinberg’s Cerberus Capital Management holds a 14% stake in Ligado, which alleges that DOD is infringing on its L-band spectrum rights and manufactured concerns about possible interference with GPS as a cover-up (see 2310130004). The U.S. Court of Federal Claims in late February granted a U.S. request for an interlocutory appeal of the court's November decision to partially reject the U.S.'s motion to dismiss Ligado's litigation (see 2502280040).

The Senate Commerce Committee has apparently pushed back the confirmation hearing for NTIA nominee Arielle Roth and Republican FCC nominee Olivia Trusty, several communications sector officials and lobbyists told us Friday. The panel was eyeing March 13 for the hearing (see 2503060066). A new date was not circulating Friday, but some lobbyists expect the hearing to happen later this month. Lobbyists were not certain why Senate Commerce decided to postpone, but some previously noted that it was uncertain whether the panel would be able to include Trusty on March 13's agenda. A Senate Commerce Democratic spokesperson said Thursday afternoon that the minority office still hadn't received the necessary executive branch paperwork to move either nominee forward. President Donald Trump nominated Roth, Senate Commerce Republicans’ telecom policy director, in early February (see 2502040056). He picked Trusty, a Senate Armed Services Committee Republican staffer, for the FCC seat former Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel vacated Jan. 20 (see 2501160077).

NTCA on Wednesday praised House Ways and Means Tax Subcommittee Chairman Mike Kelly, R-Pa., and Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., for leading the refiling of the Broadband Grant Tax Treatment Act (HR-1705/S-838) in a bid to amend the Internal Revenue Code to allow broadband grants enacted via the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and American Rescue Plan Act to not count as gross income. Lawmakers bowed the bill in 2022 (see 2209290067). NTCA CEO Shirley Bloomfield hailed reintroduction of “this commonsense legislation to ensure that every dollar granted for broadband deployment is used effectively.” The group’s members “greatly appreciate Congress’s commitment to funding broadband deployment programs,” but “when these funds are taxed, providers are required to pay the federal government a portion of the same award that they received from the federal government, instead of using the funds to serve the hardest-to-reach communities.”

The FAA plans to respond “directly to” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., concerning his letter to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy about the agency's proposed purchase of technology to communicate aviation weather information from SpaceX's Starlink, given CEO Elon Musk's influence within the Trump administration, a spokesperson said Friday (see 2502280055). The FAA is reportedly considering canceling a $2.4 billion contract with Verizon for that technology in favor of Starlink. House Transportation Committee ranking member Rick Larsen, D-Wash., and Aviation Subcommittee member Sharice Davids, D-Kan., are also criticizing the proposal.

The House Commerce Committee said Saturday that it plans a vote Tuesday on the Precision Agriculture Satellite Connectivity Act (HR-1618) and six other telecom bills as part of a markup session.

Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Senate Homeland Security Committee member Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., are raising concerns about the FAA's proposed purchase of technology to communicate aviation weather information from SpaceX's Starlink, given CEO Elon Musk's influence within the Trump administration. The FAA is reportedly considering canceling a $2.4 billion contract with Verizon for that technology in favor of Starlink. Blumenthal pressed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy Thursday night for “information and records” about the Starlink deal, which he said would potentially deliver “a windfall” to Musk.

House Oversight Delivering on Government Efficiency (DOGE) Subcommittee Chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., told us Wednesday that she has firmed up a late March date for a hearing with PBS CEO Paula Kerger and NPR CEO Katherine Maher to examine claims that public broadcasters’ content has a pro-Democratic bias (see 2502030064). Greene earlier this month proposed March 24 as one potential date for the hearing. The panel will take place amid growing GOP interest in ending federal funding for the broadcasters.