Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., defended paid prioritization deals Saturday when campaigning in California's Bay Area. “The marketplace will charge more for something that’s faster,” said Paul, who's seeking the GOP nomination in the 2016 White House race, at an event hosted by Lincoln Labs. He's leading a Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval to dismantle the FCC’s net neutrality order. Paul compared paid prioritization deals to FedEx's charging different amounts for sending a letter in one day versus in five. There are other options aside from "regulating the Internet,” Paul said, encouraging more broadband competition. Paul questioned polls that suggest broad support for net neutrality protections: “I would say it depends on how you ask the question.” He said if you framed net neutrality as Internet regulation, the answer would be the opposite. The net neutrality label is “wonderful,” he remarked. “Who could be against net neutrality?” He slammed the idea of government monopolies in the broadband space and encouraged deregulation to “get rid of government monopolies” in delivering the service. Paul emphasized a particular fear of getting “rid of the pricing mechanism” and cautioned of possible distortions in the marketplace that would follow, comparing it to what happened to the price of bread in early Soviet Russia. Paul also said Jeb Bush, a former Florida governor seen as vying for the GOP nomination, is “mistaken” in his defense of government surveillance powers. “I’m for the Bill of Rights,” Paul said, arguing he’s the only presidential candidate of any party who would end government surveillance on the first day of his or her presidency. “I will lead the fight against extending the Patriot Act,” Paul said, noting he's working with Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and anticipates five to 10 amendments on the Senate floor regarding any relevant legislation to “limit the overreach.”
Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Bill Nelson, D-Fla., introduced the Sunshine in Sponsorship Identification Act (S-1260) Thursday, similar to House legislation introduced in late April, as expected (see 1504300039). The four-page Senate bill would “direct the [FCC] to revise and update its sponsorship identification rules applicable to commercial and political advertising,” its text said. The legislation’s backers are all Democrats: Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Gary Peters of Michigan, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Ron Wyden of Oregon. The bill was referred to the Commerce Committee and would make the FCC begin a rulemaking within 30 days of enactment, to be completed within 270 days, “to update its rules and guidance promulgated under section 317 of the Communications Act.” The FCC would have to “update and modernize its sponsorship identification rules and guidance to reflect current technologies and commercial and political advertising,” the bill said. That rulemaking would also have to involve the FCC investigating how to “ensure that political broadcasts include disclosures containing more detailed information about the identity of the true sponsors of such broadcasts” and to “consider how best to require the disclosure of sponsorship identification information, including by requiring that more detailed sponsorship identification information be placed online or in another form more readily accessible to the public,” the text said.
Jerry Apodaca, Democratic governor of New Mexico from 1975 to 1979, pressed Congress to take up net neutrality legislation. “Congress can pass legislation that will ensure net neutrality -- an open Internet that treats all data equally,” Apodaca said last week in an op-ed for the NM Political Report, mentioning the net neutrality advocacy of Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., a Commerce Committee member. “Legislation can undo the harm of 1930s-era regulations while meeting the goals of President [Barack] Obama, Sen. Udall and others that the Internet remains open. This is the solution that will lead to faster Internet service and innovation for New Mexico and the nation.” Apodaca slammed reclassification of broadband under Communications Act Title II by the FCC’s recent net neutrality order. Some Hill Republicans have said this year they want to negotiate on bipartisan net neutrality legislation, but no legislation has advanced.
The House Communications Subcommittee scheduled another hearing on FCC transparency proposals, following up on an April 30 hearing (see 1504300063). This second hearing, titled “FCC Reauthorization: Improving Commission Transparency -- Part II,” will take place 9:15 a.m. Friday in 2322 Rayburn. Lawmakers “will examine additional bills to improve transparency and process at the FCC,” a notice sent Friday said. “Members will also review a number of additional draft proposals offered by Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and the Democratic members of the subcommittee.” Republicans had offered three draft measures that were panned by subcommittee Democrats, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and various public interest groups, and Democrats had countered with measures of their own. The House Republicans listed several draft measures slated for discussion on the Commerce Committee website. The hearing is scheduled to include discussion of the Democratic proposals in addition to a discussion draft of the FCC Process Reform Act from Walden, subcommittee ranking member Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., and Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill. That FCC Process Reform Act draft measure that Republicans posted is dated Jan. 15 and is 18 pages and has several sections on FCC rulemakings and modifications to how commissioners may interact under the sunshine provisions. It includes a section on Freedom of Information Act transparency at the FCC and on consumer complaint database website posting.
The House Communications Subcommittee and House IP Subcommittee will examine ICANN’s planned spinoff of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) functions in separate Wednesday hearings. Both subcommittees said their hearings would focus on stakeholder perspectives on the transition process. Communications Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., and other subcommittee members plan to focus on the current status of the transition process and its potential effect on the Internet, the subcommittee said. House Communications hadn’t disclosed the names of witnesses at our deadline. That hearing also centers on the Domain Openness Through Continued Oversight Matters (DOTCOM) Act (HR-805), which Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill., reintroduced in February. The bill would prohibit the NTIA from approving the final IANA transition plan for up to a full year while GAO conducts a study of the plan (see 1502100049). The hearing is to begin at 2 p.m. EDT in 2322 Rayburn. House Communications’ renewed interest in the IANA transition comes amid new progress by ICANN on its IANA transition proposals. ICANN’s cross-community working group on ICANN accountability (CCWG-Accountability) released its draft proposal earlier this week (see 1505060067), while the IANA stewardship transition working group (CWG-Stewardship) released its revised draft proposal last month (see 1504280060). The House IP Subcommittee hearing's focus on the IANA transition will be accompanied by a focus on stakeholders' perspectives on ICANN and the .sucks domain rollout. Amazon Vice President-Global Public Policy Paul Misener and NetChoice Executive Director Steve DelBianco are among the eight set to testify during the hearing, the subcommittee said Thursday. “As we reflect on our long term aspirations for governing the Internet, we must take the utmost caution in establishing a process to transition to a new form of governance,” said subcommittee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., in a news release. “Before a transition of ICANN can occur, there must be robust protections in place to protect the essential functions of the Internet.” That hearing is to begin at 10 a.m. EDT in 2141 Rayburn. Past congressional scrutiny of the IANA transition process has been negative, including in Congress' passage of the "cromnibus" funding bill, which prohibits NTIA from using its funds for IANA transition-related activities through Sept. 30, the day the agency’s current IANA contract with ICANN ends.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch named cybersecurity one of the four critical national security issues warranting “$107 million in program increases” in the Justice Department’s FY 2016 budget request. “The FY 2016 Budget Request also includes $775 million in total for cyber-related activities that address cybercrimes and defend the security of critical information networks,” Lynch told the Senate Appropriations Commerce Subcommittee Thursday in her written testimony. “This request includes increases of $27 million for key program enhancements to the FBI, NSD [National Security Division], U.S. Attorneys, and the Criminal Division. The FBI will continue improving its cyber collection and analysis, while extending its centralized cyber capabilities to the field through its Next Generation Cyber initiative,” she said, citing a need for more attorneys specializing in cybercrime. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., chair of the Appropriations subcommittee that held the hearing, cast doubt on DOJ’s funding request. “The President’s 2016 budget request for the Department of Justice totals $29 billion, which is $2 billion above the 2015 enacted level,” Shelby said in his opening statement. “While funding for the Department of Justice is one of the federal government’s highest priorities, we simply cannot afford such an increase in spending while operating under our current budget constraints.” Senate Republicans have committed to putting together 12 appropriations bills rather than resorting to funding the government by continuing resolution. “I expect the Senate Appropriations Committee to write 12 appropriations bills that conform to the spending guidelines in this resolution,” Appropriations Committee Chairman Thad Cochran, R-Miss., said in a statement earlier this week. “This will be a challenge, but one that we fully intend to meet by producing responsible, thoughtful bills to meet our commitments to our national security and the American people.” FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and Commissioner Ajit Pai will testify before the Financial Services Subcommittee Tuesday (see 1505050040).
Momentum is increasing for the New Jersey congressional run of Josh Gottheimer, ex-senior FCC aide under Chairman Julius Genachowski. The Josh Gottheimer for Congress Exploratory Committee has set up a donation Web page to receive donations for the 2016 primary and general election cycles, and registered as the principal campaign committee with the Federal Election Commission March 11, citing Gottheimer’s focus on the House seat in New Jersey’s 5th district as a Democratic candidate. The committee filed a Q1 report April 15, revealing $218,656 in contributions. Expenditures were reported at just over $18,000, leaving the cash on hand at still more than $200,000. Gottheimer, at the FCC from 2010 to 2012, currently works for Microsoft as a strategist and is the chairman of JerseyOn, a nonprofit he helped found dedicated to connecting low-income individuals to the Internet. He was a speechwriter for President Bill Clinton and has worked on campaign efforts for Hillary Clinton and John Kerry. Genachowski, now managing director of the Carlyle Group, has made at least one donation of $500 to Gottheimer’s campaign, directed at the primary election. Patti Solis Doyle, former adviser to the 2008 Obama campaign and Hillary Clinton aide, has donated more than $5,000 to the Gottheimer campaign. Rep. Scott Garrett, R-N.J., holds the seat that Gottheimer is eyeing.
Senate Aging Committee ranking member Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., praised tech companies that sell “versions of connected home systems that can help keep seniors secure in their homes,” in her opening statement for a hearing Wednesday. That hearing focused on how technology can help in the lives of older people. One recurring topic was telehealth. “Technology has also been critical to the growth of telehealth and particularly helpful for seniors who, by using telehealth services, can have ... their health monitored from the comfort of their homes rather than the doctor’s office,” McCaskill said. Department of Veterans Affairs Acting Chief Consultant for Telehealth Services Maureen McCarthy testified on telehealth’s importance. In FY 2014, the “VA provided care to more than 717,000 patients (12.6 percent of our enrolled Veterans) through telehealth modalities,” she said in written testimony. “This amounted to over 2,123,000 telehealth episodes of care. Forty-five percent (45 percent) of these Veterans lived in rural areas and may otherwise have had limited access to VA health care services.” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., pressed witnesses on data security for the different devices and the need for encryption, pointing to a recent Anthem data breach. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., worried about how slower broadband speeds may hurt rural areas' ability to receive telehealth services. "Technology helps seniors communicate with loved ones, prolong their independence and maximize their quality of life -- from medical alert buttons on GreatCall cellphones to video conferencing to online education opportunities," CEA President Gary Shapiro, who didn't testify, said in a statement. "And smartphones and tablets put a world of information and connectivity at our fingertips, regardless of age or accessibility needs. Matched with smart home technologies and the Internet of Things, these devices now give us control over our environments -- locking doors, setting the thermostat, turning lights on and off -- without having to move around our homes."
The Center for Democracy & Technology was one of more than 25 companies, associations and civil society groups urging Congress to “swiftly” pass the USA Freedom Act. In Wednesday's letter to House and Senate leadership and the Judiciary and Intelligence committees' chairs, the groups said the legislation “does not comprehensively address surveillance concerns,” and “calls for future action once the USA Freedom Act is passed,” a CDT news release said. “It’s time for Congress to act on this legislation and end bulk collection of phone call records,” CDT Senior Counsel Harley Geiger said. “We need reform of the PATRIOT Act, not a rubber stamp extension of it and the misuses to which is has been put.” The CDT-led letter, signed by the Computer & Communications Industry Association, the Internet Association, the Internet Infrastructure Coalition, Mozilla, New America’s Open Technology Institute, Reform Government Surveillance, TechFreedom and others, comes less than one month before USA Patriot Act Section 215 is to expire. The House is expected to vote on the legislation next week after returning from a recess.
The House Armed Services Committee “is aware that the Department of Defense has been examining ways to better utilize the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) in the future,” it said in its committee report, released Wednesday and dated Tuesday, for the National Defense Reauthorization Act for FY 2016. It pointed to “the significant effort that the Department of Defense has made to improve its responsiveness to changes in the technological and regulatory environment.” The committee expects DOD to release an Electromagnetic Spectrum Roadmap and Action Plan “in the coming months, which would implement the goals and objectives of the EMS Strategy, and address everything from systems acquisitions to operations to spectrum management policy,” the report said. It expressed interest in seeing the results, “including how it will leverage the government-industry-academia partnership of the National Spectrum Consortium to bring together stakeholders, and the S&T [science and technology] Roadmap, which is developing a technology roadmap for ensuring a spectrally efficient and dynamic system in the future.” The committee report, hundreds of pages long, also said the commander of the Navy’s 7th fleet “is testing a broadband system that provides cellular-based, fourth generation long-term evolution (4G LTE) and broadband satellite communications to Navy ships,” which “could potentially improve the communications capabilities of naval platforms and promote information sharing and real-time collaboration in an emergency situation.” It urged the Navy to continue these efforts.