WASHINGTON, DC - House Energy and Commerce Committee leaders yesterday wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler regarding former Greenhill & Company employee Lawrence S. Chu’s ongoing stint as a volunteer at the commission. Greenhill & Company, an investment banking firm, was awarded a contract to help the commission prepare for the upcoming incentive auction prior to Chu’s departure. Committee leaders are concerned with apparent conflict of interest as well as a report by The Wall Street Journal that Chu will join a different investment bank in August 2015 following his time at the FCC.
Full Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Tim Murphy (R-PA), and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) today wrote seeking additional information about Chu’s volunteer service - valued in the hundreds of thousands of dollars - as well as his role in the commission’s contract with Greenhill and how his volunteer service fits within the commission’s existing regulations.
“FCC decisions have sweeping impact on the economy well beyond the industries it regulates. We want to be sure that any work done by the commission or on its behalf is for the benefit of the American people. This relationship warrants questions and we look forward to the chairman’s timely response," said the leaders.
The leaders requested a response by May 13, 2015.
