6/15. The House approved an amendment to HR 2862, the "Science, the Departments of State, Justice, and Commerce, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2006" that pertains to Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act. The amendment was offered by Rep. Bernie Sanders (VT).

The vote was 238-187. The vote was largely partisan. Democrats voted 199-1 for the amendment. Republicans voted 38-186. See, Roll Call No. 258.

Sanders Amendment. This is an appropriations bill. Hence, it contains no substantive law. The amendment merely limits the use of funds appropriated by this bill for certain purposes.

It reads as follows: "None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to make an application under section 501 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1861) for an order requiring the production of library circulation records, library patron lists, book sales records, or book customer lists."

§§ 215 and 501. § 215 of the PATRIOT Act pertains to access to business records under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Library records are a form of business records, and interest groups such as the American Library Association (ALA) oppose the provision. In contrast, the Department of Justice (DOJ) is adamant about the importance this provision. Several DOJ witnesses have testified at various hearings that they do not want to allow libraries to become safe havens for terrorists.

§ 215 of the PATRIOT Act is titled "Access to records and other items under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act". The FISA only applies to foreign powers, and agents of foreign powers, including international terrorists. § 501 of the FISA enables the FBI to obtain from a judge or magistrate an order requiring the production business records. While the statute does not expressly include library records, it is not disputed that library records could be obtained.

§ 215 rewrote § 501 of the FISA, which is codified in Title 50 as § 1861. It pertains to "Access to Certain Business Records for Foreign Intelligence and International Terrorism Investigations". § 215 (of the PATRIOT Act) replaced §§ 501-503 (of the FISA) with new language designated as §§ 501 and 502.

Currently, § 501 (as amended by § 215) requires that an application to a judge or magistrate "shall specify that the records concerned are sought for an authorized investigation conducted in accordance with subsection (a)(2) to obtain foreign intelligence information not concerning a United States person or to protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities."

Consequences. Allowing § 215 to sunset would raise the standards for obtaining a FISA order for business records. If the Sanders amendment were to become law, certain library records would become completely beyond the reach of § 501.

Nevertheless, the Sanders amendment is largely symbolic, and would have very limited consequences. First, this is an annual appropriations bill. It only applies for one fiscal year.

Second, this only applies to the use of Section 501 of the FISA to obtain records. It does not affect other procedures or authorities that the DOJ might use to obtain library records, such as a grand jury subpoena, or a warrant obtained pursuant to probable cause.

Third, this will only affect records held by the library. In the case of use of a library's internet connected computers, the pertinent party would mostly likely be the library's internet service provider (ISP). The Sanders amendment does not affect the DOJ's ability to go to the ISP for records and information. Also, since the amendment enumerates the types of library records, and does not reference internet records, the amendment does affect internet access records that the library possesses, if any.

Rep. Sanders acknowledged this during the House debate. He said that "I have heard from some Members who have expressed concerns about the possible need for the FBI to access library Internet records. Some Members believe that by exempting library Internet records from section 215 , we could be creating an opportunity for terrorists. The amendment today addresses that concern and does not apply to library Internet records. Under this amendment, the FBI could still use a section 215 order to obtain these records. This amendment only applies to the records that contain information on which books people are checking out of the library or buying from a bookstore."

Also, the Crime Subcommittee held a hearing on § 215 on April 28, 2005. Gregory Nojeim, of the ACLU, testified that even if the Congress were to amend § 215 to exempt library records, the FBI would still be able to obtain a library's internet use records from its ISP with a national security letter under the new powers provided by § 505(a) of the PATRIOT Act. Moreover, a national security letter requires no prior court approval. See, story titled "House Crime Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Library and ISP Records and § 215 of the Patriot Act and National Security Letters" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,125, April 29, 2005.

Fourth, this issue is more hypothetical than real. DOJ representatives have testified that the DOJ has not used Section 215 authority to obtain records from libraries.

In contrast, many of the other sunsetted provisions of Title II of the PATRIOT Act pertain to communications and new information technologies, and are used with greater frequency.

Prospects for Future Limitations Upon PATRIOT Act Authority. The breakdown of the vote on the Sanders amendment may be significant. While 38 Republicans voted the bill, only one of these, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), is a member of the House Judiciary Committee (HJC).

That is, 38 out of 230 Republicans (16.5%) voted for the amendment. 1 out of 23 Republicans on the HJC (4.3%) voted for the amendment. The 38 were enough to overcome the Republican majority in the House. A swing of one vote will not tip the balance in the HJC.

The HJC Committee and its Crime Subcommittee, have just completed a series of about a dozen detailed oversight hearings on the sixteen sections of the PATRIOT Act, including Section 215, that are scheduled to expire at the end of this year, unless extended.

The HJC will likely produce a bill that extends some or all of the sunsetted provisions of the PATRIOT Act. That only one member of the HJC voted for the Sanders amendment may indicate that there is not now much support among HJC Republicans for imposing further sunsets, reporting requirements, or other checks on PATRIOT Act powers.

If there is not much Republican support on the HJC for imposing limits on PATRIOT Act powers, one reason may be the events of Friday, June 10. See, story titled "Commentary: Partisan Theatrics Threaten Efforts to Place Limits in Title II of PATRIOT Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,152, June 13, 2005.

There is also the matter that by holding a vote on this PATRIOT Act issue, many members now have cover for not voting for future proposals to impose limits on PATRIOT Act powers. They can inform their constituents that they voted for the Section 215 amendment.

See also, Rep. Sanders' release.

6/15. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted and released a notice of proposed rulemaking [56 pages in PDF] that relates to its management of its universal service subsidy programs, including the schools and libraries (or e-rate) program, the rural health care program, the low income program, and the rural high cost program.

This NPRM is limited primarily to the management of these programs by the FCC. It does not reform the universal service funding mechanisms. (But, see Paragraph 65.) It does address the process for making disbursements under the e-rate program, and the calculation of those disbursements. See also, FCC release [2 pages in PDF] describing this NPRM, statement [PDF] by Chairman Kevin Martin, statement [PDF] by Commissioner Michael Copps, and statement [PDF] by Jonathan Adelstein.

This NPRM states that the FCC has disbursed "approximately $30.3 billion" in universal service subsidies since 1997. (See, Paragraph 5.)

The NPRM states that "we seek comment on ways to improve the management, administration, and oversight of the" Universal Service Fund (USF). (Paragraph 1.) It also states that "We recognize that some parties have raised concerns ranging from mismanagement to intentionally defrauding the program, and we take these concerns seriously." (Paragraph 2.)

E-rate. Much of the NPRM pertains to the FCC's management of its e-rate program. This NPRM follows several recent developments. First, the House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Oversight has held a series of hearings examining and demonstrating the widespread fraud and abuse in the e-rate program.

Second, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has brought criminal prosecutions in connection with fraud in the e-rate program.

Third, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has released a series reports regarding waste, fraud and abuse in the e-rate program, the lack of management by the FCC, and the lack of performance studies by the FCC.

Fourth, the program has come under mounting pressure from the Congress, with some members suggesting that the program be transferred to another agency, and others, such as HCC Chairman Joe Barton (R-TX) suggesting that the program be terminated. See, story titled "Chairman Barton Suggests Ending E-Rate Program" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,097, March 17, 2005.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report [21 pages in PDF] in March, 2005, titled "Telecommunications: Concerns Regarding the Structure and FCC's Management of the E-Rate Program". The GAO presented this report at a hearing of the HCC's Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations titled "Problems with the E-rate Program: GAO Review of FCC Management and Oversight", on March 16, 2005.

This GAO report found that the "FCC's program oversight mechanisms contain weaknesses that limit FCC’s management of the program and its ability to understand the scope of waste, fraud, and abuse within the program."

The GAO also wrote that the "FCC established E-rate as a multibillion-dollar program operating under an organizational structure unusual to the federal government, but never conducted a comprehensive assessment to determine which federal requirements, policies, and practices apply to the program, to USAC, and to the Universal Service Fund itself. As a result, FCC has struggled with determining which fiscal and accountability requirements apply to the E-rate program. We believe that issues exist concerning the applicability of certain statutes and the extent to which FCC has delegated certain functions for the E-rate program to USAC -- issues that FCC needs to explore and resolve."

Also, the GAO report found that the "FCC has not developed meaningful performance goals and measures for assessing and managing the program. As a result, there is no way to tell whether the program has resulted in the cost-effective deployment and use of advanced telecommunications services for schools and libraries.

The GAO has written numerous reports on the various universal service programs. The NPRM lists these in its footnote 18. The NPRM addresses some of the matters raised in some of these GAO reports.

Commissioner Copps (at right) wrote that "I am concerned about one aspect of the NPRM. It asks if we should replace the application process and distribute E-Rate funds directly to schools and libraries according to their size. Such a change could also allow funds to be used for unspecified communications-related services and equipment, rather than requiring applications that specify services and equipment. So many questions about this approach remain unaddressed. Distributing funds directly to schools could conceivably exclude Catholic and other private and parochial schools from the E-Rate program. Tying funds to school size could conceivably result in our rural and insular schools being denied the funds they need for the extraordinary cost of services in these areas, just because they have fewer students. And if schools are given a sum of money to be used for unspecified purposes rather than for specified and verifiable services and equipment, it could be much more difficult to identify fraud."

High cost. The NPRM also addresses the FCC high cost program. The NPRM notes that the FCC disbursed about $3.4 Billion in 2004 under this program, as compared to the $2.25 Billion cap on the e-rate program.

This program is not plagued by fraud. However, its method of distributing subsidies, and its effectiveness, have been criticized. Recent efforts to re-examine the program in the Congress have failed.

For example, Robert Crandall of the Brookings Institution, speaking at an American Enterprise Institute (AEI) panel discussion on telecom policy on December 14, 2004, asserted that universal service "has nothing to do with universality of service". Rather, it is "a huge slush fund moving around between competing political groups". See, story titled "AEI Panel Addresses Telecom Regulation" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,041, December 20, 2004.

The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) took up a limited high cost universal service reform bill in the 108th Congress, S 1380 (108th), the "Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003". Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) and others introduced this bill on July 9, 2003. See, story titled "Sen. Smith Introduces Universal Service Reform Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 697, July 14, 2003. The SCC approved this bill on September 22, 2004. See, story titled "Senate Commerce Committee Approves Rural Universal Service Reform Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 983, September 24, 2004.

Most of the high cost program subsidies go to a few states. Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS), who represents one of those states, said that this is "just a show vote". Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) said that this bill "will go nowhere". Indeed, the full Senate took no action on the bill.

Performance Studies. This NPRM also contains a lengthy section asking for comments about how it might assess the effectiveness of its universal service programs. (See, for example, Paragraphs 24-29, which pertain to assessing the effectiveness of the e-rate program.)

The FCC does not need to conduct a lengthy rule making proceeding before it may conduct a study of the effectiveness of its programs. Nevertheless, the FCC has included this in its NPRM, and set an unusually long comment period -- 150 days after publication in the Federal Register -- which likely will delay any performance study until well into 2006.

It may also be the case that the FCC is not cooperating with outside entities that seek to study the performance of the FCC's universal service programs. For example, in March of 2005 TLJ requested information from the FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau regarding what data the FCC possesses on broadband internet access penetration at schools and libraries; TLJ also requested access to that data for the purpose of conducting a statistical analysis of the relationship between e-rate subsidies and increased broadband penetration. The FCC has not responded.

This NPRM is FCC 05-124 in Docket Nos. 96-45, 02-6, 02-60, 03-109 and 97-21, and the new WC Docket No. 05-195.

6/15. Brad Smith announced that he will resign from the Federal Election Commission (FEC), effective August 21, 2005. He has been the FEC's most forceful advocate of leaving unregulated constitutionally protected speech on the internet. See, FEC release.

The FEC is currently engaged in a rule making proceeding regarding its regulation of internet speech. The McCain Feingold bill required the FEC to write implementing regulations. The U.S. District Court overturned the FEC's previous rules, which exempted certain internet speech.

The FEC will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, June 28, and Wednesday, June 29. See, notice and notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 70, No. 63 April 4, 2005, at pages 16967 - 16979. See also, list of witnesses, with links to written comments.

Smith will return to the faculty of the Law School at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio.

President Bush has not yet named a replacement.

6/15. Peter Allgeier was named U.S. Representative to the World Trade Organization (WTO). He is currently the Deputy U.S. Trade Representative. Prior to Robert Portman's recent confirmation by the Senate as USTR, Allgeier was the acting USTR. Allgeier will replace Linnet Deily. See, USTR release.

6/10. The Senate confirmed Philip Perry to be General Counsel of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on June 9, 2005. He took the oath of office on June 10, 2005. See, DHS release.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Republican Whip Notice.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM. It will resume consideration of HR 6, the energy bill.

The Supreme Court will next meet on Monday, June 20.

8:30 AM - 5:30 PM. The National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, June 1, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 104, at Pages 31545 - 31546. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Room 730, Arlington, VA.

9:00 AM - 4:30 PM. Day one of a two day conference hosted by the University of Maryland University College (UMUC) titled "Pirates, Thieves and Innocents: Perceptions of Copyright Infringement in the Digital Age". Registration has closed. The event will be webcast. See, webcast registration page. Location: UMUC, 3501 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, MD.

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of several nominations, including that of Terrence Boyle (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit), Brett Kavanaugh (U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit), Rachel Brand (Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Office of Legal Policy), and Alice Fisher (Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Criminal Division). See, notice. The SJC rarely follows its meeting agenda. The SJC frequently cancels or postpones meetings without notice. Press contact: Blain Rethmeier (Specter) at 202 224-5225, David Carle (Leahy) at 202 224-4242 or Tracy Schmaler (Leahy) at 202 224-2154. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

9:30 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) WRC-07 Advisory Committee's Informal Working Group 4 (Broadcasting and Amateur Issues) will meet. See, notice [PDF]. Location: Shaw Pittman & Pillsbury, 2300 N Street, NW, Conference Room 1E/F.

9:30 AM. There will be a news conference titled "US-Brazil Trade Relations". For more information, call John Proctor at Direct Communications Group at 202 272-2179. Location: Zenger Room, National Press Club, 529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on federal legislative solutions to data breach and identity theft. Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) will preside. The witnesses will be the five Commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Deborah Majoras, Orson Swindle, Thomas Leary, Pamela Harbour, and Jonathan Leibowitz, and William Sorrell (Vermont Attorney General, and President of the National Association of Attorneys General). Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456 or Melanie_Alvord at commerce dot senate dot gov, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546 or Andy_Davis at commerce dot senate dot gov. See, notice. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

2:00 AM. The Senate Appropriations Committee will meet to mark up HR 2360, the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill. Location: Room 106, Dirksen Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on the nominations of William Jeffrey (to be Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology), Ashok Kaveeshwar (Administrator of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration), Edmund Hawley (Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for the Transportation Security Administration), and Israel Hernandez (Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the U.S. Foreign and Commercial Service). Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456 or Melanie_Alvord at commerce dot senate dot gov, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546 or Andy_Davis at commerce dot senate dot gov. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

TIME? The Department of State's International Telecommunication Advisory Committee's (ITAC) ITU-T Study Group 3 (Tariff and accounting principles including related telecommunication economic and policy issues) will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, June 7, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 108, at Page 33253. Location: AT&T, 1133 21st Street, Suite 210.

6:00 - 8:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host an event titled "Happy Hour". For more information, contact Debrea Terwilliger at 202 383-3349 or debrea dot terwilliger at wbklaw law com or 202-393-3000. Location: Topaz Hotel, Zen Den, 1733 N St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments, and notices of intent to participate, to the Copyright Office in response to its proposed rules containing a proposed settlement of royalty rates for the retransmission of digital over the air television broadcast signals by satellite carriers under the statutory license. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 17, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 94, at Pages 28231 - 28233.

8:30 AM - 12:00 NOON. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering. See, notice in the Federal Register, June 1, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 104, at Pages 31545 - 31546. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Room 730, Arlington, VA.

9:00 AM - 3:00 PM. Day two of a two day conference hosted by the University of Maryland University College (UMUC) titled "Pirates, Thieves and Innocents: Perceptions of Copyright Infringement in the Digital Age". Registration has closed. The event will be webcast. See, webcast registration page. Location: UMUC, 3501 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, MD.

Deadline to submit comments to the Antitrust Modernization Commission (AMC) in response to the AMC's request for public comments regarding (1) treble damages, (2) prejudgment interest, (3) attorneys' fees, (4) joint and several liability, contribution, and claim reduction, (5) remedies available to the federal government, (6) private injunctive relief, and (7) indirect purchaser litigation. See, notice in the Federal Register: May 19, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 96, at Pages 28902-28907.

The Supreme Court will return from recess. See, Order List [11 pages in PDF].

The annual U.S.-EU Summit will take place. See, White House release. Location: Washington DC.

10:00 AM. Kevin Ring (author of Scalia Dissents : Writings of the Supreme Court's Wittiest, Most Outspoken Justice), Herman Schwartz (American University Law School) and Mark Tushnet (Georgetown University Law School) will participate in a panel discussion regarding Supreme Court developments. Location: Zenger Room, National Press Club, 529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor.

12:30 PM. Rep. Mel Watt (D-NC), a member of the House Judiciary Committee, will give a luncheon address. Location: Ballroom, National Press Club, 529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) [15 pages in PDF] regarding implementation of the satellite broadcast carriage requirements in the noncontiguous states, as required by Section 210 of the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004 (SHVERA). The FCC adopted this NPRM at its April 29, 2005 meeting. This NPRM is FCC 05-92 in MB Docket No. 05-181. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 20, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 97, at Pages 29252-29253.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property will hold an oversight hearing titled "Copyright Office Views on Music Licensing Reform". The hearing will be webcast by the HJC. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM - 2:00 PM. The Progress and Freedom Foundation (PFF) will host an event titled "Digital Age Communications Act Regulatory Framework Working Group: Public Release and Discussion of a Working Group Draft Document". The speakers will be Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy, Raymond Gifford (PFF), Randolph May (PFF), and James Speta (Northwestern University law school). For more information, contact Brooke Emmerick at 202 289-8928 or bemmerick at pff dot org. Location: Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting titled "Current Status of FCC Proceedings Involving VOIP and other IP Enabled Services". The speaker will be Thomas Navin, Chief of the FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau. The FCC's proceedings are titled "In the Matter of IP-Enabled Services" (WC Docket No. 04-36), and "E911 Requirements for IP-Enabled Service Providers" (WC Docket No. 05-196). For more information, contact Catherine Bohigian at catherine.bohigian@fcc.gov or Frank Lloyd at flloyd@mintz.com. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) states that this is a meeting of its Cable Practice Committee, and requests an RSVP to Wendy Parish at wendy@fcba.org. Location: Mintz Levin, 701 Pennsylvania Ave., NW , 9th Floor.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on telecom mergers. See, notice. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456 or Melanie_Alvord at commerce dot senate dot gov, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546 or Andy_Davis at commerce dot senate dot gov. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

12:00 NOON - 2:30 PM. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's National Chamber Foundation (NCF) will host a luncheon titled "The Effect of Municipal Broadband Networks on Competition". The speakers will include David Hirschmann (NCF), Jim Kovacs (US Chamber), Dianah Neff (City of Philadelphia), Jim Speta (Northwestern University), and Jim Baller (Baller Herbst Law Group). The price to attend ranges from free to $115. See, notice and agenda [PDF]. Location: US Chamber, 1615 H Street, NW.

RESCHEDULED FROM MAY 11. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar on voice over internet protocol (VOIP). See, registration form [PDF]. Location: Skadden Arps, 700 14th Street, NW.

EXTENDED TO JULY 20. Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding its intercarrier compensation system. This FNPRM is FCC 05-33 in CC Docket No. 01-92. The FCC adopted this FNPRM at its meeting of February 10, 2005, and released it on March 3, 2005. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 24, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 56, at Pages 15030 - 15044. See also, story titled "FCC Adopts FNPRM in Intercarrier Compensation Proceeding" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,076, February 14, 2005.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Public Notice [10 pages in PDF] regarding video news releases (VNRs). This notice is FCC 05-84 in MB Docket No. 05-171.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a business meeting. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456 or Melanie_Alvord at commerce dot senate dot gov, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546 or Andy_Davis at commerce dot senate dot gov. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

10:00 AM - 5:00 PM. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) will meet. Most of the meeting is closed to the public. See, notice in the Federal Register, June 8, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 109, at Page 33519. The open portion of the meeting, from 10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON, will be held at the Park Hyatt, 24th and M Streets, NW.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Mass Media Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. Location: National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), 1771 N St., NW, Conference Rooms A & B.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) WRC-07 Advisory Committee's Informal Working Group 3 (IMT-2000 and 2.5 GHz Sharing Issues) will meet. See, notice [PDF]. Location: FCC, 7th Floor South Conference Room (7-B516), 445 12th Street, SW.

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