House Commerce Eyes Markup Session Week of July 20, Doyle Says

House in May passed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (Heroes) Act (HR-6800), with broadband funding (see 2005180056). Lawmakers have been offering a range of other broadband funding proposals, including a push by House Democrats to allocate $100 billion as part of the Moving Forward Act infrastructure legislative package (see 2006220054). Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has yet to “open his mouth and say something” (see 2005140062) about wanting to “sit down and negotiate” on another aid bill, Doyle said now. He hopes talks will have progressed during the current recess to a point where lawmakers will “have something to vote on relative to another package,” because Congress needs to “get something done before” the longer August recess. Doyle hoped appropriators “put sufficient” money in FY 2021 funding bills to fully implement the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act. HR-4998 set up a program to fund U.S. communications providers’ removal of Chinese equipment determined to threaten national security (see 2003040056). The House Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee advanced its FY21 bill this week with $1 billion to implement HR-4998 (see 2007080064). The FCC earlier sought $2 billion for work on the law (see 2003230066). Doyle hailed the FCC’s decision to bar Chinese equipment makers Huawei and ZTE from participating in USF (see 2006300078).