Expeditious Action on Telecommunications Merger Act
Latest action. Placed on Senate legislative calendarThe list of measures reported out of committee and eligible for floor action. Being on the calendar is not a promise of a vote.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) under General Orders. Calendar No. 192.
Expeditious Action on Telecommunications Merger Act - Requires Federal Communications Commission (FCC) consideration of any application for a transfer of license, or for the acquisition and operation of lines, that is associated with an acquisition of voting securities or assets to be governed by the schedule set forth in this Act. Directs the FCC to complete consideration of: (1) an application that would result in the acquiring person holding 15 percent or more of the voting securities or assets of the acquired person, or an aggregate total amount of the voting securities and assets of the acquired person in excess of $15 million, not later than 180 days after receipt of the application unless, by majority vote, it extends the period by not more than 60 days; and (2) any other such application not later than 90 days after receipt unless it extends the period by not more than 30 days. Specifies that if the FCC does not approve, approve with modifications, or deny an application by that date, the application shall be deemed approved without modifications.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to Senate with amendment(s)" stage on July 1, 1999. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on July 1, 1999: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 192.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 106th Congress (1999-00), 580 of the 9,158 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 6.3 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
MICHAEL DEWINE (R-OH) introduced it on February 25, 1999, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Democrat.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 25, 1999, 10106 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 9980 days ago, on July 1, 1999.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 106th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2001 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers