WASHINGTON-Sen. John McCain late Friday called on the Federal Communications Commission’s Office of Inspector General to “promptly, fairly, and thoroughly investigate” an allegation from a high-ranking civilian FCC employee that FCC Chairman William Kennard and FCC Chief of Staff Kathryn Brown intervened to allow an unlicensed broadcaster in Texas to continue broadcasting.
McCain (R-Ariz.) further said the FCC’s IG office should “take all steps necessary to resolve whether any wrongdoing occurred or inappropriate actions took place.”
Richard D. Lee, chief of the FCC’s Compliance and Information Bureau, last Tuesday filed “a whistle blower form” indicating that Kennard and Brown had agreed to allow Billie Meyer to continue to broadcast unlicensed TV, AM and FM stations during a car-racing event at his NASCAR race track in Ennis, Texas. Lee said the actions of Kennard and Brown, in his opinion, “constitute[d] gross mismanagement, an abuse of authority, and could have posed a danger to the public safety. In addition, I believe their actions violated government ethics rules.”
In his complaint, Lee says Kennard told him Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) had called him when Meyer’s station had been shut down by the FCC Dallas CIB field office.
The FCC said in reaction that it was a “common sense decision.”
As of Monday, Lee will no longer head CIB since it has been moved into the new FCC Enforcement Bureau. An October listing of high-ranking employees of the new bureau does not list Lee.
