The Senate is “likely” to vote on the annual defense policy bill this week, which could include the Senate-passed U.S. Innovation and Competition Act of 2021, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said. In a Nov. 14 letter to lawmakers, Schumer said “there seems to be fairly broad” bipartisan support for adding USICA to the National Defense Authorization Act, which would allow a USICA negotiation with the House “to be completed alongside” the NDAA before the end of the year. The House plans to write its own version of USICA.
The Senate is likely to consider its own version of the House-passed FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (HR-4350) this week via a substitute version of the legislation from Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, D-R.I., and “may add” the chamber-passed U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (S-1260) to the measure, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told senators Sunday. The House passed HR-4350 in September (see 2109240067) with language from the 911 Supporting Accurate Views of Emergency Services Act (HR-2351) and Promoting U.S. Wireless Leadership Act (HR-3003). Senators are vying to attach some other tech and telecom amendments to the measure, including dueling amendments on Ligado’s L-band plans.
The Senate Commerce Committee plans a Wednesday confirmation hearing for FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and FTC nominee Alvaro Bedoya, the panel said Wednesday. The hearing will also include assistant commerce secretary-oceans and atmosphere nominee Jainey Kumar Bavishi. The announcement confirms expectations that Senate Commerce was splitting initial consideration of Rosenworcel from that of Democratic FCC nominee Gigi Sohn, who faces GOP opposition (see 2111100078). The committee is eyeing a Dec. 1 hearing for Sohn and NTIA administrator nominee Alan Davidson, lobbyists told us. Senate Commerce will vote Wednesday on National Institute of Standards and Technology director nominee Laurie Locascio, the Anti-Spoofing Penalties Modernization Act (S-594) and American Cybersecurity Literacy Act ([S-2699] and see 2107210064). Locascio emphasized during an October confirmation hearing NIST’s role in maintaining U.S. competitiveness in communications and other emerging technologies against China and other adversaries (see 2110200066). S-594, like a previous version filed in 2019 (see 1907170076), would double the minimum fine per instance of illegal spoofing to $20,000 and up the maximum penalty to $2 million from the current $1 million. It would also extend the statute of limitations for prosecuting spoofing violations to three years from two years. The markup begins at 10 a.m. in 253 Russell, with the confirmation hearing immediately afterward.
Qualcomm supports “targeted and rule-based export controls” as one of several long-term federal policy recommendations for curing the semiconductor shortage, it said in comments posted Wednesday in docket BIS-2021-0036. Submissions were due Nov. 8 in the Bureau of Industry and Security's request for information to help the secretaries of Commerce and Homeland Security prepare a report to the White House on the chip crunch by the one-year anniversary of President Joe Biden’s Feb. 24 executive order (see 2109230038).
President Joe Biden extended a national emergency that authorizes a ban on U.S. investments in Chinese military companies, the White House said Nov. 9. The ban was first issued during the Trump administration and later expanded by Biden in June by widening the scope of the restrictions to cover companies operating in China’s surveillance technology sector (see 2106030067). The White House said China continues to use civil-military fusion strategies to increase its military-industrial complex, which supports Chinese intelligence activities and threatens U.S. national security. The national emergency was extended to Nov. 12, 2022.
President Joe Biden extended a national emergency that authorizes certain sanctions against Iran, the White House said. U.S. relations with Iran “have not yet normalized,” the White House said Nov. 9, and the country’s government still poses a threat to U.S. national security. The emergency was extended for one year beyond Nov. 14.
Funding in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to continue a modified version of the emergency broadband benefit program is being hailed as a game changer by advocacy groups for including language allowing the FCC to provide grants for outreach efforts (see 2111080067). Under the EBB program, the FCC wasn't allowed to use funds for this purpose (see 2102260058).
The Commerce Department should tread carefully when imposing new export controls, foreign investment restrictions and limits on standards collaboration, which may jeopardize the U.S.’s position in global information and communications technology supply chains, U.S. companies and trade groups told the agency this month. Some of those regulatory restrictions are already having chilling effects on U.S. competitiveness, they said, as foreign firms and countries can quickly fill voids in overseas markets and leadership positions in global standards bodies.
The FCC Wireline Bureau paused phasedown of Lifeline voice-only support until Dec. 1, 2022, said an order Friday (see 2111050051). Staff waived the increase of minimum service standards for mobile broadband until then, as expected (see 2111030038). The bureau didn't address the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates’ petition for reconsideration and instead acted on its own motion.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking comment by Dec. 6 on Chinese government policies that influence international standards for emerging technologies, NIST said in Thursday's Federal Register in docket 211026-0219. The agency will use the comments to determine whether it can “mitigate any undue influence” by China and “bolster United States public and private sector participation in international standards-setting bodies” for a range of new technologies, including AI and blockchain. China's embassy didn't reply to our request for a response.