LGBT Tech Joins Coalition Urging FCC Letter to Preserve Democratic Rulemaking

Earlier this month, LGBT Tech joined 21 other civil society groups in signing a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr expressing serious concern about the FCC’s decision to allow its bureaus and offices to eliminate rules without public notice or comment.

Previous protocol, as is traditionally standard across government agencies, required the FCC to participate in “notice-and-comment rulemaking,” which requires that the public be informed and have the ability to comment on rule changes made by the FCC. However, under this planned change, the FCC would allow for this process to be skipped and remove rules faster under the “good cause” exception of the Administrative Procedure Act. This exception allows for the FCC to skip the traditional notice and comment period if they can show that going through it would be “unnecessary, impractical, or contrary to the public interest.” 

This change takes away essential safeguards around the way the FCC operates – it removes public opinion, makes judicial review of rule changes nearly impossible, and allows for the FCC to quickly make rule changes with minimal, if any, guardrails.

This change could have devastating effects on the LGBTQ+ community. Giving the FCC power to remove any rules it deems “obsolete” — especially in an increasingly hostile federal climate toward LGBTQ+ rights — opens the door to greater harm and fewer protections, with no clear path for affected communities to respond. At a time when federal agencies have shown a willingness to test the limits of their authority in order to target LGBTQ+ communities, dismantling FCC guardrails and cutting off avenues for public accountability poses a serious threat to democratic rulemaking and marginalized communities alike.

We urge the FCC to reconsider its decision and withdraw this rulemaking change from their agenda. 

July 17, 2025_Public Interest Letter to Chairman Carr_Delete, Delete, Delete Direct Final .

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