(2) In any case of adjudication (as defined in the Administrative Procedure Act) which has been designated for a hearing by the Commission, [no person who has participated in the presentation or preparation for presentation of such case before an examiner or examiners or the Commission, and] no member of the Office of the General Counsel, or the Office of the Chief Engineer, or [the Office of the Chief Accountant] any other person, shall (except to the extent required for the disposition of ex parte matters as authorized by law), directly or indirectly, make any [additional] presentation respecting such case, to the Commission or any member thereof, any hearing examiner, any assistant to a Commissioner, or any member of the review staff, unless upon notice and opportunity for all parties to participate []: Provided, That the provisions of this paragraph (2) shall not prevent consultations among the Commissioners, their assistants, and the review staff as provided in section 5(c). O Mr. PASTORE, from the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany S. 1736] The Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, to whom was referred the bill (S. 1736) to amend the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, by eliminating the requirement of an oath or affirmation on certain documents filed with the Federal Communications Commission, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. PURPOSE The purpose of S. 1736 is to amend sections 219, 308, and 319 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, so as to eliminate the requirement of an oath or affirmation on certain reports and application forms submitted to the Federal Communications Commission pursuant to said sections. Affected would be annual and other reports of common carriers required under section 219, and applications for construction permits, station licenses, or modifications or renewals thereof, under sections 308 and 319. GENERAL STATEMENT This bill was introduced by the chairman of your committee at the request of the Federal Communications Commission. Full and complete hearings were held by the Subcommittee on Communications at which all interested parties were afforded an opportunity to present their views. The requirement of an oath or affirmation on certain reports and application forms submitted to the Commission imposes a burden on the public and also on the Commission in those instances where the applicant omits the required oath or affirmation. In such cases the workload of the Commission is increased to the extent necessary to return reports or application forms for the required verification. This slows up the consideration by the Commission of the matters involved and the processing of applications. Inconvenience and delay to the public result. As a substitute for the oath or affirmation on Commission forms, where presently required, the Federal Communications Commission proposes to provide on the forms a warning similar to the following: Willful false statements on this form can be punished by fine or imprisonment (18 U.S.C. 1001). Title 18, United States Code, section 1001, provides that whoever makes any false or fraudulent statements or representations concerning any matter within the jurisdiction of any department or agency of the United States shall be punished by a fine of not more than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. In addition, the Communications Act provides in section 312(a) that a station license or construction permit may be revoked for false statements knowingly made in an application or in any statement of fact which may be required under section 308. Your committee feels, therefore, that the elimination of the oath or affirmation requirements would not adversely affect the interests of the Federal Communications Commission in view of the aforementioned provisions of the United States Code and the Communications Act. The enactment of this legislation will be another step in eliminating delays and inconveniences in processing applications. 1 AGENCY COMMENTS The bill was introduced at the request of the Federal Communications Commission. Their report follows: FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION EXPLANATION OF S. 1736 The Federal Communications Commission recommends to the Congress the consideration of legislation to amend sections 219, 308, and 319 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, so as to eliminate the requirement of an oath or affirmation on certain reports and application forms submitted to the Commission pursuant to said sections. Affected would be annual and other reports of common carriers required under section 219, and applications for construction permits, station licenses, or modifications or renewals thereof, under sections 308 and 319. As a substitute for the oath or affirmation on Commission forms where presently required, it is proposed to provide thereon a warning similar to the following: "Willful false statements on this form can be punished by fine or imprisonment (18 U.S.C. 1001)." Such section provides that whoever makes any false or fraudulent statements or representations concerning any matter within the jurisdiction of any department or agency of the United States shall be punished by a fine of not more than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. In addition, the Communications Act provides in section 312(a) that a station license or construction permit may be revoked for false statements knowingly made in an The requirement of an oath or affirmation on certain The Commission feels, therefore, that the elimination of the oath or affirmation requirements would not adversely affect its interests in view of the aforementioned provisions of the United States Code and the Communications Act, and accordingly urges the enactment of the proposed legislation. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW In compliance with subsection 4 of rule XXIX of the Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill are shown as follows: (existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in italic, and existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1934, AS AMENDED INQUIRIES INTO MANAGEMENT SEC. 218. ANNUAL AND OTHER REPORTS SEC. 219. (a) The Commission is authorized to require annual reports [under oath] from all carriers subject to the Act, and from persons directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by, or under direct or indirect common control with, any such carrier, to prescribe the manner in which such reports shall be made, and to require from such persons specific answers to all questions upon which the Commission may need information. Except as otherwise required by the Commission, such annual reports shall show in detail the amount of capital stock issued, the amount and privileges of each class of stock, the amounts paid therefor, and the manner of payment for the same; the dividends paid and the surplus fund, if any; the number of stockholders (and the names of the thirty largest holders of each class of stock and the amount held by each); the funded and floating debts and the interest paid thereon; the cost and value of the carrier's property, franchises, and equipment; the number of employees and the salaries paid each class; the names of all officers and directors, and the amount of salary, bonus, and all other compensation paid to each; the amounts expended for improvements each year, how expended, and the character of such improvements; the earnings and receipts from each branch of business and from all |