According to multiple reports, Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has filed a cloture motion to end debate on the nomination of Republican Nathan Simington for a seat on the FCC being vacated by Michael O'Rielly.
A confirmation vote on the nomination, and Simington's swearing-in, could happen as early as next week.
O'Rielly's office said he plans to stay on the job until Simington is sworn in. The FCC has its monthly meeting next week (Dec. 10). O'Reilly can serve until the new Congress is seated or his replacement is sworn in.
Related: Divided Senate Commerce Approves Simington Nomination for Senate Vote
On the news that McConnell was moving on the nomination as soon as next week, America's Public Television Stations wanted to make sure it gave O'Rielly a shout-out before he left.
APTS President Patrick Butler congratulated O'Rielly on an "extraordinarily successful" tenure on the commission.
“We have been fortunate to work closely with Commissioner O’Rielly on issues ranging from ATSC 3.0 Next Gen TV services to educational children’s programming to public safety datacasting uses in America. We were honored to have Commissioner O’Rielly join us at our 2020 Public Media Summit this year, sharing his insights and expertise with hundreds of public television station leaders from across the country.
“Commissioner O’Rielly has been a strong supporter of public television and recognizes the value of our stations’ services to their communities, including the very rural areas that our stations reach with coverage of nearly 97 percent of our country’s population...."
