House Passes Popular Broadband Mapping Bill

The mapping bill seeks $300 million over three years in grants for local governments, public interest groups and industry to assess broadband deployment and devise plans for increasing service. The FCC would be required to do broadband surveys, available to the public, examining types of technology deployed, prices and transmission speeds. The commission also would be required to collect data on broadband service “tiers,” identifying the number of subscribers for each 5-digit ZIP code and the speeds advertised by broadband providers. The survey would have to compare the information it collects with 75 communities in at least 25 countries for each tier of service.

“We had many hand-holding scenes on this legislation,” said Subcommittee ranking member Fred Upton of Michigan. The final bill reflected changes sought by industry and other interest groups, Upton said, adding that the goal of the bill is to get a “better idea of the broadband situation, not to open the door to more regulation.” Upton said the bill is modeled on a public-private partnership in Kentucky widely endorsed by many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. That program collected information to identify areas with little or no service, but it didn’t require companies to part with data that could harm their business plans -- a concern that has come up during debate on the House measure and in deliberations on a similar bill in the Senate (S-1492).

S-1492 could come up for a vote in the next couple of weeks on the Senate floor, and the measure is expected to have broad support, Hill sources said. The two bills are similar. The differences could be worked out in conference.

Industry was pleased with the broadband mapping bill, which had bipartisan support and included changes sought prior to markup in the House Commerce Committee (CD Oct31 p1). The TIA and USTelecom praised the bill in statements after its passage, expressing hope that it would increase broadband deployment. Public Knowledge also welcomed the bill. Broadband providers were particularly pleased that the House bill included provisions requiring the NTIA and the FCC to protect proprietary information, with the commission obligated to enact regulations protecting confidentiality of consumer data. Any disclosure of information from companies would require “prior express authorization” of consumers. But there would be no restriction on a consumer’s ability to search the broadband map by individual street address.

The bill would give the government the option of collecting map information using a range of tools for finding subscribers, including using 9-digit ZIP codes, census tract information or “functional equivalent,” according to the bill. Companies would be asked to provide the information, and the NTIA would try to get available data from the commission before asking commercial and public providers to supply information for the map. The NTIA would be required to protect proprietary information, particularly details on business or marketing plans.

The House also took up HR-3403, which had no opposition, and passage was expected after our deadline. Markey said the E-911 bill would allow the commission to extend liability protection to all providers of 911 service, including VoIP providers. “The FCC lacks the authority to provide this, so Congress must act,” Markey said. The bill also requires that all voice providers be allowed access to the 911 infrastructure, so they can provide accurate E-911 services “to fulfill their duties,” Markey said. It can be more complicated for VoIP providers than others to provide E-911 services, Upton said, but “it is vital” that they get the resources needed. “I hope all consumers, regardless of their phone service or location, will be better served” with the legislation, Upton said.