Mobile carriers, including AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile, could temporarily avoid paying $200 million in privacy penalties because of the Federal Communications Commission’s partisan split, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. Sources familiar with the situation told the WSJ that the FCC, which has two Democratic commissioners and two Republican ones, needs one more vote of approval to levy the fines, and both Republican members haven’t voted yet.
Although Gigi Sohn, the person the Biden administration nominated to fill the FCC’s empty seat over a year ago, could potentially provide the tie-breaking vote to fine the companies, the Senate has yet to vote on her nomination. Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile may be able to avoid…