3/4. Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the new Chairman of the House Commerce Committee, and other Republican members of the Committee, held a press conference to announce the new organization of the Committee, and to discuss their agenda and priorities.

Rep. Barton (at left) is the new Chairman, replacing Rep. Billy Tauzin (R-LA). Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX) is the new Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality. Rep. Barton previously held this post.

All of the other Subcommittee Chairman remain the same. Thus, Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) remains Chairman of Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet; Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL) remains Chairman of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection; Rep. Jim Greenwood (R-PA) remains Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations; Rep. Michael Bilirakis (R-FL) remains Chairman of the Subcommittee on Health; and, Rep. Paul Gillmor (R-OH) remains Chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials.

Rep. Barton named Rep. Chip Pickering (R-MS) to be the new Vice Chairman of the full Committee. Previously, Rep. Richard Burr (R-NC) had been Vice Chairman.

Rep. Barton named Rep. John Shadegg (R-AZ) Committee Whip. Rep. Barton stated that "I asked John to take that on because we are going to be moving some various legislative issues, and I think it will be helpful to know where the votes are before we go to markup."

Rep. Barton also stated that "we are working with the Subcommittee Chairmen to have a Subcommittee Whip that works with John."

Rep. Shadegg stated that "whips don't necessarily make friends", but in his new position, "this is largely an issue of communications."

Rep. Barton named Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) to the new position of Committee Coalition and Outreach Director. Rep. Barton stated that "John is very close to the office of the Speaker of the House, Rep. Hastert of Illinois".

Rep. Barton also announced that Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN) has been named a member of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.

Rep. Barton also named some new staff members, and introduced them at the press conference. Bud Albright is the new Committee Staff Director. He is currently VP for Federal Relations at Reliant Resources. He was previously Chief Oversight Counsel for the House Commerce Committee when Rep. Barton was the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

Rep. Barton named Larry Neal Deputy Staff Director for Communications. Neal is currently Associate Director of Communications at the U.S. Census Bureau. Before that he had been press secretary for former Sen. Phil Gramm (R-TX) for 20 years. He replaces Ken Johnson.

Rep. Barton also named Andy Black Deputy Staff Director for Policy. Black has worked in various positions for Rep. Barton for eleven years.

3/4. Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the new Chairman of the House Commerce Committee, and other Republican members of the Committee, held a press conference at which they discussed their priorities and agenda for the remainder of this Congress, and for the next.

Telecommunications and Internet. Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, discussed the agenda for the Subcommittee. He stated that he is "looking forward" to having HR 3717, "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2004", come up for a vote on the House floor "next week".

Rep. Upton (at right) stated that in the remainder of this Congress the Subcommittee will deal with extending the SHVA, junk faxes, and the transition to digital television.

He also said that the Committee will not conduct a rewrite of the Telecommunications Act in this Congress, but that it will hold hearings that will set the stage for rewriting the Act in the 109th Congress.

Rep. Chip Pickering (R-MS), who is a member of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, added that the agenda also includes universal service reform, and spectrum reform.

Rep. Barton was asked about media ownership. He stated only that he planned to meet with Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), the ranking Democrat on the Committee, later in the day to discuss the issue.

Rep. Barton was asked about spectrum fees. He stated that he has not yet studied the issue.

Rep. Barton also discussed the FCC's e-rate subsidy program. See, following story titled "Rep. Barton Plans to Examine E-Rate Subsidies".

Rep. Barton, Rep. Upton, and Rep. Pickering also discussed broad legislation to revise the Telecommunications Act of 1996. See, following story titled "House Commerce Committee Republicans Discuss Rewrite of Telecom Act".

Privacy. Rep. Barton stated that "I believe that the right to privacy is one of the fundamental rights of a democratic society. The right to be safe in your home and your property is a fundamental right. And in the modern internet, everybody giving out your social security for everything they sign up for, age, we have to go extra lengths to protect that right to privacy. And, I don't think that is odd at all. The fact the Congressman Markey and I are on that same side just shows that that is not a partisan issue. It is not a Republican or Democrat issue.

He continued, "Now, having said that, there are 57 members, I think, of this Committee that I chair, so to move privacy legislation, or any kind of bill for that matter, you have to have a consensus, and, you know, I am quoting my press release, but you learn a lot more, according to Sam Rayburn, listening than talking, so I am going to do a lot of listening on that. I think you will see an emphasis on the privacy side of the equation."

Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL) was present at the press conference, but did not comment on privacy. He is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection, which has jurisdiction over most privacy related issues. His approach differs from that of Rep. Barton.

In the last Congress, Rep. Stearns introduced HR 4678 (107th Congress), the "Consumer Privacy Protection Act of 2002". See, story titled "Rep. Stearns Introduces Information Privacy Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 428, May 9, 2002. In the current Congress, he is the sponsor of HR 1636, also titled the "Consumer Privacy Protection Act of 2003". Outgoing Chairman Rep. Billy Tauzin (R-LA) is a cosponsor of these bills. Rep. Barton is not.

3/4. Republican members of the House Commerce Committee discussed plans to rewrite the Telecommunications Act of 1996 at a press conference on March 4, 2004.

Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, said that the Committee will not conduct a rewrite of the Telecommunications Act in the 108th Congress, which ends later this year.

However, he said that there will be hearings this year. He added that the Subcommittee is "beginning to lay the framework for rewriting that in the next Congress".

Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the new Chairman of the full Committee, stated that "We have approximately 50 legislative days left in this Congress. I think it is safe to say that we are not going to rewrite the Telecommunications act this year".

He was asked what changes would be made in the next Congress. He responded, "I am not going answer a question like that". He elaborated that the Committee must hold hearings first.

Rep. Barton was asked about the Tauzin Dingell bill and broadband related legislation. He stated that the bill has not become law, "but the concept that it expresses is still very relevant".

He also said that "I am a cosponsor of the Tauzin Dingell approach. You know that that passed the House, and has never quite gotten out of the Senate. Senators have different views. That is another issue that we will come back and take take a look at, ..." [The remainder of his sentence might have been as follows: "... see if there is not other ways to skin the cat, perhaps."].

Rep. Barton continued that "Most studies that I have seen say that we have one of the worst broadband penetration impacts in the industrialized world. We are behind Japan, we are behind Korea, we are behind western Europe. We need to move forward. Chip Pickering is going to be involved in that."

Rep. Chip Pickering (R-MS) also spoke with reporters after the press conference. He spoke about FCC's regulatory proceedings pertaining to broadband, voice over internet protocol (VOIP), spectrum reform, and revising the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

Rep. Pickering (at right) also discussed the March 2, 2004 opinion [62 pages in PDF] of the U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) in USTA v. FCC. See, story titled "Appeals Court Overturns Key Provisions of FCC Triennial Review Order", also published in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 848, March 3, 2003.

He stated that "The FCC regulatory process has addressed many of the issues on broadband. There is some uncertainty with the Court decision yesterday as to the network elements and the UNE-P. Will the FCC appeal that? Will cert be granted? Will they have to adopt rules within 60 days if that doesn't occur. So that is going to be an issue that will play out at the courts and at the FCC. The pricing of the network elements will be soon coming TELRIC."

Rep. Pickering also stated that "The framework of the 96 Act allows for an evolutionary policy, but voice over the internet, if that emerges as quickly as it appears and is predicted, then the support system, the current support system of universal service, will have to be reformed to change -- the new technology, the new applications, and the new competition. So, to the degree that that is a part of the 96 Act, it will be very important."

He discussed spectrum issues. He said, "Spectrum reform. How do you achieve the digital transition? How do you relocate companies and public safety users, possible government use of spectrum, and with wireless quickly replacing old traditional services, that could be part of a major telecom reform. Now, all of these touch on the 96 Act because it changed the core elements of it. You don't necessarily have to change the core principles or objectives or structure of the 96 Act. But it does need to be changed to reflect the competitive and technology forces that have come into play since 1996."

He also discussed VOIP and Universal service. "I think that you do want to see some fair contribution to universal service. And, I think that there is fairly broad consensus on that principle. But, what you do want to do is clarify that the states cannot regulate, that there is a clear preemption of a state's right to regulate voice over internet."

3/4. Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the new Chairman of the House Commerce Committee, discussed the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) e-rate subsidy program at a press conference on March 4, 2004.

Rep. Barton stated that "We believe that we should have access to the internet for our libraries and our schools. How we fund that is an issue that honorable people can have a discussion on. The way the Clinton administration, and Vice President Gore especially, implemented that part of the Telecommunications Act, at the time was very controversial, and think that even today might be considered to be controversial. So, I think that is something that Chairman Upton will be looking at."

Rep. Barton also stated that "you are going to see us doing some budgetary hearings". Rep. Jim Greenwood (R-PA), the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, elaborated that his Subcommittee will examine possible "spending reductions" in various programs, including the e-rate.

Rep. Greenwood's Subcommittee has already been examining waste, fraud and abuse in the e-rate program. See, stories titled "Reps. Tauzin & Greenwood Request GAO Report on E-Rate Waste, Fraud & Abuse As Prelude to Oversight Hearing" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 791, December 3, 2003; House Commerce Committee Requests Information from IBM in E-Rate Fraud Investigation" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 698, July 15, 2003; "FCC Inspector General Reports on E-Rate Fraud" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 449, June 12, 2002; "Reps. Tauzin & Greenwood Write Powell Re Waste Fraud & Abuse In E-Rate Program" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 624, March 17, 2003; and "FCC Announces Order and NPRM Regarding E-Rate Subsidies" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 648, April 24, 2003.

The e-rate program was created by the Federal Communication Commission by its Order of May 8, 1997. It is a cross subsidy program. It provides subsidies to schools, libraries, and rural health clinics for various telecommunications services, internet access, and computer networking.

It is loosely based upon the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Section 254 of the Act codified the long standing practice of providing "universal service" support for telephone service in high cost and rural areas.  However, the Act also included a subsection that extended universal service support to any school, library and rural health clinic.

The subsidies are funded by charges imposed on telephone carriers, which in turn, pass these charges on to their customers. The FCC also established a Schools and Libraries Corporation, under its control, to administer the program.

There were numerous efforts to terminate, limit, or provide a sunset provision for, the e-rate program in 1998 and 1999. No legislation passed. However, the FCC capped the program at $2.25 Billion per year, and its first President, Ira Fishman, was replaced.

There has been little effort in Congress to change the e-rate program since the 106th Congress, except that the House Commerce Committee has been examining the problem of waste, fraud and abuse in the program.

See, summary titled "Implementation of the Schools and Libraries Program", last updated in 1999, See also, Summary of E-rate Bills in 105th Congress, and Summary of E-rate Bills in 106th Congress. See also, TLJ stories on the e-rate program from 1998 and 1999:

 • General Accounting Office Reports that SLC is Illegal, 3/31/98.
 • Congress Decries Federal Computer Commission, 3/31/98.
 • SLC Report to FCC, 5/6/98.
 • Senate Holds Hearing on Common Carrier Bureau, 5/7/98.
 • FCC Report to Congress of 5/8/98, 5/11/98.
 • FCC and CATO Debate Universal Service and SLC, 5/13/98.
 • AT&T Announces New Universal Charges, 5/29/98.
 • Debate Over "Gore Tax" Heats Up, 6/4/98.
 • Schools & Libraries Corp. In Trouble on Capitol Hill, 6/8/98.
 • SLC Supporters Fight Back, 6/8/98.
 • Clinton Condemns Digital Divide in America, 6/8/98.
 • Dept. Education Waits in the Wings to Run E-Rate, 6/8/98.
 • Senate Communications Subcommittee Berates FCC, 6/11/98.
 • FCC Modifies Schools and Libraries Program, 6/15/98.
 • E-Rate Debate Continues, 6/22/98.
 • Gingrich Criticizes FCC Management of E-Rate, 7/1/98.
 • William Kennard Speech on E-Rate, 7/15/98.
 • Senate Hearing On Schools and Libraries Corporation, 7/20/98.
 • Tauzin and Burns Introduce E-Rate Reform Bill, 7/24/98.
 • Comparison of Schools and Libraries Programs, 7/27/98.
 • Riley Attacks Burns-Tauzin Proposal to Reform E-Rate, 7/30/98.
 • House Subcommittee Debates E-Rate Funding, 8/5/98.
 • E-Rate Divide Follows Partisan Lines, 8/10/98.
 • National Taxpayers Union Seeks End to Gore Tax, 8/19/98.
 • E-Rate Funds Disbursement to Begin, 11/25/98.
 • E-Rate Termination Bill Filed in House, 2/17/99.
 • Tauzin and Burns Re-Introduce Bills to Reform E-Rate, 5/12/99.

3/4. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released the agenda [3 pages in PDF] for its meeting of Thursday, March 11, 2004.

First, the FCC will consider a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding rules to protect consumers from unwanted mobile service commercial messages under the CAN-SPAM Act, and a further NPRM regarding revisions to the TCPA rules involving the national do-not-call registry. The TCPA is the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991. This is CG Docket No. 02-278.

The Congress passed the S 877, the CAN-SPAM Act (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003) late last year. President Bush signed the bill on December 16, 2003. It is Public Law No. 108-187.

Section 14 of the CAN-SPAM Act provides that the FCC "in consultation with the Federal Trade Commission, shall promulgate rules within 270 days to protect consumers from unwanted mobile service commercial messages."

It further provides that the FCC rules shall "(1) provide subscribers to commercial mobile services the ability to avoid receiving mobile service commercial messages unless the subscriber has provided express prior authorization to the sender ... (2) allow recipients of mobile service commercial messages to indicate electronically a desire not to receive future mobile service commercial messages from the sender; ..."

The statute further provides that the FCC "shall consider the ability of a sender of a commercial electronic mail message to reasonably determine that the message is a mobile service commercial message."

Second, the FCC will consider a Report and Order to reform existing international regulatory policies governing the relationship between U.S. and foreign carriers in the provision of services over U.S. international routes. This is IB Docket Nos. 02-324 and 96-261.

Third, the FCC will consider a Report and Order and Memorandum Opinion and Order regarding the FCC's rules implementing the Section 272(b)(1) "operate independently" requirement.

Section 272 contains the separate affiliate requirements. Subsection 272(b)(1) pertains to "Structural and transactional requirements". It provides that "The separate affiliate required by this section ... shall operate independently from the Bell operating company".

This is WC Docket No. 03-228, CC Docket Nos. 96-149 and 98-141, CC Docket No. 96-149, and CC Docket No. 01-337.

Fourth, the FCC will consider a NPRM regarding whether the FCC should impose mandatory minimum Customer Account Record Exchange (CARE) obligations on all local and interexchange carriers.

Fifth, and finally, the FCC will consider a notice of inquiry (NOI) regarding the deployment of advanced telecommunications capability for all Americans pursuant to Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

Section 706 of the Act provides that "The Commission shall, within 30 months after the date of enactment of this Act, and regularly thereafter, initiate a notice of inquiry concerning the availability of advanced telecommunications capability to all Americans (including, in particular, elementary and secondary schools and classrooms) and shall complete the inquiry within 180 days after its initiation. In the inquiry, the Commission shall determine whether advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion. If the Commission's determination is negative, it shall take immediate action to accelerate deployment of such capability by removing barriers to infrastructure investment and by promoting competition in the telecommunications market." (Parentheses in original.)

The meeting will be held at 9:30 AM on Thursday, March 11 at the FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, in the Commission Meeting Room (Room TW-C305). The meeting will be webcast.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Wireless Practice Committee will host a luncheon. The topic will be "Meet CTIA's New Federal Regulatory and Congressional Affairs Senior Team". The price to attend is $15. RSVP by 5:00 PM on March 3 to Wendy Parish at wendy@fcba.org. For more information contact Laura Phillips at 202 842-8891. Location: Sidley Austin, 1501 K Street, NW, 6th Floor.

Day one of a four day meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). For more information, contact Michelle Malloy at 202 898-2214 or Wendy Harris at 202 898-2209. See, notice. Location: Renaissance Washington Hotel.

The Senate will meet at 12:00 NOON to begin consideration of the FY 2005 budget resolution.

The Supreme Court will begin a recess. (It will return on March 22, 2004.)

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division will host a conference titled "Recommended Security Controls for Federal Information Systems". The price to attend is $75. See, notice. Location: NIST, Gaithersburg, MD.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Mass Media and Legislation Committees will host a brown bag lunch. The topic will be "What's Going on for Broadcasters on the Hill?" For more information, contact John Logan at 202 776-2640 or jlogan@dowlohnes.com, or Michale Nilsson at 202 730-1334 or mnilsson@harriswiltshire.com. Location: Wiley Rein & Fielding, 1750 K Street, NW, 10th Floor.

Day two of a four day meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). For more information, contact Michelle Malloy at 202 898-2214 or Wendy Harris at 202 898-2209. See, notice. Location: Renaissance Washington Hotel.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its proposed rules regarding use of satellite earth stations on board vessels in the 5925-6425 MHz, 3700-4200 MHz, 14.0-14.5 GHz and 11.7-12.2 GHz bands. The NPRM is FCC 03-286 in IB Docket No. 02-10. See, notice in the Federal Register, January 22, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 14, at Pages 3056 - 3064.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) its request that parties refresh the record regarding reconsideration of rules adopted in the 1999 access reform docket. This is CC Docket Nos. 96-262, 94-1, 98-157, and CCB/CPD File No. 98-63, adopted August 5, 1999, and released August 27, 1999. See, notice in the Federal Register, January 21, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 13, at Pages 2862 - 2863.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) regarding Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6). See, notice in the Federal Register, January 21, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 13, at Pages 2890 - 2899. See also, story titled "NTIA and NIST Request Comments on IPv6", TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 819, January 20, 2004.

10:00 AM. The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing titled "The Administration's International Trade Agenda". U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Zoellick will testify. Location: Room 215, Dirksen Building.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Cable Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The topic will be the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) plug & play and broadcast flag rules. The speakers will be Susan Mort (FCC), John Wong (Division Chief of the FCC's Media Bureau's Engineering Division) and Michael Lance (Deputy Division Chief of the ED). For more info contact Frank Buono at fbuono@willkie.com. RSVP to Wendy Parish at wendy@fcba.org. Location: Willkie Farr & Gallagher, 1875 K St., NW, 2nd Floor.

1:30 - 3:00 PM. The WRC-07 Advisory Committee's Informal Working Group 1: Terrestrial and Space Science Services will meet. See, notice [PDF]. Location: Federal Communications Commission (FCC), 445 12th Street, SW, Conference Room #5 (8th Floor, Room 8-B411).

Day one of a three day conference hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Federal Information Systems Security Educators' Association (FISSEA) titled "Awareness, Training and Education: The Driving Force Behind Information Security". The price to attend is $365. See, notice. Location: Inn and Conference Center, University of Maryland University College (UMUC), 3501 University Boulevard East, Adelphi, MD.

Day three of a four day meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). For more information, contact Michelle Malloy at 202 898-2214 or Wendy Harris at 202 898-2209. See, notice. Location: Renaissance Washington Hotel.

9:30 - 11:00 AM. The AEI-Brookings Joint Center will host a panel discussion titled "The Internet Telephony Revolution: Reality or Hype?". The speakers will be Robert Crandall, Harold Furchtgott-Roth, Reed Hundt and Robert Litan. RSVP to Shannon Leahy at sleahy@brookings.edu or 202 797-6274. Location: National Press Club, 529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor.

9:30 AM. The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing titled "United States Economic and Trade Policy in the Middle East". Location: Room 215, Dirksen Building.

2:00 - 4:30 PM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a pair of panel discussions titled "Three Cheers for Globalization". See, notice. Location: 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

Day two of a three day conference hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Federal Information Systems Security Educators' Association (FISSEA) titled "Awareness, Training and Education: The Driving Force Behind Information Security". The price to attend is $365. See, notice. Location: Inn and Conference Center, University of Maryland University College (UMUC), 3501 University Boulevard East, Adelphi, MD.

Day four of a four day meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). For more information, contact Michelle Malloy at 202 898-2214 or Wendy Harris at 202 898-2209. See, notice. Location: Renaissance Washington Hotel.

Deadline to submit requests to the U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) to testify orally at the TPSC hearing on March 17, 2004 regarding negotiating objectives for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the U.S. and four Andean countries (Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia). See, notice in the Federal Register, February 17, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 31, at Pages 7532 - 7534.

7:45 AM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a breakfast. The speaker will be Steve Largent, P/CEO of the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA). Prices range for $30 to $55. See, registration form. Location: J.W. Marriott Hotel, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW.

9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The event will be webcast. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in City and County of San Francisco v. FCC, No. 03-1186. See, FCC brief [31 pages in PDF]. Judges Ginsburg, Randolph and Roberts will preside. Location: 333 Constitution Ave.

10:00 AM. The House Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Homeland Security will hold a hearing on the proposed budget for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The Homeland Security Act transferred the TSA from the Department of Transportation to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS) II program is run by the TSA. Under Secretary for Border and Transportation Security Asa Hutchinson is scheduled to testify. Location: Room 2359, Rayburn Building.

Day three of a three day conference hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Federal Information Systems Security Educators' Association (FISSEA) titled "Awareness, Training and Education: The Driving Force Behind Information Security". The price to attend is $365. See, notice. Location: Inn and Conference Center, University of Maryland University College (UMUC), 3501 University Boulevard East, Adelphi, MD.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its Third Report and Order and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking pertaining to the administration of the FCC's e-rate subsidy program for schools and libraries. See, notice in the Federal Register, February 10, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 27, at Pages 6229 - 6238. This item is FCC 03-323 in Docket No. 02-6. The FCC adopted this item at its December 17, 2003 meeting. See, FCC release [PDF] describing this item. The FCC released the text of this item on December 23, 2003.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Diversity Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The topic will be "Balancing Work Life & Family Life". The speakers will be FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy, Debra Lee (BET), and Michele Farquhar (Hogan & Hartson). RSVP to Monica Desai at 202 418-7419 or mdesai@fcc.gov by Wednesday, March 10. Location: FCC, 445 12th St., SW, 8th Floor, Conference Room 1.

3/4. President Bush announced his intent to designate designate Erle Nye to be Chairman of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC). See, White House release. President Bush previously named his a member of the NAIC. See, September 18, 2002 release. President Bush created the NIAC on October 16, 2001, by Executive Order 13231, titled "Executive Order on Critical Infrastructure Protection". The NAIC provides the President through the Secretary of Homeland Security with advice on the security of information systems for critical infrastructure supporting other sectors of the economy: banking and finance, transportation, energy, manufacturing, and emergency government services.

3/4. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Michael Powell gave a speech [PDF] in Washington DC titled "U.S. Leadership: The Satellite Partnership".