Fischer to Chair Senate Telecommunications Subcommittee

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24, 2025 – Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) has been named the new Chairman of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Media, a post that comes with oversight of the Federal Communications Commission and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

Fischer’s appointment was announced last Thursday by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

Fischer’s ranking member will be Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.). The Subcommittee’s name is a new one. Last year, it was called the Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband. 

“With jurisdiction over forty percent of the economy, the Commerce Committee is laser-focused on expanding economic opportunity,” Cruz said. “I look forward to working with the new leaders and members of each subcommittee to pass policies that create jobs, make travel faster and safer, and keep families and communities safe.”

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), who is the commerce panel’s top Democrat, said she looked forward to working with Fischer’s subcommittee in a bipartisan manner.

“The Commerce Committee has a history of moving legislation to keep the highest safety standards, spur innovation, manufacturing, and job growth throughout all corners of the United States, and protect consumers while fighting to keep costs low for families,” said Ranking Member Cantwell. “I look forward to working with the leaders of each subcommittee in the bipartisan tradition of this Committee to continue this good work.”

USTelecom President and CEO Jonathan Spalter called Fischer “a relentless champion for connecting the hardest-to-reach corners of heartland America to the very best our high-speed broadband future has to offer.”