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Matthew DelNero

Matt DelNero provides expert regulatory counsel to companies of all sizes in the telecommunications, technology and media sectors. As a former senior official with the FCC and longtime private practitioner, Matt helps clients achieve their goals and navigate complex regulatory and public policy challenges.

Matt serves as co-chair of Covington’s Technology & Communications Regulation (“TechComm”) Practice Group and co-chair of the firm’s Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion initiative.

Matt advises clients on the full range of issues impacting telecommunications, technology and media providers today, including:

Structuring and securing FCC and other regulatory approvals for media and telecommunications transactions.
Obtaining approval for foreign investment in broadcasters and telecommunications providers.
Broadband funding under federal and state programs, including under the FCC’s Universal Service Fund (USF) and NTIA’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program.
Representing broadcasters, media networks, and other content owners and producers on both existing and proposed FCC regulations and policies.
FCC enforcement actions and inquiries.
Online video accessibility, including under the Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Equipment authorizations for IoT and other devices.
Spectrum policy and auctions, including for 5G.
Privacy and data protection, with a focus on telecommunications and broadband providers.

Matt also maintains an active pro bono practice representing LGBTQ+ and other asylum seekers, as well as veterans petitioning for discharge upgrades—including discharges under ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ and predecessor policies that targeted LGBTQ+ servicemembers.

Prior to rejoining Covington in January 2017, Matt served as Chief of the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau. He played a leading role in development of policies around net neutrality, broadband privacy, and broadband deployment and affordability under the federal Universal Service Fund (USF).

Chambers USA ranks Matt within “Band 1” in his field and reports that he is a “go-to attorney for complex matters before the FCC and other federal agencies, drawing on impressive former government experience.” It also quotes clients who praise him as “an outstanding regulatory lawyer...[who] understands the intersection between what’s important for the client’s operations and how the law impacts those operations."

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On January 21, 2026, the FCC’s Media Bureau released a Public Notice providing new guidance on how it will evaluate whether broadcast television stations have triggered an obligation to provide “equal opportunities” to political candidates under Section 315 of the Communications Act.  

The FCC’s equal opportunities rule generally says that if a station gives one legally qualified candidate free airtime, it usually has to offer comparable airtime to the other candidates running for the same office unless an exemption applies. To avoid discouraging general news coverage, Congress created several exemptions to this rule—one of the most commonly used being the exemption for bona fide news interviews.  In its new guidance, the FCC signals a more restrictive view of the bona fide news exemption, particularly in the context of late‑night shows, daytime talk shows, and other hybrid news‑entertainment formats.Continue Reading FCC Issues Guidance Focused on Candidate Appearances on Talk Shows

At the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) Open Meeting in late October, the agency unanimously adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that proposes to end certain legacy interconnection obligations of Local Exchange Carriers (LECs) to accelerate the transition to all Internet Protocol (IP) networks.

Currently, certain LECs are required to…

Continue Reading FCC Proposes Rule Changes to Accelerate Transition to IP Networks

Today, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released the final text of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) aimed at identifying FCC regulated entities that are controlled by a “foreign adversary.”

This development, along with a separate action recently taken by the FCC to adopt new rules that prohibit the use…

Continue Reading FCC Looks to Identify Telecom Investments by Foreign Adversaries

On March 12, 2025, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a Public Notice to announce it is seeking comment on whether any FCC rules, regulations or guidance documents should be removed due to the stated purpose of “alleviating unnecessary regulatory burdens.”  The FCC opened the new “In Re: Delete, Delete…

Continue Reading FCC Announces “In Re: Delete, Delete, Delete” Docket in Support of Deregulatory Agenda

Yesterday, the Trump Administration issued an Executive Order titled “Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies” (the EO).  The EO asserts Presidential authority over independent agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).  While the precise impacts remain to be seen, overall the EO will likely result in greater involvement by the White House in policymaking at independent agencies, both in substance and process.

OIRA Review of Agency Regulations.  The EO amends the Clinton Administration-era Executive Order 12866, which established a review process for regulations promulgated by executive branch departments and agencies but excluded independent agencies from that process.  The process includes requirements that departments and agencies submit “significant regulatory actions” to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for review before publication in the Federal Register.  Executive Order 12866 defines “significant regulatory action” to mean “any regulatory action that is likely to result in a rule that may:”

  1. Have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more or adversely affect in a material way the economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or State, local, or tribal governments or communities;
  2. Create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an action taken or planned by another agency;
  3. Materially alter the budgetary impact of entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients thereof; or
  4. Raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal mandates, the President’s priorities, or the principles set forth in this Executive order.

Yesterday’s EO revises the definition of “agencies” to remove an exemption for “independent regulatory agencies.”  The amended definition includes an exemption for the Federal Reserve “in its conduct of monetary policy.”

Performance Standards and Management Objectives.  The EO directs the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to “establish performance standards and management objectives for independent agency heads” and “report periodically to the President on their performance and efficiency in attaining such standards and objectives.”Continue Reading Trump Administration Asserts Presidential Authority Over Independent Agencies

On January 20, 2025, the Trump Administration released a memorandum, “Regulatory Freeze Pending Review,” to halt agency rulemaking processes (the “EO”).

The EO orders all executive departments and agencies to “not propose or issue any rule in any manner, including by sending a rule to the Office of the Federal…

Continue Reading Trump Administration Releases “Regulatory Freeze Pending Review” Executive Order

Updated July 15, 2024.  Originally posted July 11, 2024.

On July 8, 2024, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and a group of Internet Service Providers, represented by national and regional trade associations, filed supplemental briefs with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in In re MCP NO.

Continue Reading Industry Groups and FCC File Briefs in Net Neutrality Case Following Loper Bright

Updated August 8, 2023.  Originally posted May 1, 2023.

Last week, comment deadlines were announced for a Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) Order and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) that could have significant compliance implications for all holders of international Section 214 authority (i.e., authorization to provide telecommunications services from points in the U.S. to points abroad).  The rule changes on which the FCC seeks comment are far-reaching and, if adopted as written, could result in significant future compliance burdens, both for entities holding international Section 214 authority, as well as the parties holding ownership interests in these entities.  Comments on these rule changes are due Thursday, August 31, with reply comments due October 2.

Adopted in April, the FCC’s item proposing the new rules also includes an Order requiring all holders of international Section 214 authority to respond to a one-time information request concerning their foreign ownership. Although last week’s Federal Register publication sets a comment deadline for the proposed rules, the reporting deadline for the one-time information request has not yet been established.  However, because the FCC has fulfilled its statutory obligations regarding the new information collection presented by the one-time reporting requirement, carriers — as well as entities holding an ownership interest in these carriers — should prepare for the announcement of the reporting deadline.

The FCC’s latest actions underscore the agency’s ongoing desire to closely scrutinize foreign ownership and involvement in telecommunications carriers serving the U.S. market, as well as to play a more active role in cybersecurity policy. These developments should be of interest to any carrier that serves the U.S. market and any financial or strategic investor focused on the telecommunications space, as well as other parties interested in national security developments affecting telecommunications infrastructure.

Proposed Rule Changes for International Section 214 Authority

The FCC’s proposed changes to its regulation of international Section 214 authorizations generally concern additional compliance, disclosure, and reporting requirements. The FCC’s proposed rule changes are far-reaching, but the most notable of the proposals concern the following:Continue Reading Comments Due August 31 on FCC’s Proposal to Step Up Review of Foreign Ownership in Telecom Carriers and Establish Cybersecurity Requirements

On June 20, 2023, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) to require cable operators and direct broadcast satellite (“DBS”) providers to display an “all-in” price for their video programming services in their billing and marketing materials.  The White House issued a press release that…

Continue Reading FCC Proposes “All-In” Pricing Rules for Cable/Satellite TV

Yesterday, the FCC announced that on November 18, 2022, it will release a “pre-production draft” of its widely anticipated broadband maps, which will contain granular information about existing broadband infrastructure and service availability in the U.S. The maps, which the FCC was required by law to develop, will be used by the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”) to distribute $42.5 billion in funding to states for allocation to service providers who will use it to construct additional broadband networks.

The federal government’s allocation of these funds is pursuant to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (“BEAD”) Program, which was established by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”) in November 2021. Click here for our summary of the BEAD Program.

The FCC began this particular mapping initiative in August 2019. Doing so marked a departure from the agency’s prior mapping efforts, which had acknowledged gaps. The new initiative was informed in part by the March 2020 Broadband DATA Act, which required the FCC to collect granular data about geographic areas in which broadband infrastructure exists, as well as attributes such as download and upload speeds and latency. 

To ensure accuracy and avoid over- or under-funding certain locations, the FCC incorporated a “challenge process” into its broadband map development, through which governmental entities, broadband service providers, and others are able to submit bulk challenges to the data that the FCC collected. The FCC believes that this process will help it refine its maps before subsequent versions are released.Continue Reading FCC to Release Broadband Maps on November 18: Will Determine How $42.5 Billion in Funding Will be Allocated by NTIA in 2023