Matsui Seeks Cooperation on Net Neutrality, USF Overhaul
Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif., hopes to bring certainty to industry next year on long-brewing telecom issues like net neutrality and Universal Service Fund reform, the House Communications Subcommittee member said in an interview last week. Providing subsidies to make broadband more affordable for low-income Americans and addressing fears about lack of privacy online are two important ways to motivate more people to embrace fast Internet service, she said.
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Most telecom issues don’t divide the political parties, “so we can probably find areas of agreement” between Democrats and Republicans next year, Matsui said. That political dynamic could raise telecom’s profile in a split Congress, she said. Broadband should be important for many members because it’s “the base of many things,” including revamping healthcare, education and energy, Matsui said.
The 111th Congress “really didn’t get started” on many of the big telecom issues until late in the session because healthcare and climate change took priority, Matsui said. Her own bill to update the USF Lifeline program (HR-3646) didn’t make it out of the committee. “I certainly would have hoped we'd made more progress,” but “we didn’t have a lot of time,” Matsui said. “The groundwork’s laid now for us to move forward in the next Congress."
Matsui called herself “a pragmatic proponent” of net neutrality. “I believe it’s something we're going to have to address,” but it’s important to find compromise rather than indulge in unproductive fights, she said. “It’s necessary to move forward on this.” Matsui has said she supports the FCC’s plan to move ahead on a net neutrality rulemaking at its Dec. 21 meeting, and she plans to monitor the proceeding closely. Matsui said she doesn’t think the agency should wait for Congress, and she would back a Title I approach if that’s where there is consensus. Matsui was involved in net neutrality negotiations in September run by outgoing Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif. They were very close to a compromise when it fell apart, she said. Industry supported the deal, but “I think it became more political at the end,” she said.
Matsui “can work with” Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Ill., if he becomes ranking member of the Communications Subcommittee, she said. “But I can certainly work with almost anybody.” Some have raised concerns that Rush is not a strong enough supporter of net neutrality, but Matsui seemed unworried. “As long as people don’t have a hard line in the sand, I think we can move forward,” she said.
Matsui “will reintroduce” her USF Lifeline bill next year, she said. No changes are planned since the current version has broad support, she said. The measure, which aims to make broadband more affordable for low-income people, “has to be part and parcel” of broader universal service reform legislation, she said. Comprehensive USF legislation should address both rural and urban areas, she said. Matsui said she thinks USF reform will still be a priority next year -- even without one of its most vocal proponents, House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Rick Boucher, D-Va., who lost his re-election bid -- because broadband is so critical to the country’s prosperity.
Rep. Lee Terry, R-Neb., hasn’t asked Matsui to cosponsor his comprehensive USF bill, which he plans to reintroduce early next year without Boucher, Matsui said. Terry has said he’s looking for a new Democratic cosponsor (CD Nov 23 p5). “Certainly there’s no one like Chairman Boucher, but I know if [Terry and I] can work together, it’s something I might consider,” she said.
Congress could also spur broadband adoption by addressing privacy, Matsui said. “The thing that stops people the most from really embracing all this technology is the privacy concerns, and yet we have to keep it flexible enough so that we don’t stop innovation.” She’s still reviewing separate bills by Boucher and Rush. Matsui acknowledged she hasn’t focused closely on privacy before, “but I'm looking at it even more now because I think that’s going to be something that could slow things down unless” Congress can write laws to make people feel more comfortable online.
Matsui is also working on smart grid legislation that would encourage broadband providers and electric utilities to partner on smart grid projects nationwide, a spokeswoman said afterward. The projects would allow consumers to monitor their real-time home energy usage on their PC and wireless devices.