FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has announced that he intends to leave the Commission on January 20, 2021, as the Biden Administration comes into office. The FCC chairman is appointed by the president.

“It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve at the Federal Communications Commission, including as Chairman of the FCC over the past 4 years,” Pai said. “I am grateful to President Trump for giving me the opportunity to lead the agency in 2017, to President Obama for appointing me as a Commissioner in 2012, and to Senate Majority Leader McConnell and the Senate for twice confirming me. To be the first Asian-American to chair the FCC has been a particular privilege. As I often say: only in America.”

The FCC has five members, typically three from the party in the White House.