White House aide Michael Meece has emerged as a top contender for one of two Republican seats on the Federal Communications Commission, according to the Washington Post and Reuters.

Meece is the deputy director of the White House public liaison office and previously worked as deputy chief of staff to Don Evans when he was U.S. Commerce Secretary during President Bush’s first term.

Among other names circulating as potential occupants of the other seat are Deborah Tate, a director on the Tennessee Regulatory Authority, and Suzanne Terrell, who unsuccessfully tried to unseat Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu in 2002, the sources said.

The FCC has been tied with two Republicans and two Democrats since March, when Michael Powell stepped down as chairman. Controversial issues currently require new Chairman Kevin Martin to convince a Democrat to support them.

This is such an important time for the FCC as there are so many controversial issues on the table from the future of VoIP… Will it have to contribute to the USF? Will it be regulated excessively?

Then there is the pending acquisitions in the telecom field such as Verizon and MCI. Other important issues are how will the FCC ensure BPL and WiMAX providers become strong competitors to the cable companies and LECs?  Stay tuned.