The Senate voted 52-46 Thursday to invoke cloture on U.S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia Circuit judge nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, setting up a final Monday confirmation vote. Brown Jackson would replace now-Attorney General Merrick Garland if confirmed. The Judiciary Committee advanced Brown Jackson 13-9 last month (see 2105170072). Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also set a Monday vote on Democratic FTC nominee Lina Khan (see 2106100069).
NAB is one of four groups to adopt a Diversity in Government Relations Coalition industry pledge, blogged NAB Vice President-Government Relations Charlynn Stanberry. Others include Signal Group. NAB is “addressing the gaps in diverse representation of our staff and our leadership teams that influence local, state, federal and international policy” and “exploring the unintended consequences that result from policy and advocacy” that lack diverse representation. For our Special Report on diversity, see here.
House Communications Subcommittee member Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Texas, put the onus on congressional Republicans Wednesday to come “to the table and sit down with us” to reach a compromise on an infrastructure spending package, as talks continued after the collapse of negotiations between the White House and a Senate GOP group led by Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia (see 2106080060). Veasey told a USTelecom virtual event that he expects the House Commerce Committee to mark up its part of infrastructure legislation soon so it can “get onto the floor for a vote,” after which it will be up to “my colleagues … in the other chamber to make sure this important legislation moves to” President Joe Biden’s desk. Veasey touted his backing of panel Democrats’ Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s America Act infrastructure bill. HR-1848 includes $80 billion for broadband and $15 billion for next-generation 911 (see 2103110060). Whether that measure or another infrastructure bill passes depends on whether lawmakers are “willing … to come together and pass legislation that will help everyone be connected,” Veasey said. “Rural constituents will be very much … helped by this, as well as the lower income, largely urban residents that I represent.” Veasey touted his Enhanced Emergency Broadband Act, which would provide additional emergency broadband benefit program money (see 2103040049). “Create a path forward,” he said, “to make this program both permanent and sustainable.”
Senate Antitrust Subcommittee Chairwoman Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., cited the power major tech companies have over the U.S. economy Wednesday as a reason to enact her Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Reform Act to “update our antitrust laws.” S-225 would in part create an FTC division to do market studies and merger retrospectives. Competition law violations would be subject to DOJ and FTC fines of up to 15% of a company’s annual revenue, instead of capped at $100 million (see 2102040053). Facebook, Google and other major tech companies have long “said ‘just trust us,’” but “experience has shown that we can't rely on these companies to protect our personal data, or prevent the spread of toxic disinformation, or even to compete fairly in the marketplace,” Klobuchar told a virtual FCBA event. “The only thing we can trust is that” these companies “will act in their own interest. A few giant companies in the tech area act as gatekeepers and dominate markets, exclude their rivals and gobble up other companies. This is not by chance or coincidence, this is a strategy.” If the sector were “more competitive, we would have companies competing to offer consumers new bells and whistles to protect privacy, to increase transparency or to prevent the spread of toxic disinformation,” she said. Big Tech’s “grip on the market suppresses” potential “would-be competitors.” Lawmakers need to address the situation by “rebooting the antitrust movement in the,” Klobuchar said. “We don't get rid of the companies, but we shed” the monopoly “that surrounds them. And that may mean divesting assets, that may mean putting conditions that are actually enforceable." The Internet Association didn't comment right away.
The White House and Senate Republicans confirmed Tuesday they have ended talks on infrastructure legislation following a call between President Joe Biden and Senate Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia (see 2106070063). Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York told reporters Democrats are now more actively “pursuing” using the budget reconciliation process to enact infrastructure legislation (see 2103160001) even as he continues to hope for a bipartisan deal. Biden told Capito "the latest offer from her group did not, in his view, meet the essential needs of our country," said White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki in a statement. "He offered his gratitude to her for her efforts and good faith conversations, but expressed his disappointment that, while he was willing to reduce his plan by more than $1 trillion, the Republican group had increased their proposed new investments by only $150 billion." The White House agreed with the GOP on $65 billion for broadband (see 2105270072). Biden "is committed to moving his economic legislation through Congress this summer, and is pursuing multiple paths to get this done," including a pending offer from Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and four other senators. The Sinema-Portman proposal was expected to total around $900 billion and to include broadband money, aides said. "While I appreciate President Biden’s willingness to devote so much time and effort to these negotiations, he ultimately chose not to accept the very robust and targeted infrastructure package, and instead, end our discussions," Capito said in a statement. "I am disappointed by his decision," but "this does not mean bipartisanship isn’t feasible." Capito and other Republicans “seem to be running into a brick wall,” but the bipartisan proposal “might be closer to what the president needs,” Schumer said. “That’s good, but that’s not going to be the only answer. We all know as a caucus we will not be able to do all the things that the country needs in a bipartisan way. And so, at the same time, we are pursuing the pursuit of reconciliation, and that is going on at the same time.” Some parts of the infrastructure package could move in a bipartisan deal while others move via reconciliation, he said.
Congress and the FCC should enact “reforms to the streaming media industry” regarding “increasingly explicit programming on streaming platforms that children can access due to inadequate parental controls,” said Parents Television and Media Council Tuesday. “We are urging the FCC to follow through on the promises that Congress made to families when it unanimously passed the Child Safe Viewing Act,” said PTC President Tim Winter. And “update the Family Movie Act of 2005 to enable content filtering technology on streaming media platforms.” PTC invited large streaming companies to a virtual town hall Tuesday, but none accepted, the release said. A PTC report said Netflix has the best parental controls of the streaming services, and Hulu the worst. The companies didn't comment by deadline.
The White House signaled Monday time is running short for talks between President Joe Biden and Senate Republicans on infrastructure spending. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Biden plans to talk with Senate Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., before he leaves Wednesday for a weeklong state visit in Europe. “The time is not unlimited here” for talks to continue with Republicans, but many paths remain available for an infrastructure compromise, Psaki told reporters. Biden “made clear” when he talked to Capito Friday (see 2106040073) that a new GOP counterproposal, which increased the infrastructure spending offer by $50 billion, “didn’t meet his own bar. But we’re open to where the discussion goes.” Biden “has come down by about $1 trillion” from the plan he first proposed in March (see 2103310064), while Republicans have “come up by a small percentage,” Psaki said: The White House agrees with the GOP on $65 billion for broadband (see 2105270072), but it's still "an important part of the negotiation." The White House eyes other potential infrastructure measures as a compromise, including a coming bipartisan plan pursued by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine; Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.; Rob Portman, R-Ohio; and Mitt Romney, R-Utah, Psaki said.
GAO filed a restricted report titled “DOD Should Explore Options for Meeting Near and Long-term Narrowband Needs.” GAO said Monday it doesn’t make public reports that it finds “contain either classified information or controlled unclassified information by the Executive Branch audited agencies.” DOD’s spectrum priorities draw attention (see 2104190062).
NTIA is making nearly $1 billion available through the tribal broadband connectivity program, said Vice President Kamala Harris, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Interior Secretary Deb Haaland during a White House event. It's part of FY 2021 appropriations (see 2012210055). Tribal governments, tribal colleges and universities, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, tribal organizations and Alaska Native corporations are eligible for funding for broadband deployment, said a notice of funding opportunity. Funds can also be used to support digital inclusion, workforce development, telehealth and distance learning. Applications are due Sept. 1. The funds are a "down payment on the work we must do," Harris said, and "we must keep going until we connect every American household." Acting Administrator Evelyn Remaley said NTIA will "leverage its deep experience with funding broadband programs to ensure that we make significant progress in eliminating the digital divide on Tribal land.” NTIA has webinars June 16 and 17. Thursday's announcement was "a meaningful step forward," said Free Press Policy Manager Dana Floberg. BroadLand co-Chair Mignon Clyburn said "every penny spent on broadband is a down payment on a better future, and we support the White House efforts."
President Joe Biden proposed to set a minimum 15% corporate tax rate to help pay for an infrastructure spending package as an informal counteroffer to Senate Republicans, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday. Biden made the counterproposal during a Wednesday meeting (see 2106020078) with Senate Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, who's leading GOP negotiators. Biden also asked Republicans to back $1 trillion in new spending. Republicans propose $65 billion for broadband (see 2105270072), a figure the White House is offering to back. Capito’s office confirmed she plans to meet with Biden again Friday. Capito “is encouraged that negotiations have continued,” a spokesperson emailed. Vice President Kamala Harris said Thursday she and Biden “are determined to get to 100%” broadband coverage via an infrastructure package. She helped announce NTIA’s plan to make nearly $1 billion available for tribal broadband (see 2106030065). Lawmakers “worked together” to fund broadband programs via the FY 2021 appropriations and COVID-19 aid packages (see 2012210055) and now “Congress must work together again to bring high-speed Internet to every American,” she said. Other officials emphasized they want talks with Republicans on infrastructure to be completed by when the Senate returns Monday (see 2106010068).