US senators question FCC chief over Nexstar-Tegna deal, Bloomberg News reports

March 30 (Reuters) - The ranking members of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee questioned the Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr and criticized his approval of Nexstar's NXST.O merger with Tegna GTTG.F without a vote from the full commission, Bloomberg News reported on Monday.

Here are some details:

• The letter to Carr was jointly sent by the committee's Republican Senator Ted Cruz and Democrat Maria Cantwell, the Bloomberg report said.

• The senators told Carr that he improperly allowed agency staff to approve the merger even though it involved waiving major anti-consolidation rules, Bloomberg said, citing a copy of the letter.

• The senators said that significant questions of policy must be addressed by the full FCC in a vote.

• The FCC approved the $3.54 billion sale of local television station owner Tegna to Nexstar earlier this month, despite objections from Democratic-led states, after which the companies quickly closed the deal.

• However, last week, a U.S. judge ordered Nexstar to temporarily keep Tegna's assets separate pending a review of whether the deal violates federal antitrust laws.

• The FCC, the Senate Commerce Committee, Cruz and Cantwell did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside regular business hours.