Local Governments and Media Organizations Challenge Court’s Ruling
August 11, 2008 4:22 PM
Alexandria, VA – The National Association of Telecommunications
Officers and Advisors (NATOA) joined by its partners, the Alliance for
Community Media (ACM) and the Alliance for Communications Democracy (ACD) today
filed a Petition for Rehearing En Banc before the United States Court of
Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on its decision that upheld the FCC’s rules
adopted in the First Report and Order in
the Video Franchise Docket 05-311. “We
have taken this action because our review of the panel’s decision indicates
that it conflicts with Supreme Court and circuit precedent in statutory construction
principles, with respect to federal agencies substituting judgment for state
and local elected officials, and that it failed to properly apply the arbitrary
and capricious standard for reviewing evidence supporting agency
decision-making.”
“In other words, the court ignored its own prior decisions, those
of other circuits affected by its decision and those of the United States
Supreme Court. Clearly, the full court
needs to consider this case, otherwise we will have a federal agency exercising
an entirely free hand where Congress gave them no such authority, but in fact
withheld that very power. The concept of
our federalist form of government, with reliance on the separation of power and
respect for our concurrent forms of jurisdiction should not be undermined by
such a narrow and ill-conceived approach,” stated Libby Beaty, NATOA’s
Executive Director. “As we stated when
this decision came out, we are taking those steps we feel are necessary to
ensure that the American consumer is protected and the rights of our
communities and in our communities are not harmed.”
Download a PDF of this Press Release Here.
PRSixthCircuitPetitionEnBanc.pdf
