| House Committee Passes
Internet Gambling Funding Bill |
10/31. The House
Financial Services Committee amended and approved HR 556,
the Unlawful Internet Gambling Funding Prohibition Act,
by vote of 34 to 18. The bill would attempt to stem illegal
Internet gambling by preventing the use of credit cards, wire
transfers, and other financial instruments in connection with
illegal Internet gambling.
Rep. Mike Oxley
(R-OH), the Chairman of the Committee, offered an amendment in
the nature of a substitute that was approved on a voice vote.
It provides that "No person engaged in the business of
betting or wagering may knowingly accept, in connection with
the participation of another person in unlawful Internet
gambling (1) credit ... (including credit extended through the
use of a credit card); (2) an electronic funds transfer ... ;
(3) any check ...; or (4) the proceeds of any other form of
financial transaction as the Secretary may prescribe by
regulation ..."
The bill further provides the "district courts of the
United States shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction
to prevent and restrain violations". It allows both the
U.S. and states to bring actions under the act for injunctive
relief. However, the bill states that "No provision of
this section shall be construed as authorizing an injunction
against an interactive computer service ... unless such
interactive computer service is acting in concert or
participation with a person who violates this section ..."
Then, the bill provides that "any appropriate Federal
banking agency" may issue an order directed to "any
insured depository institution" to stop extending credit,
electronic funds transfers, or money transmitting service, and
to stop paying, transferring, or collecting any check, draft
or other instrument, if it has "actual knowledge" of
a violation of this act.
Rep. Oxley offered this explanation: "This bill makes
nothing legal now that isn't currently so, nor does it make
illegal anything that law enforcement does not currently
consider unlawful. What it does is make it a crime to accept
payment by credit card, check or electronic funds transfer for
unlawful Internet gambling transactions, and requires a bank,
credit card company or EFT entity to stop payment to a
particular named site when ordered by a court to do so."
He continued that "No dramatic shift in business
practices is mandated or authorized under this legislation.
This bill does not require that banks or credit card companies
stop processing all Internet gambling transactions. Rather,
institutions must only make a good faith effort to discontinue
processing transactions to or from specific unlawful Internet
gambling businesses that have been singled out in court
orders."
Rep. Michael Castle
(R-DE) spoke in opposition to the bill. He stated that it
would place too much burden on financial institutions, and not
enough on the Justice Department. Rep. Barney Frank
(D-MA) opposed the bill on other grounds. He stated that the
federal government should not be regulating gambling.
"People often spend their money unwisely," said Rep.
Frank. "I don't think we should set ourselves up as the
household budget manager." Rep. Maxine Waters
(D-CA) and Rep. Mel Watt
(D-NC) also argued against passage of the bill.
Rep. Jim Leach
(R-IA), the sponsor of the bill, stated that "Internet
gambling is the single easiest way to launder money". He
also made the point that "this is the single biggest
privacy vote this committee will ever take". He said the
online gamblers give their credit card information to illegal
businesses, and do not know what use those entities will make
of this information.
Rep. John LaFalce
(D-NY) also spoke in favor of the bill. He said that this bill
"falls short of providing a definitive prohibition, it
offers a number of improvements to current law and may be the
strongest bill we can achieve at this time." |
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| USTR Announces Out of Cycle
Special 301 Reviews |
10/31. U.S. Trade
Representative (USTR) Robert Zoellick announced the
outcome of "out-of-cycle" Special 301 reviews for
the adequacy and effectiveness of intellectual property
protection in Malaysia, Costa Rica, and Lithuania. Malaysia
was moved from the Priority Watch List to the Watch List.
Costa Rica was maintained on Priority Watch List. Lithuania
was maintained on the Watch List. See, USTR
release.
Section 301 is the statutory means by which the United States
asserts its international trade rights, including its rights
under WTO Agreements. In particular, under the "Special
301" provisions of the Trade Act of 1974, the USTR
identifies trading partners that deny adequate and effective
protection of intellectual property or deny fair and equitable
market access to U.S. artists and industries that rely upon
intellectual property protection. Placement on the Watch List
or Priority Watch List indicates that a country does not
provide an adequate level of protection.
Zoellick stated that "Pirating U.S. intellectual property
is theft. It cheats Americans and hurts those countries that
need strong IP protection to promote investment, innovation,
and technology in the marketplace." He added that
"We are gratified that some countries have made progress
and are showing a commitment to sustained enforcement. For
example, in the last year pirated products are harder to find
in Malaysia, and the thieves are moving out. Strong
legislation regarding optical disks has been passed and is
being implemented largely on schedule. The Malaysian
Government campaign to stamp out piracy has been steady, and
they have given us no reason to believe that the progress will
not continue."
See also, International
Intellectual Property Alliance release [PDF]. |
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| Rep. Boehlert Discusses
Computer Security |
10/31. Rep.
Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Chairman of the House Science Committee,
moderated a "webchat" with representatives of
companies that address computer security. The participants
were Paul Kurtz (National Security Council), John Conlin (Vericept),
Peter Tippett (TruSecure Corp.), Bob Brennan (Connected
Corp.), Randy Sandone (Argus Systems Group), Buky Carmeli (SpearHead
Security Technologies), and Joe Magee (Top Layer Networks,
Inc.).
Rep. Boehlert stated that "What the recent anthrax
attacks and the attacks of September 11 have in common is that
they turn our own basic systems of daily connections against
us -- in those cases, our postal system and our transportation
system. Turning our computer systems against us would seem to
be a logical extension of that mode of operation. And, as we
noted last week, we are more and more reliant on those
computer networks." |
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| Rep. Armey Says House Will
Insist on Two Year Extension of Net Tax Ban |
10/31. House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX) released
a statement
regarding legislation to extend the Internet tax moratorium.
The House passed HR 1552,
a bill that provides a two year extension, on October 10,
2001. The Senate has not acted. The moratorium expired on
October 21.
Rep. Armey stated that "The Senate should immediately
take up and pass the two-year extension passed by the
House." He added that the House bill already marks a
significant compromise. We will not consider anything less
than the clean, two-year extension we passed."
"If the Senate continues to refuse to take up and pass
the House bill as-is, the conclusion is obvious," said
Rep. Armey. "The Senate wants to tax the Internet." |
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| Bill Limits Collection of
Personal Data by Government Web Sites |
10/31. The House passed the conference report on HR 2590,
the appropriations bill for the Treasury Department, U.S.
Postal Service, the Executive Office of the President, and
certain Independent Agencies for FY 2002. Section 638 of the
bill contains a limitation on the use of web sites by
government agencies to collect personally identifying
information. The vote was 339 to 85.
Section 638 provides that "None of the funds made
available in this or any other Act may be used by any Federal
agency (1) to collect, review, or create any aggregate list,
derived from any means, that includes the collection of any
personally identifiable information relating to an
individual's access to or use of any Federal Government
Internet site of the agency; or (2) to enter into any
agreement with a third party (including another government
agency) to collect, review, or obtain any aggregate list,
derived from any means, that includes the collection of any
personally identifiable information relating to an
individual's access to or use of any nongovernmental Internet
site."
However, this section also provides exceptions for "any
voluntary submission of personally identifiable
information", "any action taken for law enforcement,
regulatory, or supervisory purposes, in accordance with
applicable law" and "any ... system security action
taken by the operator of an Internet site and is necessarily
incident to the rendition of the Internet site services or to
the protection of the rights or property of the provider of
the Internet site." |
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| People and Appointments |
10/31. Thomas Pickard, the Deputy Director of the
FBI, will retire at the end of November. Pickard, 50, has been
overseeing the investigations into the "Pentbom"
terrorist attacks of September 11 and the anthrax mailings.
See, FBI
release.
10/31. Richard Smith, CTO of the Privacy Foundation,
will leave, effective November 1, to become an independent
security consultant.
10/29. David Cohen joined the Washington DC law firm of
Wilmer Cutler & Pickering
as counsel in the firm's Litigation Section. He was previously
Acting Deputy General Counsel and Associate Deputy General
Counsel with the Department of
the Treasury. He will specialize in complex civil and
white collar criminal defense, including representing
financial institutions in enforcement matters, money
laundering issues, and internal and congressional
investigations. See, release
[PDF].
10/31. Peter Bonfield, Chief Executive of BT Group,
will stand down at the end of January 2002. See, BT
release.
10/31. The Board of Directors of Qwest Communications extended
the employment contract of Chairman and CEO Joseph Nacchio
through December 31, 2005. See, Qwest
release. |
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| FCC Common Carrier Bureau
Announces Appointments |
10/31. Eric Einhorn was named Deputy Division Chief
of the Accounting Policy Division of the FCC's Common Carrier Bureau.
Before joining the FCC in 1999, he was an associate at the law
firms of Swidler Berlin
and Cadwalader Wickersham &
Taft. See, FCC
release.
10/31. John Stanley was named Assistant Division Chief
of the Policy and Program Planning Division of the FCC's
Common Carrier Bureau. Before joining the FCC in 1999, he
worked at the law firm of Wiley,
Rein & Fielding. See, FCC
release.
10/31. Tamara Preiss was named Chief of the Competitive
Pricing Division of the FCC's Common Carrier Bureau. Before
joining the FCC in 1997, she worked for the law firm of Sidley & Austin. See, FCC
release.
10/31. Deena Shetler was named Deputy Chief of the
Competitive Pricing Division of the FCC's Common Carrier
Bureau. Most recently, she was a Legal Advisor to former
Commissioner Gloria Tristani on common carrier matters. Before
joining the FCC in 1996, she was an antitrust and commercial
litigation associate at the law firm of Howrey & Simon. See, FCC
release.
10/31. Jack Zinman was named Deputy Chief of the
Competitive Pricing Division of the FCC's Common Carrier
Bureau. See, FCC
release. |
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| More News |
10/31. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Don Evans met with
Romanian Prime Minister Adrian Nastase. Afterwards Sec. Evans
released a statement
in which he said that "I fully support the new
partnership between Qualcomm, of San Diego, California, and
the Government of Romania for the standardization and
implementation of Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)
wireless technology in that country."
10/24. Assistant Secretary of Stated Anthony Wayne gave a speech
to the Global Business Forum in Washington DC titled "The
Administration's International Economic Policies." He
stated that "the President must have Trade Promotion
Authority."
10/30. Sen. Larry Craig
(R-ID) and others introduced S 1588,
a bill to provide a one year extension of the date for
compliance by certain covered entities with the administrative
simplification standards for electronic transactions and code
sets issued in accordance with the Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). Sen. Craig
stated in the Senate that this bill "includes language to
clearly differentiate between this provision and the privacy
provision of HIPAA. It was our intention all along that the
medical privacy regulations not be affected by our
legislation, and we believe this bill accomplishes that
goal."
10/30. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (FedCir) issued opinions in Special
Devices v. OEA (Nos. 01-1053 and 01-1078) and Special Devices
v. OEA (No. 01-1201). In the former opinion, issued on October
26, the Appeals Court held that OEA's U.S.
Patent 5,404,263 is invalid under the on-sale bar
of 35
U.S.C. § 102(b). In the later opinion, issued on October
30, the Appeals Court dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
appeals from the District Court's holding that the underlying
patent infringement suit was exceptional, thus justifying an
award of attorney fees. These are both appeals from the U.S.
District Court for the Central District of California, Judge
Dickran Tevrizian presiding.
10/31. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (10thCir) issued its opinion
in Craig
Neon Inc. v. Trent McKenzie, a case involving
the Oklahoma Uniform Trade Secrets Act. |
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| Thursday, Nov 1 |
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will hold
first session of a two day workshop to discuss the development
of cryptographic key management guidance for federal
government applications. Location: Administration Building
(Bldg. 101), Lecture Room A, National Institute of Standards
and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD. See, notice
in Federal Register, June 27, 2001, Vol. 66, No. 124, at Page
34155.
9:30 AM. The U.S.
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will
hear oral argument in MCI WorldCom v. FCC, No. 00-1406.
Judges Edwards, Williams and Randolph will preside. Location:
333 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington DC.
10:00 AM. The House
Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Telecommunications
and the Internet will hold a legislative hearing on HR
2417, the Dot Kids Domain Name Act of 2001. The
witnesses will be Nancy Victory (NTIA
chief), David Hernand, (CEO of Neu.Net) Page Howe (P/CEO of
KidsDomain), Bruce Taylor (President and Chief Counsel of the
National Law Center for Children and Families), Donna Hughes
(former COPA Commissioner). Location: Room 2123, Rayburn
Building.
10:00 AM. The Senate
Judiciary Committee has scheduled an executive business
meeting. The agenda includes consideration one nominee for the
Court of Appeals, Edith Clement (5th Circuit), and five
nominees for the U.S. District Court, Christina Armijo (New
Mexico), Karon Bowdre (Northern District of Alabama), Stephen
Friot (Western District of Oklahoma), Larry Hicks (Nevada),
and Terry Wooten (South Carolina). Location: Room 226, Dirksen
Building.
11:00 AM. Rep. Bob
Goodlatte (R-VA) will hold a press conference to announce
the introduction of legislation "to combat the increasing
problems of illegal gambling and update gambling statutes to
keep pace with new technologies". Location: Room 2226,
Rayburn Building.
12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The ABA Antitrust Section Intellectual
Property Committee will host a brown bag lunch on intellectual
property issues. The speakers will be Alden Abbott (FTC's
Bureau of Competition), Susan Creighton (FTC's Bureau of
Competition), Hewitt Pate (DOJ's Antitrust Division), and
Howard Morse (ABA). RSVP to Rachelle Brown at goldenbr@dbr.com. Location:
Drinker Biddle & Reath,
1500 K Street, NW, Suite 1100, Washington DC.
2:00 - 4:00 PM. The U.S. International Telecommunication
Advisory Committee (ITAC) will hold a meeting regarding
preparations for the 2002 World Telecommunication Development
Conference (WTDC). See, notice
in Federal Register. Location: State Department, Room 1408.
2:00 PM. The Senate
Committee on Environment and Public Works will hold a
hearings to examine infrastructure security, chemical site
security, and economic recovery. Location: Room 406, Dirksen
Building.
2:30 PM. The Senate
Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on the nomination
of Arden Bement to be Director of the National Institute of Standards
and Technology (NIST). Sen.
Ron Wyden (D-OR) will preside. Location: Room 253, Russell
Building.
4:00 PM. The Cato Institute
will host a forum on the book Rebels
on the Air: An Alternative History of Radio in America.
The speaker will be Jesse Walker (author) and Tom Hazlett
(American Enterprise Institute). Reception to follow. See, Cato notice.
Location: The Cato Institute, 1000 Massachusetts Avenue, NW,
Washington DC. |
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| Friday, Nov 2 |
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will hold
second session of a two day workshop to discuss the
development of cryptographic key management guidance for
federal government applications. Location: Administration
Building (Bldg. 101), Lecture Room A, National Institute of
Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD. See, notice
in Federal Register.
9:30 AM. The U.S.
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will
hear oral argument in COMSAT v. FCC, No. 00-1458.
Judges Edwards, Williams and Randolph will preside. Location:
333 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington DC.
9:30 AM. The Center for
Digital Democracy will hold a press conference titled
"The Future of the Internet". For more information,
contact Jeffrey Chester at 202 232-2234. Location: First
Amendment Room, National Press Club.
12:15 PM. The Federal
Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Wireless
Telecommunications Practice Committee will host a luncheon
titled "Secondary Markets: FCC Initiatives on Promoting
the Lease of Spectrum." The speaker will be William Kunze,
Chief of the Commercial Wireless Division. The price to attend
is $15. RSVP to Wendy Parish
no later than Tuesday, October 30. Location: Sidley & Austin, 1501 K
Street, NW, Rm 6-E, Washington DC. |
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| Monday, Nov 5 |
9:30 AM. The U.S.
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will
hear oral argument in Teledesic v. FCC, No. 00-1466.
Judges Edwards, Williams and Randolph will preside. Location:
333 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington DC.
10:00 AM. The FCC's
Technological Advisory Council will hold a meeting. See, notice
in Federal Register. Location: FCC, 445 12th St., SW., Room
TW-C305, Washington DC.
Status conference in USA v. Microsoft.
9:30 AM - 5:30 PM. Day one of a three day conference and
exhibition hosted by the NIST
and NISO titled "4th
annual Electronic Book Conference". See, Nov.
5 agenda. The price to attend is $400. See, registration
page. Location: Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW, Washington DC. |
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