Communications Daily

February 2, 1996, Friday

SECTION: Vol. 16, No. 23; Pg. 1

LENGTH: 1186 words

HEADLINE: Doubleheader -- Both Houses Vote;

TELECOM BILL SWEEPS THROUGH CONGRESS

BODY:

In remarkable telecom doubleheader, House and Senate Thurs. approved landmark

telecom legislation within hour of each other. House adopted conference report

by 414-16, while Senate vote was 91-5. Voting against bill were Sens. Feingold

(D-Cal.), Leahy (D-Vt.), McCain (R-Ariz.), Simon (D-Ill.), Wellstone (D-Wis.).

Senate was able to take up measure when farm bill stalled. Previously, President

Clinton has said he will sign bill.

As votes indicated, there was little opposition, in part because Republicans and

Democrats both had stake in measure. Republicans believe they finished off

process that Democrats maintain they started.

Most of issues debated on floor were familiar to participants, and few new

arguments were raised. However, in House discussion on rules under which bill

would be debated, Rep. Schroeder (D-Colo.) said her staff found that House

Judiciary Committee Chmn. Hyde (R-Ill.) had inserted into 6-page technical

corrections document language that would have prohibited discussion of

abortion-related issues over Internet. Schroeder said House shouldn't waive

normal rule that conference language should lay over for 3 days so that other

potential problems could be solved. House approved waiver 337-80. Later, in

general debate on bill, Hyde and Rep. Lowey (D-N.Y.) engaged in scripted

colloquy in which Hyde agreed that his amendment wasn't inserted to abridge

First Amendment rights to discuss abortion. Schroeder said problem wasn't

solved, asking whether telemedicine applications dealing with abortion could

still be illegal. Schroeder was one of 5 conferees -- all Judiciary Democrats --

who didn't sign conference report. Others were Reps. Conyers (D-Mich.), Bryant

(D-Tex.), Scott (D-Va.), Jackson-Lee (D-Tex.). Schroeder said she didn't receive

conference report until early Thurs. morning, and she was member of conference.

Spectrum debate came at end of House action, with Reps. Watt (D-N.C.) and Frank

(D-Mass.) questioning whether it was right to allow broadcasters to receive new

spectrum without charge. House Commerce Committee Chmn. Bliley (R-Va.) and

Telecom Subcommittee Chmn. Fields (R-Tex.) said there was no giveaway in bill.

Debate followed similar lines in Senate. Sen. Dorgan (D-N.D.) said he had

opposed bill when it was on Senate floor but favored it now because product of

conference committee was better than either House or Senate version. Dorgan said

he still objected to raising limits on TV ownership and said he had introduced

separate legislation that would return limits to 25% of national audience, which

were raised to 35% in telecom bill.

Even as telecom bill was being approved on both legislative floors, lawmakers

were looking ahead to other opportunities to revisit issues that didn't make it

into measure. Rep. Oxley (R-O.) said he hoped to use his Commerce Subcommittee

to deal with foreign ownership issue that was dropped from conference report.

Fields said his agenda for later in year would include public broadcasting

reform and reform of FCC, which would give him chance to revisit several issues

that also were left out, including pricing flexibility. Fields told reporters

that it was his responsibility to "push the envelope" to try for most

deregulatory bill possible. He said he also intended to deal with spectrum

issues this year and said fate of bill wasn't jeopardized when he attempted to

obtain changes in meetings earlier in week. This bill, he said, "was not the

final opportunity to reform telecommunications policy."

Senate began debate after FCC assured senators that it wouldn't act on advanced

TV spectrum. Bliley, Speaker Gingrich (R-Ga.), Commerce Committee Chmn. Pressler

and Republican Whip Lott (R-Miss.) said in letter to FCC Chmn. Hundt they shared

determination of Senate Majority Leader Dole (R-Kan.) "to protect America's

taxpayers, and to satisfactorily resolve this issue." They asked FCC not to

issue "any initial licenses or construction permits" for advanced TV services

until legislation is completed.

All 5 commissioners responded in letter Thurs.: "We recognize the serious policy

questions involved and that you intend to hold hearings and enact legislation

dealing with this issue as part of an overhaul of policies governing the

electromagnetic spectrum. Any award of initial licenses or construction permits

for Advanced Television Services will only be made in compliance with the

express intent of Congress and only pursuant to additional legislation it may

adopt resolving this issue."

Dole told us that he "read the letter pretty carefully" and it appeared to be

"an accurate reflection of what we wanted." However, House Budget Committee

Chmn. Kasich (R-O.) told us that spectrum issue still was alive. Without being

specific, Kasich said that "spectrum savings will be part of any budget

agreement."

FCC Chmn. Hundt told us: "This is the most historic day in communications law in

61 years . . . This is the communications version of the Berlin Wall coming

down. We call it a good day for kids, consumers and communications companies. I

am totally confident that the FCC staff and the 5 commissioners will work well

and hard and successfully to do the job Congress has given us." Hundt said that

because of budget restrictions, "it's going to be very hard and like Scarlett

O'Hara we're going to think about that tomorrow." In prepared statement, Hundt

said bill "creates the promise of good, high-paying jobs for millions of

Americans and the promise of competition and its benefits of lower prices,

higher quality and better service to us all."

Admitted "Trekkie" Comr. Chong said that "up to now, the Commission has been in

a 'Star Trek' era saddled with 'Gunsmoke' regulation. I've been calling for

passage of this bill for more than a year. It's a good compromise -- everybody

gave a little and we got a lot." Comr. Ness told us: "I have been an optimist on

the side of this legislation . . . Its passage is a great day for this country.

We're ready to do our part to bring about competition throughout the

communications universe."

In news conferen ce following passage, Bliley confirmed there would be

"technical corrections" to legislation later this year. He said some of those

items could include complaint levels on cable pricing, Internet issues and other

matters that Fields had raised. Some of those issues may be handled in Judiciary

Committee. Rep. Markey (D-Mass.) said he had 2 goals for coming year. First is

to see that public broadcasting "is fully funded" and 2nd is to make certain

that FCC has sufficient budget to carry out "remarkable set of responsibilities

we have given it."

Also late Thurs., House leadership was planning meeting to determine who would

be chmn. of Telecom Subcommittee following retirement of Fields. Oxley and Rep.

Tauzin (R-La.) had staked claim to job. Midafternoon meeting with those 2,

Speaker Gingrich and others in leadership was postponed, although other sessions

were in works past our deadline. Fields said he has told Oxley and Tauzin that

issue is "distraction" and that this wasn't time to raise it.

LOAD-DATE: February 2, 1996