House Judiciary Committee: More time needed for Internet domain transition

More time is needed for the US government to hand over its oversight role of the Internet domain name process, most panelists at a House Judiciary Committee hearing said on May 13th. Rep Darrell Issa (R-CA) noted language was inserted into the Commerce Department's 2016 budget that would bar the agency from appropriating funds for the transition. "In other words, until the end of the fiscal year 2016 this transition would not be allowed to go forward," he said. The House Energy and Commerce Committee is also debating legislation that would put off a transition until the Government Accountability Office can review the move's implications. The appropriations language was added to the department's 2015 budget as well. When that happened, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, housed in the Commerce Department, said it would adhere to the ban, but would continue to monitor discussions and participate in meetings about the transition with other stakeholders.

While many of the eight panelists said more time would be needed, at least one hinted at concerns about Congress's appropriations move. "Possibly the earliest is next spring of 2016. It might well likely leak into much later in 2016," said Steve DelBianco, the executive director of NetChoice. "And yet Commerce needs to have enough leeway to spend the resources necessary to answer your questions, and to make sure the stress tests have been applied and to make sure their conditions have been met."