(a) The General Counsel is delegated authority to act as the “designated agency ethics official.”

(b) Insofar as authority is not delegated to any other Bureau or Office, and with respect only to matters which are not in hearing status, the General Counsel is delegated authority:

(1) To act upon requests for extension of time within which briefs, comments or pleadings may be filed.

(2) To dismiss, as repetitious, any petition for reconsideration of a Commission order which disposed of a petition for reconsideration and which did not reverse, change, or modify the original order.

(3) To dismiss or deny petitions for rulemaking which are repetitive or moot or which, for other reasons, plainly do not warrant consideration by the Commission.

(4) To dismiss as repetitious any petition for reconsideration of a Commission order denying an application for review which fails to rely on new facts or changed circumstances.

(c) The General Counsel is delegated authority in adjudicatory hearing proceedings which are pending before the Commission en banc to act on all requests for relief, and to issue all appropriate orders, except those which involve final disposition on the merits of a previously specified issue concerning an applicant's basic qualifications or two or more applicants' comparative qualifications.

(d) When an adjudicatory proceeding is before the Commission for the issuance of a final order or decision, the General Counsel will make every effort to submit a draft order or decision for Commission consideration within four months of the filing of the last responsive pleading. If the Commission is unable to adopt an order or decision in such cases within five months of the last responsive pleading, it shall issue an order indicating that additional time will be required to resolve the case.

(e) The official record of all actions taken by the General Counsel pursuant to §0.251 (c) and (d) is contained in the original docket folder, which is maintained by the Reference Information Center.

(f) The General Counsel is delegated authority to issue written determinations on matters regarding the interception of telephone conversations. Nothing in this paragraph, however, shall affect the authority of the Inspector General to intercept or record telephone conversations as necessary in the conduct of investigations or audits.

(g) The General Counsel is delegated authority to issue rulings on whether violations of the ex parte rules have occurred and to impose appropriate sanctions. The General Counsel shall refer to the Enforcement Bureau for disposition pursuant to §0.311(b) any matter in which a forfeiture or a citation under 47 U.S.C. 503(b)(5) may be warranted. If the Enforcement Bureau determines that forfeiture or a citation is not warranted, the matter shall be referred back to the General Counsel for appropriate action.

(h) The General Counsel is delegated authority to make determinations regarding and waive the applicability of section 4(b) of the Communications Act (47 U.S.C. §154(b)) and the Federal conflict of interest statutes (18 U.S.C. §§203, 205 and 208).

(i) The General Counsel is delegated authority to perform all administrative determinations provided for by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996, Public Law 104-134, 110 Stat. 1321, 1358 (1996) (DCIA), including, but not limited to the provisions of Title 31, U.S.C. 3711 to:

(1) Collect claims of the United States Government of money or property arising out of the activities of, or referred to, the Federal Communications Commission,

(2) Compromise a claim of the Government of not more than $100,000 (excluding interest) or such higher amount as the Attorney General of the United States may from time to time prescribe, and

(3) Suspend or end collection action on a claim of the Government of not more than $100,000 (excluding interest) when it appears that no person liable on the claim has the present or prospective ability to pay a significant amount of the claim or the cost of collecting the claim is likely to be more than the amount recovered.

(j) The General Counsel is delegated authority to act as the Commission's Chief FOIA Officer, as specified in 5 U.S.C. 552(j). In this role, the General Counsel is delegated authority to dismiss FOIA applications for review that are untimely, repetitious, or fail to articulate specific grounds for review.

(Secs. 2, 3, 4, 5, 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, 315, 317, 48 Stat., as amended, 1064, 1065, 1066, 1068, 1081, 1082, 1083, 1084, 1085, 1088, 1089; 47 U.S.C. 152, 153, 154, 155, 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, 315, 317)

[28 FR 12402, Nov. 22, 1963]