What's on the agenda for policymakers.
Agenda
FCC You Soon
The new Democratic majority in the House is wasting no time in preparing its oversight efforts. “We’re getting ready to send a letter over to the [Federal Communications Commission] letting them know we intend to have a lot more oversight hearings and we want to start getting them on their schedule early,” said Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA). He predicted an FCC oversight hearing is “not going to be too much later” than January, if not then. He plans to meet with incoming House Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) next week to game out the subcommittee agenda. Rep.
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Crypto Wars 2.0 has gone global. For five years, advocates for strong encryption have been locked in a debate with U.S. law enforcement officials over their demands that companies build encryption backdoors into their products. Yet both here and abroad, in countries like the U.K., France, and Australia, the focus has primarily been on whether it is feasible to build a secure backdoor. But what about the potential human costs of an encryption backdoor? |
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In recent years, and especially within the last few months, a “perfect storm” of developments are producing new tensions and new debates in the field of antitrust that to date have failed to produce anything approaching a consensus about the best path forward for this crucial policy sector. We will explore salient antitrust policy issues that will be front-and-center as we head into the next year. |
8:30 – 9:00: Registration and Continental Breakfast
9:00 – 9:15: Welcome Remarks and Introduction
- Lawrence J. Spiwak – President, The Phoenix Center
9:15 – 10:00: Developing Effective Mechanisms to Repurpose Spectrum from Low- to High-Value Uses
Panelists:
FCC's Top Lawyer Lays Out Net Neutrality Argument
Federal Communications Commission General Counsel Tom Johnson is set to rebut net neutrality advocates on Feb. 1 before the DC Circuit Court of Appeals — and he previewed the agency’s arguments during a Free State Foundation event Nov 9.
From Midterms to What?
The midterms just completed (except for recounts) were historically important, and in this critical time for our democracy, we must try to make some sense of where we are. The bad news is split government; the good news is split government.
Democrats to probe President Trump for targeting CNN, Washington Post
House Democrats plan to investigate whether President Donald Trump abused White House power by targeting — and trying to punish with "instruments of state power" — the Washington Post and CNN, said incoming-House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA). Rep Schiff said President Trump "was secretly meeting with the postmaster [general] in an effort to browbeat the postmaster [general] into raising postal rates on Amazon." "This appears to be an effort by the president to use the instruments of state power to punish Jeff Bezos and the Washington Post," Rep Schiff said.
Rural Kids Face an Internet 'Homework Gap.' The FCC Could Help
While several slices of spectrum can carry mobile internet, the most promising for rural school districts is one the Federal Communications Commission first reserved for educational television broadcasts in the 1960s. Over three decades, the government gave away more than 2,000 spectrum licenses to school districts and education nonprofits, primarily in urban areas. But the FCC effectively stopped issuing such licenses in 1995, because many license holders weren’t using their spectrum, and instead making money by leasing it to commercial telecommunication companies.
Silicon Valley to NTIA: Federal Privacy Law Should Trump States
The Internet Association (IA) and Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) submitted filings with the National Telecommunications & Information Administration (NTIA), which sought comment on a framework for protecting privacy. The organizations are in agreement that federal privacy legislation currently being contemplated by the White House and Congress should preempt state efforts to regulate privacy.
Agenda for the 116th Congress: Bring Back Consumer Protection and a Fair Marketplace
There is a new political reality in Washington. A Democratic Party takeover of the House of Representatives has created divided government again. We can only hope that the newly divided government can create the space for clear action to meet our challenges. Both parties are now truly responsible for governing, and although many of the moderates have retired or been defeated, the needs for protection-creating policymaking is felt equally in the most conservative and liberal districts. There’s also hope that the influx of new members brings a class of younger, tech-savvy legislators.