House Commerce Committee Chmn. Tauzin (R-La.) and Judiciary Committee Chmn. Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) were meeting Tues. afternoon with House leadership to present compromise version of data deregulation legislation (HR-1542), House Majority Leader Armey (R-Tex.) said in press briefing. He credited Tauzin for hard work on moving version of bill referred to full House that would loosen regulations on Bell company provision of Internet backbone and high-speed Internet services.
Senate resumed consideration Tues. of Agriculture Committee report (S. Rpt. 76-567) for agriculture, nutrition and rural development bill (S-1731) that would provide $100 million in annual assistance for FY 2002-2006 for rural broadband deployment projects. Rural Utilities Service- administered program would provide grants for broadband infrastructure and equipment in communities with populations under 20,000, but committee wants to focus that assistance on localities with fewer than 2,500 residents. Report also would finance loans for projects in those communities at 4% annual interest or “current applicable market rate.” Loans could be used to refinance outstanding obligations under previous Dept. of Agriculture loans for telecom projects “if the use of the proceeds for that purpose will further the construction, improvement or acquisition of facilities or equipment for the provision of broadband services in eligible rural communities.” Report recommended support for broadband projects without making preference for type of technology used. It also sought to clarify definition of what constitutes broadband service by requiring that Agriculture Secy. periodically review definition to ensure that it applies to technologies that have “the capacity to transmit data to enable a subscriber to the service to originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics or video.” It said that action “would encourage new broader bandwidth technologies that provide significant progress toward higher bandwidth service in rural areas and that the program will foster the development of a variety of technological applications including terrestrial and satellite wireless services.” Committee said it expected Secy. to participate in any FCC or Dept. of Commerce proceedings or studies involving “the future of broadband services and the markets for such services.”
Resolution of negotiations between House Commerce and Judiciary Committee leadership on data deregulation bill rests on whether to give Dept. of Justice (DoJ) expanded role in reviewing Bell company applications for long distance authority, congressional source said. Commerce Chmn. Tauzin (R-La.) and Judiciary Chmn. Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) for months have debated issue of Bell company deregulation behind closed doors and have remained tight-lipped on sticking points of those negotiations. But now congressional source closely following contentious debate said Tauzin and Sensenbrenner were considering meeting halfway on Sensenbrenner proposal to expand DoJ’s role in reviewing applications for Sec. 271 relief.
Responding to calls by state consumer advocates, FCC Comr. Abernathy said Fri. she didn’t think it was good policy to “re-regulate” long distance business. Consumer advocates are expected to file petition soon urging FCC to require long distance companies to inform consumers before changing prices. Advocates say they're concerned that consumers, particularly low income customers, are unaware of pricing changes since Commission detariffed long distance. Speaking at conference sponsored by Competition Policy Institute (CPI), Abernathy said she was “inclined to resist… calls for increased regulation of the long distance market.” She pointed out that there wasn’t any consumer notification under previous tariffing regime, either. “All that happened was carriers filed tariffs with the FCC,” Abernathy said. “It is difficult for me to believe that consumers were monitoring the thousands of pages of tariff filings the Commission used to receive each year.” Under detariffing, carriers contract directly with customers in way that other providers such as credit card companies do. FCC’s Consumer Information Bureau is keeping eye on situation, Abernathy said, and if any problems surface, agency will address issue, but so far no complaints have been lodged about it.
Despite move by FCC to put ultra-wideband (UWB) order on agenda for Dec. 12 meeting (CD Dec 6 p8), chances that item will be approved then are seen as slim, industry observers said Thurs. Sources have indicated that in areas of UWB policy where federal agencies can’t reach agreement, Commission will allow more time beyond Dec. 12 for coordination on final item. Commerce Secy. Donald Evans told FCC Chmn. Powell Nov. 30 that additional 60 days were needed to complete final analysis to ensure protection of critical govt. operations and safety of life services. “This additional time seems eminently reasonable given the stakes of the proceeding and the high demands placed on our national defense and transportation agencies during this extraordinary time in our nation’s history,” Evans said in letter obtained by Communications Daily. Sen. Burns (R-Mont.) wrote to Powell Dec. 4 citing “significant alarm” raised by aviation industry on impact of UWB interference with “critical” safety-of-flight operations. “Potential interference with aviation operations is entirely unacceptable in light of recent aviation tragedies,” Burns wrote.
Two House Judiciary subcommittee panels expressed doubt Congress could move NextWave legislation by year-end, as required by recent settlement on bankrupt company’s return of wireless licenses to the govt. Senate Commerce Committee leaders went step further, declaring that panel won’t touch NextWave case until next year. NextWave has agreed (CD Nov 19 p1) to surrender its C- and F-block licenses for $5.85 billion after taxes, while govt. will get $10 billion from spectrum re-auctioned in Jan.
Supporters of high-speed Internet deregulation called on House leadership Wed. to place related legislation on floor calendar by year-end. House Telecom Subcommittee Chmn. Upton (R-Mich.) and other lawmakers unveiled letter from dozens of House supporters sent recently to House Speaker Hastert (R- Ill.) and Majority Leader Armey urging floor vote on bill by House Commerce Committee Chmn. Tauzin (R-La.) and ranking Democratic member Dingell (Mich.). Separate group of free- market economists sent letter Dec. 4 to White House, Council of Economic Advisers and Depts. of Commerce and Treasury seeking support for telecom deregulation, which they said could be accomplished through measures such as Tauzin- Dingell. Senate Commerce Committee Chmn. Hollings (D-S.C.) also held news briefing this week to reiterate his opposition to Tauzin-Dingell, which he said would re-monopolize Bell companies. He called on Congress to support bill he introduced earlier this year that would increase fines for companies that violated the competitive provisions of the 1996 Telecom Act.
FCC is set to take up order on ultra-wideband devices (UWB) at Dec. 12 agenda meeting, as parts of Bush administration call for additional time before final decision. As part of extensive agenda for last meeting of year, Commission will consider first report and order to revise Part 15 on UWB devices. FCC Chmn. Powell has told Congress in last year that he anticipated action on item by year-end. Move to put UWB on agenda followed letter Fri. from Commerce Secy. Donald Evans asking for 60 additional days to complete analysis of UWB systems. Evans said he believed more time was needed to complete evaluation of UWB to ensure it would protect critical govt. operations and safety of life systems (CD Dec 4 p5). Deputy Defense Secy. Paul Wolfowitz had asked Evans to back delay in final decision until at least Feb., citing concerns over how critical govt. systems such as GPS would be affected (CD Nov 29 p1). But FCC staffer said that move to put item on agenda preserves Commission’s options to still potentially vote on order at meeting. One possibility is that issues that have been fully coordinated between Commerce Dept. and FCC in next week could still be voted on at meeting, while others that are still in conflict would be put off until Feb. timeframe as requested by Evans, staffer said. Putting it on agenda “gives us more options” over next week, staffer said. Any outstanding issues over which final coordination aren’t reached in time would be put off until next year, as requested by Evans, staffer said. Also on agenda are reallocation and service rules for lower part of 700 MHz band, TV Ch. 52-59. FCC plans to consider report and order on rules to reallocate those channels under Balanced Budget Act of 1997. On common carrier side, FCC will consider: (1) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to begin “comprehensive examination” of appropriate regulatory framework for ILEC provision of broadband services. Item stems in part from SBC petition for ruling that it was nondominant in providing advanced services and for forbearance from dominant carrier regulation for those services. (2) Triennial review of unbundling obligations of ILECs. Commission will consider NPRM to look at definitions and rules for access to ILEC unbundled network elements. (3) Order on plans for nationwide 1,000-block number pooling and “other strategies to ensure that numbering resources are used efficiently.” Commission also is expected to consider technology-specific number overlays. In mass media area, agency will consider NPRM on new equal employment opportunity rules for broadcast and cable. U.S. Appeals Court, D.C. had overturned earlier rules.
Public awareness, not tougher laws or more technology, is what’s needed to protect copyrighted works on Internet, several speakers said Tues. at Business Software Alliance Global Tech Summit. Instead of Digital Millennium Copyright Act’s (DMCA) anticircumvention provisions, or yet-to-be-introduced proposal by Sen. Hollings (D-S.C.) to require govt. standards for digital rights management, there should be massive, effective education effort to get people to take copyright laws seriously, several speakers said.
“It is time for the Administration to end its silence on telecom deregulation and take a stance squarely in favor of eliminating disincentives to investment in broadband infrastructure for all technologies, including cable and wireless as well as telephony,” group of economists wrote Tues. Addressed to Commerce Secy. Donald Evans, Treasury Secy. Paul O'Neill, White House Council of Economic Advisors Chief Glenn Hubbard and President Bush’s economic adviser Lawrence Lindsey, economists said IT investments fueled as much as 25% of gross domestic product growth in 1990s but had led economic decline in last year. Economists -- Brookings Institution senior fellow Robert Crandall, Discovery Institute senior fellow George Gilder, Manhattan Institute senior fellow Thomas Hazlett, Kudlow & Co. Chmn. Lawrence Kudlow, Citizens for a Sound Economy counselor James Miller, Cato Institute Chmn. William Niskanen and senior fellow Alan Reynolds and Progress & Freedom Foundation Pres. Jeffery Eisenach -- specifically urged Administration to back pro- Bell deregulatory bill sponsored by House Commerce Committee Chmn. Tauzin (R-La.) and ranking Democrat Dingell (Mich.). Just last week, senior Commerce Dept. official expressed Administration reluctance to choose sides in Tauzin-Dingell debate (CD Dec 3 p2). Noting that Bells had interconnection obligations with broadband providers and limits on where they could transmit data, economists said “these regulatory burdens, particularly mandatory facilities-sharing requirements, reduce the incentives of telecom companies to invest in new or modernized facilities, including those needed to provide affordable broadband services to homes and small businesses.” Tauzin-Dingell addresses only part of regulatory burdens facing broadband deployment, economists said, and “widespread diffusion of high-speed Internet access [could result in] between $100 billion and $500 billion per year in increased consumer and producer surplus.” “The Internet, in its current form, has reached a plateau in terms of functionality and value to consumers. There is only so much one can do with a static Web page accessed at dial-up speeds.” They said barriers to IT investment needed to be removed so services such as streaming music and video, voice- over-Internet-protocol, next-generation games and other services could grow. Despite current struggles of many IT companies, however, economists said focus should be on deregulation, not industry bailouts: “We would be the last to argue that government should step in to subsidize or provide other special assistance to any particular economic sector of the economy.” Economists sent copies to House and Senate leadership as well as FCC Chmn. Powell.