WASHINGTON, March 15 (UPI) -- U.S. Rep. John Dingell says monthly oversight hearings might be in order to ensure the Federal Communications Commission doesn't muscle in on Congress' turf.
Dingell, D-Mich., opened a House subcommittee oversight hearing Wednesday by suggesting that FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin overstepped his bounds last year when he made it easier for telephone companies to get into the cable television market, Variety reported Thursday.
That authority "resides here in this room," said Dingell, who is chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee. "The FCC is not a legislative body."
Wednesday marked the first time in three years that all five FCC commissioners appeared before the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. Dingell said that gap had "unwelcome consequences" and said monthly hearings may be needed.
He also requested Martin to report within 30 days on the FCC's two-year probe into payola.
Martin said he would comply but also defended his directive in the cable television matter. During opening remarks and testimony, Martin said that during his five years with the agency he has seen "the telecommunications industry transition from a period of sharp decline to a time of significant growth."
