A FirstNet board special review committee finished part one of a report examining allegations of wrongdoing raised by board member Paul Fitzgerald, but did not release the report Thursday during a brief meeting. FirstNet board Secretary Uzoma Onyeije said the full board scheduled a special meeting the morning of Sept. 23 to receive part one of the report.

Efforts on Capitol Hill to pass legislation aimed at combating abusive patent litigation brought by patent assertion entities are being promoted through widespread misinformation, said CEO Nathan Myhrvold of PAE Intellectual Ventures. Patent reform advocates have been pushing for legislation to combat PAEs -- an issue they feel the America Invents Act (AIA) did not adequately address. There are already multiple bills in the House and Senate that address abusive patent litigation, with additional bills in both chambers’ Judiciary committees expected to drop this fall (CD Sept 5 p8).

Acting FCC Chairwoman Mignon Clyburn offered an impassioned defense of the Lifeline program Thursday, saying it’s crucial to help lift the downtrodden out of poverty. It should be expanded, not limited, she told a New America Foundation audience. Clyburn commended Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif., for sponsoring the Broadband Affordability Act, which would require the FCC to expand Lifeline to broadband services (CD April 24 p3).

U.S. intelligence agencies must embrace more transparency after the surveillance revelations of former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper told crowds at the Intelligence and National Security Alliance conference Thursday in Washington. “It’s clear if we keep these tools at all, they'll be legislatively amended” and could do with more oversight, he said, describing the changes the government has embraced.

Nominees for the FCC and FTC advanced a step in the Senate this week, but it remains unclear when the agencies will get new commissioners. The Senate Commerce Committee set its hearing on FCC nominee Mike O'Rielly and FTC nominee Terrell McSweeny for 2:30 p.m. Wednesday in 253 Russell (CD Sept 12 p1). Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., “is going to want to move all of them together,” Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld told us, referring to the FCC nominees being paired and put forward with McSweeny. “That could conceivably happen at any time.” Observers were optimistic about how fast Congress might advance the FCC nominees while remaining cautious on the FTC nominee.

The Internet has made it substantially easier for the LGBT community to connect, learn and engage in self-expression, said FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai and others at an LGBT Technology Partnership event Thursday. Panelists said there’s a need for rural communities to access broadband through the National Broadband Plan and the need for security and privacy online for LGBT youth. “We have to ensure that the Internet, with all its power and promise, continues to thrive for all people, including those in the LGBT community,” said Pai.

Concern raised by lawmakers during hearings on the Satellite Television Extension Localism Act indicate a change is coming to the retransmission consent model, said consumer groups and pay-TV groups Thursday during a teleconference by the American Television Alliance. They said they're encouraged by lawmakers’ remarks and a draft version of the Video Choice Act introduced this week by House Communications Subcommittee ranking member Anna Eshoo, D-Calif. There’s no need for Congress to change laws around retrans, NAB said during a separate teleconference.

Congress is likely to make progress on some privacy bills introduced after a summer of leaks about government surveillance programs, said staffers at the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) during a news briefing Thursday. One such “bill to watch” is the FISA Accountability and Privacy Protection Act, introduced by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., because it was “introduced by a committee chairman who has the power to move his bill,” said Greg Nojeim, director of CDT’s Project on Freedom, Security and Technology. Nojeim also said he was optimistic about bills to revise the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., “wants to do a comprehensive bill, and they're working on coming up with something,” he said.

Patent and Trademark Office acting Director Teresa Stanek Rea will soon step down to return to the private sector, she told colleagues in a Wednesday letter, several intellectual property lawyers and advocates outside the office told us. None of those we interviewed said they know where Rea will go next or whether the administration will soon name a permanent director to the post. Neither the White House nor the agency had comment.

EU Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes defended her wide-ranging proposal to create a single European telecom market announced Wednesday (CD Sept 12 p7), as mostly negative reactions continued. At a news conference the next day, Kroes criticized “illusions” about the legislation, saying “we can’t wait for a perfect package.” Competitive telecom companies and consumers said the proposal falls short of expectations, while the cable sector voiced general approval. The European Parliament pressed the European Commission to end all roaming fees by 2015.