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On March 17, 2026 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) hosted ‘30th Anniversary of the 96 Act Webinar – What Did We Learn?‘. Three panel conversations featured communications and technology policy experts that lived through the creation and implementation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
The Congressional passage of the Act, and the subsequent FCC implementation, was the last major effort by the federal government to construct a new regulatory framework for the technology, media, and telecommunications sector., serving to drive competition, innovation, and investment into faster, better, and cheaper technology, and to increased economic growth and expanded connectivity for consumers.
At a moment when innovation is accelerating at an ever-increasing pace, the critical issues regulators currently face include artificial intelligence, media, competition, convergence, access, and cybersecurity, the purpose of these panels is to consider how the lessons from 30 years ago can be used to drive innovation and competition for the benefit of consumers today.
01 Opening Remarks – Brendan Carr
Brendan Carr — Chair, Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
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02 Introduction – Anna M. Gomez
Anna M. Gomez — Commissioner, Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
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03 Panel 1: The Legislative Process That Led to the Act
Katie King – Former Special Counsel, Federal Communications Commission
Gina Keeney – Founder, Keeney Consulting
John Windhausen Jr. – President, Telepoly
Moderator: John T. Nakahata — Partner, Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis LLP
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04 Panel 2: FCC Implementation of the Act
Richard Metzger — Partner, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP
Richard Welch — Senior Counsel, Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP
Greg Rosston — Director, Stanford Public Policy Program
Christopher J. Wright — Partner, Wiltshire & Grannis LLP
Moderator: Ruth Milkman — Founding Partner, Quadra Partners LLC
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05 Panel 3: Today’s Challenges
Robert Pepper — Senior Fellow, Global Digital Inclusion Partnership
Howard Shelanski — Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center
Robert M. McDowell — Partner, Cooley LLP
Tom Wheeler — Visiting Fellow, Brookings Institution
Moderatot: Anna M. Gomez — Commissioner, Federal Communications Commission
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06 Closing Remarks – Anna M. Gomez
Anna M. Gomez — Commissioner, Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
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