On March 27, 2012, the Homeland Security Border and Maritime Security Subcommittee held a markup of H.R. 4251, the Securing Maritime Activities through Risk-based Targeting for (SMART) Port Security Act. The bill was introduced last week by Rep. Candacie Miller, R-Mich, to secure the global supply chain, find cost savings and improve maritime security.
On March 20, 2012, Reps. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio and Ted Poe, R-Texas, introduced H.R. 4216, the Foreign Counterfeit Protection Act. The bill would allow Customs and Border Protection to exchange important information with rights holders in order to protect intellectual property (IP) rights and to uphold the integrity of trade. H.R. 4216 would improve efforts to identify merchandise or retail packaging that infringes or copyright or bears a counterfeit trademark. The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee.
Officials from Customs and Border Protection and Canada Border Services Agency reiterated the details of the "Beyond the Border" action plan during townhall meetings in Niagara, NY and Toronto on February 28-29, 2012. The presentations describe specific actions and 2012-2014 target dates to achieve goals such as: (i) common data elements for advance cargo screening; (ii) mutual recognition of air cargo security programs for passenger aircraft; (iii) attempted alignment of Canada’s Customs Self Assessment (CSA) and the U.S. Importer Self Assessment (ISA) programs; (iv) assessment on ways to move wood packaging material inspections away from the border; etc.
An ongoing standoff in Congress over reauthorizing the U.S. Export-Import Bank puts at risk an entity that has been increasingly important for satellite projects, say industry executives. The bank, which provides loan and loan guarantees for U.S.-made exports, is facing the expiration of its congressional authorization and possibly reaching the loan exposure limits of its charter, said Phil Cogan, vice president-communications. The bank has never lost its authorization and it remains unclear exactly what would happen if it did, he said.
On March 24, 2012, President Barack Obama urged the House of Representatives to pass the two-year transportation bill, S. 1813, which has already been approved by the Senate. Obama said a failure to pass the bill will allow construction sites and important transportation projects to go idle. He stated that the House must put aside partisan posturing to pay for crumbling roads and bridges. (See ITT’s Online Archives 12031508 for summary of Senate’s passage of S. 1813.) March 21 Congressional Record debate on transportation bill can be found here.
The FCC proposed Wednesday to require Dish Network to build out to at least 70 percent of the population in each of the geographic areas it’s licensed to provide terrestrial service in within seven years. The proposal is part of the agency’s notice of proposed rulemaking that would convert the 2 GHz band from satellite-only spectrum to combined satellite and wireless spectrum. The agency also asked for input on a possible alternative band plan for the spectrum, which would be renamed as AWS-4, making use of nearby spectrum (http://xrl.us/bmy2oj).
The FCC is expected to propose getting rid of ancillary terrestrial component (ATC) rules for the S-band, potentially allowing Dish Network to provide terrestrial-only services in the 2 GHz spectrum allocated for mobile satellite services, industry and agency officials said of a rulemaking notice likely to be approved Wednesday. The agency will propose buildout conditions and leave related questions about the 2 GHz spectrum and advanced wireless service (AWS) band plans within a notice of inquiry, they said. The NOI will consider the future of the proposed 2 GHz expansion band, at 1695-1710 MHz, primarily used by NOAA, FCC officials said.
The FCC’s proposal to block LightSquared’s ability to provide terrestrial service would violate the company’s constitutional rights, LightSquared said in an FCC filing Friday. The agency has said it plans to rescind the waiver and suspend the company’s underlying ancillary terrestrial component. Sprint Nextel also said Friday it will terminate its network sharing agreement with LightSquared.
The government’s delay in releasing a report on export control reforms continues to prevent movement on legislation that would relax regulation of satellite components, House Foreign Affairs Committee staffer David Fite told the Satellite 2012 conference late Wednesday. HR-3288, introduced last year by House Foreign Affairs Ranking Member Howard Berman, D-Calif. (CD Nov 3 p13), remains in limbo as a result of the slowness, Fite said. The bill would give the Executive Office of the President authority to remove commercial satellites and components from a munitions list closely regulated by the State Department.
The push to use terrestrially the S-band and other mobile satellite services spectrum around the world may be a precursor for efforts in other bands, said Rupert Pearce, CEO of Inmarsat. “The risk is: Is this the thin edge of the wedge,” he said. “As pressure builds to free up spectrum, MSS bands look like really low hanging fruit” due to the number of consumers per bit, especially compared to terrestrial service. It will be important for the industry to work together to convince regulators of the services’ importance, said Pearce.