FCC Broadband Subsidy Scheme Unconstitutional, Court Says (1)

The funding mechanism for a Federal Communications Commission broadband subsidy is “‘incompatible with our constitutional structure’” the en banc Fifth Circuit ruled Wednesday, in striking the scheme down.

The “tax” that funds the Universal Service Fund through contributions from telecommunications companies violates Article I of the Constitution, Judge Andrew S. Oldham, of the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit wrote. The involvement of the private entity that helps administer the contribution scheme also violates Article I, he said.

“The combination of Congress’s broad delegation to FCC and FCC’s subdelegation to private entities certainly amounts to a constitutional violation,” ...