President Bush submitted his first proposal to create a new DHS in June of 2002. The House passed an earlier version of the bill, HR 5005, on July 26, 2002 by a vote of 295-132. The Democratic controlled Senate did not act quickly on the bill, as did the Republican controlled House. However, the Senate's objections were not related to the information technology and cyber security related provisions of the House bill.

Since the November 5 general election, the legislation has been revised. However, most of the key technology related provisions from HR 5005 remain in HR 5710. Nevertheless, some of these provisions have slightly different wordings, and new section or subsection numbers. Rep. Dick Armey (R-TX), the sponsor of the bill, stated on the floor on November 13 that "this bill is essentially the same bill that was passed by the House of Representatives last July".

FOIA Exemption. HR 5710 contains the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemption for certain critical infrastructure information voluntarily shared with the federal government. It has been moved from Section 724 (of HR 5005) to Section 214 (in HR 5710).

Cyber Security Entities Transferred. Section 201(g) of HR 5710 (which was Section 202 of HR 5005) transfers several cyber security related entities to the new DHS. It provides that "there shall be transferred to the Secretary the functions, personnel, assets, and obligations of the following:
(1) The National Infrastructure Protection Center of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (other than the Computer Investigations and Operations Section), including the functions of the Attorney General relating thereto.
(2) The National Communications System of the Department of Defense, including the functions of the Secretary of Defense relating thereto.
(3) The Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office of the Department of Commerce, including the functions of the Secretary of Commerce relating thereto.
(4) The Energy Security and Assurance Program of the Department of Energy, including the National Infrastructure Simulation and Analysis Center and the functions of the Secretary of Energy relating thereto.
(5) The Federal Computer Incident Response Center of the General Services Administration, including the functions of the Administrator of General Services relating thereto."

Computer Security Division. The bill leaves the CSD at the NIST. President Bush's original proposal provided for the transfer of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) to the new DHS. However, last summer, the House Science Committee, and then, the House Select Committee on Homeland Security, amended the bill to keep the CSD at NIST. Technophile Members of Congress had opposed the transfer, as did many technology groups, including the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA).

Privacy Officer. Section 222 of HR 5710 (which is similar, but not identical, to Section 205 of HR 5005) creates a privacy officer for the new department. HR 5710 provides that "The Secretary shall appoint a senior official in the Department to assume primary responsibility for privacy policy, including (1) assuring that the use of technologies sustain, and do not erode, privacy protections relating to the use, collection, and disclosure of personal information; (2) assuring that personal information contained in Privacy Act systems of records is handled in full compliance with fair information practices as set out in the Privacy Act of 1974; (3) evaluating legislative and regulatory proposals involving collection, use, and disclosure of personal information by the Federal Government; (4) conducting a privacy impact assessment of proposed rules of the Department or that of the Department on the privacy of personal information, including the type of personal information collected and the number of people affected; and (5) preparing a report to Congress on an annual basis on activities of the Department that affect privacy, including complaints of privacy violations, implementation of the Privacy Act of 1974, internal controls, and other matters."

Under Secretary for Science and Technology. Section 301 of the HR 5005 created the position of  Under Secretary of Science and Technology, and established its responsibilities. This is now in Sections of 301 and 302 of HR 5710, with revised language.

Cyber Security Enhancement Act. HR 5710 also includes, at Section 225, the Cyber Security Enhancement Act. This section is related to HR 3482, sponsored by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX). It passed the House as a stand alone bill on July 15, 2002. This section contains provisions relating to sentencing guidelines for computer hacking crimes, authority of Internet service providers (ISPs) and others to voluntarily disclosure the content of communications to law enforcement and other government entities, and other topics. See also, story titled "House Passes Cyber Security Enhancement Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 470, July 16, 2002.

This is the proceeding titled "In the matter of Applications for Consent to the Transfer of Control of Licenses from Comcast Corporation and AT&T Corp., Transferors, to AT&T Comcast Corporation, Transferee". It is MB Docket No. 02-70. The FCC announced, but did not release, this order earlier this week.

Some of the broadband Internet related parts of the Order are summarized below.

Unaffiliated ISP Access. FCC states that it will not mandate nondiscriminatory access to unaffiliated ISPs. The Order notes that "Each Applicant operates a proprietary broadband Internet access service. In addition, Comcast has entered into an agreement with United Online, Inc (“United Online”) pursuant to which United Online markets and sells a high-speed ISP service to residential customers using Comcast’s cable modem platform. AT&T has entered into similar agreements with EarthLink, Net1Plus, Internet Central and Galaxy Internet Services. EarthLink began offering such service over AT&T’s systems in greater Seattle in July 2002, and in New England in October 2002. In connection with the TWE Restructuring Agreement, the Applicants will enter into a “three-year non-exclusive agreement” with AOL Time Warner under which AOL high-speed broadband service would be made available on AT&T Comcast cable systems (the “AOL ISP Agreement”)."

The Order also notes that "Comcast, AT&T, and AT&T Comcast have entered into an agreement with Microsoft, which provides that, for a specified period of time, if AT&T Comcast offers a high-speed Internet service agreement to any third party on any of its cable systems, AT&T Comcast will be obligated to offer an Internet service agreement on non-discriminatory terms with respect to the same cable systems to Microsoft’s ISP, The Microsoft Network (“MSN”)."

The Order states that "Several commenters are concerned about the ability of unaffiliated ISPs to access the merged firm’s facilities, a concern the Commission has addressed in prior cable mergers, and is addressing in our Cable Modem NPRM. These commenters urge us to deny the merger, or, at a minimum, to condition the merger on a requirement that the merged firm offer unaffiliated ISPs nondiscriminatory access to their cable modem platform."

However, the FCC rejected these commenters' request. It wrote in the Order that "We have never mandated, as a merger condition or in any other context, that any cable operator provide access to its systems to unaffiliated ISPs. ... Having evaluated, as we have in prior license transfer proceedings, the Applicants' pre-merger and post-merger incentive and ability to deny unaffiliated ISPs access to their cable systems, we conclude that the merger is not likely to reduce unaffiliated ISP access to the Applicants' cable systems. Therefore we will not condition the merger on such access or deny the merger on these grounds."

Internet Content. The FCC also declined to imposed any conditions regarding Internet content. The Order states that "Some commenters assert that the merger would present harms affecting Internet content. Specifically, they allege that: (1) the merged firm will have the incentive and ability to favor affiliated broadband content and discriminate against unaffiliated content; (2) the merged firm will limit access to its affiliated content, which would reduce the amount of content available to subscribers of competing broadband access services and harm competing providers of such services; and (3) the merged firm will have monopsony power in the market for the purchase of broadband content. Commenters claim that these concerns are particularly acute with regard to the delivery of video programming over the Internet, an offering that would compete not only with the merged firm's affiliated broadband content, but also with its core multichannel video programming business. We conclude that the merger is not likely to result in harms to the quantity, quality, or diversity of Internet content, and we decline to impose conditions or reject the merger on the basis of alleged harms to Internet content."

DSL Relief. The FCC also declined to provide regulatory relief to the incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs). The Order notes that "Several commenters assert that because the merged firm will enjoy an unprecedented share of the broadband Internet access market, the merger should be denied or conditioned on establishment of regulatory parity for incumbent LECs, either by relaxing or removing regulations applicable to incumbent LECs or by imposing requirements on the merged firm to make its regulatory status more similar to that of incumbent LECs."

The FCC concluded in the Order that "We decline to relax or remove regulations applicable to incumbent LECs in the context of this proceeding, to condition our approval of the merger on actions that we may or may not take in the context of other proceedings, or to impose new requirements on the merged firm in order to give the merged firm a regulatory status of an incumbent LEC. We do not agree with incumbent LECs that the merged entity’s size poses a risk of harm to DSL service, and we will not reject the merger on these grounds."

FCC Antitrust Merger Reviews? FCC officials frequently state that the FCC does not conduct antitrust merger reviews. Rather, they state that the FCC conducts reviews of license transfer requests; and in so doing, it applies a public interest standard.

For example, the Order asserts that "The DOJ and the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) review mergers pursuant to section 7 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits mergers that are likely to substantially lessen competition in any line of commerce. The Commission, on the other hand, is charged with determining whether the transfer of licenses serves the broader public interest."

But then, the Order continues that its public interest analysis includes competition analysis. And the Order, throughout, engages in competition analysis. The words "competition" or "antitrust" appear in the Order over 80 times.

In a related event, Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy gave speech regarding spectrum management at a November 14 Cato Institute event. She was asked about public safety concerns and the FCC's decision in the EchoStar DirecTV merger, which the FCC declined to approve last month. She responded, in part, that "that was really antitrust law".

Commissioner Abernathy gave a review of two FCC rulemaking proceedings, and federal court reviews of those proceedings, that pertain to privacy: Customer Proprietary Network Information (CPNI) and Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA). CALEA is a statute that was enacted in 1994 to enable law enforcement authorities to maintain their existing wiretap capabilities in new telecommunications devices, such as cell phones.

Abernathy (at right) reviewed the opinion of the U.S. Court of Appeals (10thCir) in US West v. FCC, which overturned an earlier FCC CPNI rule which contained an opt in requirement. The Court held that carriers have a First Amendment  interest in using their customer information to communicate with their customers. See, 182 F.3d 1224 (10th Cir. 1999), cert. denied, 120 S. Ct. 2215 (Jun. 5, 2000).

Baker took issue with a Safire piece in the New York Times. William Safire wrote an sensationalistic op ed on November 14 titled "You Are a Suspect". In it he wrote that "Every purchase you make with a credit card, every magazine subscription you buy and medical prescription you fill, every Web site you visit and e-mail you send or receive, every academic grade you receive, every bank deposit you make, every trip you book and every event you attend" will go into one big government database run by "disgraced admiral" John Poindexter.

Baker said that law enforcement authorities could have easily found 11 of the 19 hijackers of September 11 if they have made use of available commercial databases. He added that if companies can use this data to market telephone service plans, the government ought to be able to use to to protect the country from terrorist attacks.

He said that "big government needs big information to fight terrorism" and that "we need to be able to get to data in an efficient way". He added that we currently have a "failed system for protecting privacy". He says there is too much focus on getting permission ahead of time to conduct searches. Instead, the focus should be more on auditing the users of data.

James Harper got philosophical about the nature of privacy. He stated that "to generalize about privacy is typically wrong". First, it is subjective. He cited religious and political beliefs as examples. Some people proselytize and campaign, while others are intensely private about their beliefs. He added that "very often, in addition, many privacy debates carry a lot of other debates within them. In Congress we deal with privacy, but it might be security you are talking about, it might be spam. It might be any of half a dozen separate information policy issues."

He offered a definition of privacy: "Privacy is a subjective condition that exists when two factors are in place; first, when people have legal power to control information about themselves, and second, exercise that power consistent with their values and interests."

He stated, with respect to the subjective nature of privacy, that "Law and regulation aimed at privacy is very likely only to be a fair approximation of what Congress or regulators thought privacy should be at the time. And so, it is sort of inherently flawed when you try to get to privacy through direct law or regulation."

He continued that "The second factor is exercise of legal power consistent with interest and values. And, I think that is really the crux of the privacy problem. It is getting people to understand how information moves in the information economy, and then act according to their interests in light of that knowledge. The Internet did change how information moves." He suggested that the "online privacy problem, the telecommunications privacy problem, probably will last about a generation, because teenagers today have fantastic knowledge, and innate understanding of how information moves today in the online world."

Harper then applied the "legal power" component of his definition of privacy. He said that "legal power implicates government. What does the government do to erode power over personal information."

He then said that the second part of his definition, regarding exercise of that power, "implicates markets". "How do companies learn about people's privacy interests? How do they deliver them? How do individuals themselves learn what their privacy interests are?"

Harper elaborated that "The two rule makings that Commissioner Abernathy referred to fall into these two separate categories. Essentially, CALEA goes to the question of what legal power telecommunications companies will have to offer their users, and in those contexts, I encourage the FCC, and probably Congress needs it more, to be as protective of consumers' power over information as they possibly can. This will deliver privacy in the context of CALEA. In an area like CPNI, the question is markets. And, I think, agencies and Congress are out of their league when it comes to figuring out privacy. We have seen examples in several different areas. The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, Title 5 of the Gramm Leach Bliley Act, HIPAA ... Each of them go to a version of privacy that maybe have something to do with what people think is important to them. But, most likely, what you have been delivered with those laws are higher prices, less services available to you in the market place, and not much privacy at all." See also, prepared text of Harper's remarks.

Judge Williams related that he now get lots of privacy notices in the mail, and that he immediately throws them away.

The panelists were asked about how to get away from the Supreme Court's opinion in Smith v. Maryland, 442 U.S. 735 (1979), which held, in the context of pen registers, that individuals have no expectation of privacy regarding information that they convey or entrust to third parties.

Berman suggested the more productive route was to pass legislation protecting privacy, rather than to rely on the courts. He said that when the public speaks up on a privacy issue, the Congress will pass legislation.

Baker said that reconsidering Smith v. Maryland is an "appalling" idea. He said the government needs that information.

Abernathy was asked whether there is a 5th Amendment takings clause issue when the FCC restricts a company's right to use its customer data.

"Yikes!," responded Abernathy. "We didn't have to address that". She offered the following reasoned legal analysis: "It's dicey."

The FCC announced also that "The relief granted today applies only to Auction No. 35 winning bidders of licenses for C and F block Personal Communications Services spectrum that had previously been licensed to NextWave Personal Communications Inc., NextWave Power Partners Inc., or Urban Comm-North Carolina, Inc." The FCC further stated that "it will waive default rules for bidders that elect the relief granted today. The Order also imposes no restrictions on electing bidders’ ability to acquire such spectrum in future auctions. Eligible winning bidders must make an election not later than 45 days from the release of today’s Order, which also includes procedures for requesting dismissal and refunds and Department of Justice approval."

FCC Chairman Michael Powell released a statement [PDF]. He wrote that "The Auction 35 road endured by all the parties and the public has been long and difficult. While bidders were forewarned of the risks attending the Auction, and the Commission has pursued settlement and afforded bidders partial, interim relief, barriers to licensing remain. As the months have passed and the economic difficulties worsened, it has become increasingly clear that allowing the eligible Auction 35 winners to exit the auction is the right course. I recently outlined six components of a successful telecommunications recovery. Reduction of debt was among its highest priorities. Although the Commission cannot cure the capital crunch, it can remove the cloud of uncertainty that has followed the Auction 35 winners. Approximately three weeks ago, the record in this docket closed and today we take that step."

Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy wrote in a statement [PDF] that "I enthusiastically support today's Order. I have long believed that the delays occasioned by extensive litigation, when combined with significant changes in the marketplace over the last several years, lead us to today's result. In light of the ongoing uncertainty regarding our ability to award these licenses and current economic conditions, I do not believe the public interest is served by tying up deposits and, perhaps worse, subjecting carriers to the risk of having to produce billions of dollars on short notice if the Commission prevails in the U.S. Supreme Court."

Commissioner Kevin Martin wrote in his dissenting statement [PDF] that "Today the Commission finally takes action to relieve the winning bidders in Auction No. 35 of their obligations. The history of this Auction and the commensurate litigation has been long and tortured. This spring the Commission refunded a substantial portion of the monies on deposit to the winning bidders, but left their obligations in place. In light of the on-going economic burden of these obligations and the continuing litigation, the Commission should not keep these obligations in place any longer. Indeed, I have long thought that the Commission could and should provide an additional stimulus to the industry and the economy as a whole by relaxing these obligations."

However, he dissented from "the decision's requirement that carriers withdraw from the entire auction to be relieved of any of their obligations. I do not see a need to require carriers to make a single election for all of the markets awarded at auction as a condition to withdrawing from any one market."

The Cellular Telecommunication and Internet Association (CTIA) stated in a release that "We appreciate the Commission's leadership in freeing up $16 billion in wireless assets that had been held hostage for too long. This is a straightforward solution - allowing those resources to be put to work creating jobs in the telecomm sector and increasing service levels for wireless consumers. It is also a fair solution, releasing bidders from a transaction that never occurred. The Commission's action will help bring long-overdue certainty and stability to the wireless marketplace."

On October 10, Secretary of Commerce Donald Evans wrote a letter to the FCC requesting that the FCC grant relief to the winning bidders in Auction 35.

This is Order and Order on Reconsideration (FCC 02-311), adopted November 14, 2002. This is WT Docket No. 02-276. For more information, contact Bill Huber at 202 418-0660 or whuber@fcc.gov.

Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) explained the bill on the Senate floor. He said that "the idea behind the ``dot kids´´ domain is very simple -- to create a space on the web that can be a cyber sanctuary for kids. A place where parents and kids can be confident that every site on the ``dot-kids´´ domain contains materials that are suitable for children under the age of thirteen."

Sen. Dorgan added that "The bill calls for the creation of a sub-domain under our Nation's country code ``.us´´ called ``.kids.us´´ which will only host content that is age appropriate for children. A number of safeguards were also put in this bill. ``Dot-kids-dot-us´´ will be monitored for content and safety; and should objectionable material appear, it will be taken down immediately."

See also, story titled "House Passes Dot Kids Domain Bill", TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 436, May 22, 2002.

9:00 AM - 3:30 PM. EntrepreneurPR will host an event titled "Small Business Intellectual Property Conference". The scheduled speakers include Sharon Marsh (Administrator for Trademark Policy and Procedure, USPTO) and Michael See (Small Business Administration). The price to attend is $125. The notice states that there are "no fees for members of the media or government staff". Location: Room 311, Cannon House Office Building.

TIME? Day two of a two day conference hosted by Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA) titled "Homeland Security Critical Issues Forum". Its subject matter will include network security and reliability, physical and cyber security, network vulnerabilities, and how other critical infrastructures may impact CMRS networks. The event is closed to the public. At 12:30 PM, Nancy Wong, Deputy Director, National Outreach and Awareness, Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office (CIAO), will speak. A CTIA release states that "Only lunch sessions are open to the media. Credentials required for admittance." For more information, contact Kimberly Kuo at 202 736-3202 or Kkuo@ctia.org. Location: Omni Shoreham Hotel, Empire Ball Room, 2500 Calvert Street, NW.

CANCELLED: TO BE DECIDED WITHOUT ORAL ARGUMENT. 9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in Aerco Broadcast Corp v. FCC, No. 01-1466. Judges Sentelle, Henderson and Silberman will preside. Location: Courtroom 20, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

11:00 AM. The CTIA and the White House Office of the Federal Environmental Executive will hold a press conference regarding the collection of used electronics for recycling. Interior Secretary Gale Norton, District of Columbia Mayor Anthony Williams, and others, will speak. For more information, contact Travis Larson at 202 736-3207 tlarson@ctia.org. Location: The Washington Monument, National Mall.

8:00 - 11:00 AM. There will be an event titled "Homeland Security Financing Briefing". The scheduled speakers include Mark Holman (Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security), Bill Hoagland (Staff Director of the Senate Budget Committee), and Scott Lilly (Minority Staff Director of the House Appropriations Committee). It is organized by Equity International. For more information, contact Bill Loiry or Carrie Brown at 202 756 2244. Location: Holeman Lounge, National Press Club, 529 14th St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the President's Critical Infrastructure Protection Board regarding the document titled "National Strategy to Secure Cyberspace", which was released on September 18. For more information, contact Tommy Cabe at 202 456-5420. See, notice in the Federal Register.

12:15 PM. The FCBA's Common Carrier Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The speakers will be the FCC Commissioners' wireline competition advisors. Location: Willkie Farr & Gallagher, 1875 K Street, 2nd Floor, NY Conference Room.

5:30 - 6:45 PM. Richard Posner, Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals (7thCir), will give a lecture titled "The Political Economy of Intellectual Property Law" at an AEI-Brookings Joint Center event. A wine and cheese reception will follow at 6:45 PM. See, online registration page. Location: AEI, Wohlstetter Conference Center, 12th Floor, 1150 17th Street, NW.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The FCBA will host a CLE seminar titled "The FCC’s Triennial Review of Unbundled Network Elements: How Significant are UNE-P and other UNEs to Local Competition?" Registrations and cancellations due by 5:00 PM on November 15. Location: Dow Lohnes & Albertson, Suite 800, 1200 New Hampshire Avenue, NW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the FCC regarding its request to refresh its record regarding customer proprietary network information (CPNI) implications when a carrier goes out of business, sells all or part of its customer base, or seeks bankruptcy protection. This is the FCC's Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in CC Docket Nos. 96-115, 96-149 and 00-257. See, notice in the Federal Register.

Deadline to submit applications for planning and construction grants to the NTIA for public television facilities under the Public Telecommunications Facilities Program (PTFP). See, notice in the Federal Register.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The House Science Committee will meet to mark up several bills that are not related to information technology. It will then proceed with a hearing titled "The 2001 Presidential Awardees for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching: Views from the Blackboard". Webcast. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON. The FCBA's Transactional Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch on the Sarbannes Oxley Act. RSVP to Donna Farber at donna.farber@lw.com. Location: Latham & Watkins, Lincoln Square Bldg., Suite 1000, 555 Eleventh St., NW.

12:30 PM. The FCBA will host a luncheon. The speaker will be NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. The price is $45 for members, $35 for government & law student members, and $55 for non-members. Registrations and cancellations are due by 5:00 PM on November 15. For more information, call 202 293-4000. Location: JW Marriott Hotel, 1331 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.

12:15 PM. The FCBA's Global Telecommunications Development Committee and International Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The topic will be "Financing Telecom Projects in Developing Countries: The Role of OPIC, Export Import Bank, and the International Finance Corporation (IFC)". The speakers will be Roger Cohen (Export Import Bank), Brian Christaldi (OPIC), and Jean-Francois Dupuy (IFC). For more information, contact Janet Hernandez at 202 736-1814. RSVP to Julie Ilett at jilett@coudert.com or 202 736-1819. Location: Coudert Brothers, 1627 Eye St., NW, 11th floor.

POSTPONED. 12:15 PM. The FCBA's Cable Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The speakers will be John Wong and Michael Lance (Division Chief and Deputy Division Chief of the FCC Media Bureau's Engineering Division). For more information call Lisa Cordell at 202 939-7934. RSVP to Wendy Parish at wendy @fcba.org. Location: NCTA, 1724 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

3:00 PM. Uma Suthersanen will speak on "Copyright and Human Rights in Europe". She is a Senior Research Fellow at the Queen Mary Intellectual Property Research Institute in London. For more information, contact Robert Brauneis at rbraun@main.nlc.gwu.edu or 202 994-6138. Location: Faculty Conference Center, 5th Floor of Burns, George Washington University Law School, 2000 H Street, NW.

6:30 - 10:00 PM. The FCBA will host a charity auction. For more information, contact Heidi Kurtz (FCBA) at 202 293-4000. Admission is free, and it is open to the public. The event features a live auction, silent auctions, raffles, hours d’oeuvres and a cash bar. Location: Capitol Hilton Hotel, 16th and K Streets, NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the The FCC in response to its requests for comments regarding whether to revise, clarify or adopt any additional rules in order to more effectively carry out Congress's directives in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA). See, notice in the Federal Register, October 8, 2002, Vol. 67, No. 195, at Pages 62667 - 62681.

Deadline to submit a request to participate in roundtable meetings hosted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) regarding small business views on foreign patent challenges. The USPTO is seeking comments, and holding roundtable meetings, pursuant to a recommendation contained in a General Accounting Office (GAO) report [PDF] titled "Federal Action Needed to Help Small Businesses Address Foreign Patent Challenges". This report was released on August 22, 2002. See also, story titled "GAO Reports Foreign Patent Challenges Facing Small Businesses" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 497, August 23, 2002. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 28, 2002, Vol. 67, No.208, at Pages 65786 - 65787.

Senate Democrats re-elected Sen. Tom Daschle (D-SD) Senate Majority Leader, soon to be Minority Leader. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) was elected Assistant Democratic Leader (Whip). Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) was elected Conference Secretary.

Senate Republicans re-elected Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS) Senate minority leader, soon to be majority leader. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was elected Assistant Republican Leader (Whip). Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) was elected Republican Conference Chairman. Sen. Kay Hutchison (R-TX) was elected Republican Conference Vice Chairman. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) was elected Policy Committee Chairman. Sen. George Allen (R-VA) was elected Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman.

House Republicans elected Rep. Denny Hastert (R-IL) (at right) to be Speaker of the House. Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX) was elected Majority Leader, to replace the retiring Rep. Dick Armey (R-TX). Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO) was elected Assistant Republican Leader (Whip). Rep. Deborah Pryce (D-OH) was elected Conference Chairman. Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA) was elected Conference Vice Chairman. Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) was elected Conference Secretary. Rep. Chris Cox (R-CA) was elected Policy Chairman. Rep. Thomas Reynolds (R-NY) was elected National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman.

11/15. Michael Capellas was named Chairman and CEO of WorldCom. He was previously Ch/CEO of Compaq Computer, and then briefly President of Hewlett Packard after it merged with Compaq. See, WorldCom release.

11/14. Rich Baer was named General Counsel and EVP in charge of Qwest Communications' legal affairs department. See, Qwest release.

11/14. President Bush nominated Daniel Pearson to be a Member of the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) for the term expiring June 16, 2011. See, White House release.

11/13. The Senate confirmed Carol Chien-Hua Lam to be U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California for the term of four years.

11/15. Former IBM CEO Lou Gerstner's book titled Who Says Elephants Can't Dance? Inside IBM's Historic Turnaround has climbed to No. 2 on Amazon's sales ranking.