9/22. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law will hold a hearing on HR 1956, the "Business Activity Tax Simplification Act of 2005" on Tuesday, September 27.

This bill does not reference electronic commerce, or the internet. However, it would protect and promote businesses that engage in e-commerce by limiting the ability of states to impose business activity taxes (BATs) on out of state businesses without a presence in the state. BATs no not include sales taxes.

Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA), and others introduced HR 1956 on April 28, 2005.

Rep. Goodlatte (at right) and Rep. Boucher have been trying for years to enact legislation on this subject. HR 1956 (109th) is very similar to, but contains several changes from, HR 3220 (108th), titled the "Business Activity Tax Simplification Act of 2003". 31 Representatives sponsored the bill, but it was not approved by the House, or even at the subcommittee level.

See also, stories titled "Reps. Goodlatte and Boucher Introduce Bill to Limit Business Activity Taxes" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 753, October 6, 2003, and "House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Business Activity Taxes" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 899, May 17, 2004.

They also co-sponsored another related bill, HR 2526 (107th), titled the "Internet Tax Fairness Act of 2001". See, stories titled "Goodlatte and Boucher Introduce Net Tax Moratorium Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 229, July 18, 2001, and "House Subcommittee Approves Bill to Limit Business Activity Taxes" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 471, July 17, 2002.

HR 1956 (109th) provides, at Section 3, that "No taxing authority of a State shall have power to impose, assess, or collect a net income tax or other business activity tax on any person relating to such person's activities in interstate commerce unless such person has a physical presence in the State during the taxable period with respect to which the tax is imposed."

The bill sets out in detail minimal activities, such as attending training conferences, that do not constitute physical presence.

The bill also defines "net income tax", and "other business activity tax". The latter means "(i) a tax imposed on or measured by gross receipts, gross income, or gross profits; (ii) a business license tax; (iii) a business and occupation tax; (iv) a franchise tax; (v) a single business tax or a capital stock tax; or (vi) any other tax imposed by a State on a business for the right to do business in the State or measured by the amount of, or economic results of, business or related activity conducted in the State." BAT does not include a "transaction tax".

9/20. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Commissioner Paul Atkins gave a speech in the state of Nevada to the National Association of State Treasurers. He discussed, among other topics, the SEC's mutual fund disclosure regime, the point of sale initiative, and the role of the internet.

Atkins (at right) said that "One of the costs of overly prescriptive approaches to rulemaking is decreased investor choice. Investors should be able to invest in companies and products of their own choosing. In order for them to make informed decisions, they need accurate and straightforward disclosure. I am optimistic that new technologies and more widespread access to the Internet will facilitate the provision of such disclosure. One initiative for which new technologies appear particularly promising is our ``point-of-sale´´ initiative."

He added that "the point-of-sale proposal still needs work so that it better takes into account the unique characteristics of each of the products to which it applies. In considering how to proceed from here on this initiative, we should look at whether the Internet can be harnessed to present information in an interactive manner that is meaningful to investors."

Former SEC Chairman Donaldson gave a speech on March 14, 2005, in which he made similar comments. See, story titled "Donaldson Says Internet Disclosure May Be A Part of Mutual Fund Disclosure Reform" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,099, March 21, 2005.

See also, the SEC's notice, dated February 28, 2005, soliciting comments on proposed rules that would require broker-dealers to provide their customers with information regarding the costs and conflicts of interest that arise from the distribution of mutual fund shares, 529 college savings plan interests, and variable insurance products. The point of sale initiative is addressed in Section II.

9/21. President Bush announced his intent to nominate Katherine Baicker to be a member of the President's Council of Economic Advisers. She is currently a professor in the Department of Public Policy at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA). See, White House release.

9/21. President Bush announced his intent to nominate Matthew Slaughter to be a member of the President's Council of Economic Advisers. He is a professor of business administration at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. He is also a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. See, White House release.

9/21. The House approved HR 250, the "Manufacturing Technology Competitiveness Act of 2005", by a vote of 394-24. See, Roll Call No. 485.

9/21. The European Commission (EC) released a statement regarding "state aid to innovation". It states that the EC "is launching consultations on improvements to EU state aid rules as regards projects encouraging innovation". It adds that "The proposals for innovation aid cover six broad areas: innovative start-ups; risk capital; the integration of innovation into existing rules on state aid for research and development (R&D); innovation intermediaries; training and mobility between university research personnel and SMEs; and poles of excellence for projects of common European interest."

9/21. The New York State Public Service Commission (NYPSC) announced that it "voted unanimously to approve the proposed merger of SBC Communications Inc. (SBC) and AT&T Corporation (AT&T) and its subsidiaries that are certified to provide telecommunications services in New York State". See, NYPSC release [PDF] and SBC release.

9/19. Microsoft announced that it filed eight complaints in U.S. District Courts around the U.S. alleging distribution of infringing or counterfeit copies of various Microsoft software products. See, Microsoft release.

9/19. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published a notice in the Federal Register pertaining to its proceedings regarding the source of income derived from certain space and ocean activities, and the source of income derived from international communications activity. This notice withdraws one notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), and announces, describes, and sets the comment deadline for, another NPRM. There will be a public hearing on December 15, 2005. The deadline to submit comments is November 23. See, Federal Register, September 19, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 180, at Pages 54859 - 54878.

Tech Law Journal publishes a free access web site and subscription e-mail alert. The basic rate for a subscription to the TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert is $250 per year. However, there are discounts for subscribers with multiple recipients. Free one month trial subscriptions are available. Also, free subscriptions are available for journalists, federal elected officials, and employees of the Congress, courts, and executive branch. The TLJ web site is free access. However, copies of the TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert are not published in the web site until one month after writing. See, subscription information page.

Contact: 202-364-8882.
P.O. Box 4851, Washington DC, 20008.

Privacy Policy
Notices & Disclaimers
Copyright 1998 - 2005 David Carney, dba Tech Law Journal. All rights reserved.

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

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM for morning business. It will then resume consideration of HR 2744, the agriculture appropriations bill.

The Supreme Court is between terms. The opening conference of its October 2005 Term will be held on September 26.

9:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property will hold a hearing titled "Reducing Peer-To-Peer Piracy (P2P) on University Campuses: A Progress Update". The hearing will be webcast by the HJC. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

9:00 AM - 1:00 PM. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) Aviation Security Advisory Committee (ASAC) will meet. The agenda includes "final report and recommendations of the Secure Flight Privacy/IT Working Group". See, notice in the Federal Register, September 1, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 169, at Page 52119. Location: Residence Inn by Marriott, Pentagon City, 550 Army Navy Drive, Arlington, VA.

9:30 AM. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will hold a business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of S 1725, the "Assure Emergency and Interoperable Communications for First Responders Act of 2005", and the nomination of Stewart Baker to be an Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security. See, notice [PDF]. Location: Room 342, Dirksen Building.

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) may hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of Judge John Roberts to be Chief Justice of the United States, and Timothy Flanigan to be the Deputy Attorney General. The agenda also includes numerous bills, including S 1088, the "Streamlined Procedures Act of 2005", S _, the "Personal Data Privacy and Security Act of 2005", and S 751, the "Notification of Risk to Personal Data Act", and S 1326, the "Notification of Risk to Personal Data Act". The SJC frequently cancels or postpones meetings without notice. The SJC rarely follows its published agenda. Press contact: Blain Rethmeier (Specter) at 202 224-5225, David Carle (Leahy) at 202 224-4242 or Tracy Schmaler (Leahy) at 202 224-2154. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on "Examining the Financial Services Industry’s Responsibilities and Role in Preventing Identity Theft and Protecting Sensitive Financial Information". The witnesses will be Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR), Stuart Pratt (Consumer Data Industry Association), Edmund Mierzwinski (USPIRG), Ira Hammerman (Securities Industry Association), Gilbert Schwartz (Schwartz & Ballen), Oliver Ireland (Morrison and Foerster). See, notice. Location: Room 538, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Financial Services Committee's Subcommittee on Financial Institutions will hold a hearing on HR 3505, the "Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act of 2005". See also, story titled "House Subcommittee to Hold Hearing on Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1215, September 15, 2005. Location: Room 2128, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold the first of two hearings titled "Communications in Disaster". The witnesses will be Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin Martin, Bill Smith (BellSouth), Paul Roth (Cingular Wireless), Jeffrey Citron (Vonage), and Hossein Eslambolchi (AT&T). See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) 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 562, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The President's Export Council Subcommittee on Export Administration (PECSEA) will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 21, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 139, at Pages 42027 - 42028. Location: Room 4832, Department of Commerce, 14th Street between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues, NW.

11:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on the Constitution will hold a hearing titled "The Supreme Court's Kelo Decision and Potential Congressional Responses". See, the June 23, 2005, opinion [58 pages in PDF] of the Supreme Court in Kelo v. City of New London, a takings clause case. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

4:00 PM. The Cato Institute will host a panel discussion titled "Mr. Smith Leaves Washington". The speakers will be Bradley Smith (Capital University School of Law), Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), and John Samples (Cato). Smith was until recently a Commissioner of the Federal Election Commission (FEC). He was a leading opponent of government regulation of internet based speech. See, notice and registration page. A reception will follow the program. Location: Cato, 1000 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

5:00 - 7:00 PM. William Baumol will give a lecture titled "How Regulators Can Be Misled By Simplistic Theory". He is the author of, among other works, the book titled "The Free Market Innovation Machine" [Amazon]. The event is hosted by the AEI Brookings Joint Center for Regulatory Studies. See, notice. Location: American Enterprise Institute, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

EXTENDED FROM SEPTEMBER 1. Extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Copyright Office regarding its first report to the Congress required by the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004. See, original notice in the Federal Register, July 7, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 129, at Pages 39343 - 39345. See also, notice extending deadlines in the Federal Register, August 15, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 156, at Page 47857.

The House may meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. See, Republican Whip Notice.

8:00 AM. The American Bar Association's (ABA) Standing Committee on Law and National Security will host a breakfast. The speaker will be Nuala Kelly, Chief Privacy Officer at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The title of her speech will be "Challenges in Preserving Privacy while Protecting Homeland Security". The price to attend is $20. See, notice and registration form [PDF]. Location: University Club, 1135 16th St., NW.

EXTENDED FROM SEPTEMBER 9. Extended extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its notice of second further proposed rulemaking regarding horizontal and vertical cable ownership limits. The FCC adopted this Second Further NPRM on May 13, 2005, and released it on May 17, 2005. This item is FCC 05-96 in MM Docket No. 92-264. See, original notice in the Federal Register, June 8, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 109, at Pages 33679 - 33687. See also, notice of extension of deadlines, in the Federal Register, July 6, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 128, at Pages 38848 - 38849. See also, notice [PDF] of further extension.

Deadline to submit requests to participate as a panelist in the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division's and the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) October 25, 2005, workshop titled "Competition and Real Estate Workshop". See, FTC notice and notice in the Federal Register, September 8, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 173, at Pages 53362 - 53364.

The Supreme Court will hold the opening conference of the October Term 2005. See, calendar [PDF].

12:00 NOON. Xuan-Thao Nguyen (Southern Methodist University School of Law) will deliver a paper titled "Collateralizing Intellectual Property". This event is a part of the George Washington University Law School's (GWULS) intellectual property workshop series. RSVP by Tuesday, September 20, to Rosalie Kouassi at rkouassi at law dot gwu dot edu. Location: GWULS, Faculty Conference Center, 5th Floor Burns, 716 20th St., NW.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Cable Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. This will be an organizational meeting. For more information, contact Frank Buono at fbuono at willkie dot com. Location: Willkie Farr & Gallagher, 875 K Street, NW.

Deadline to register for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) pre-auction seminar for the MVDDS Auction (Auction No. 63), to be held on September 28, 2005. See, notice and registration form [PDF].

8:30 AM. The Department of Defense (DOD) Advisory Group on Electron Devices (AGED) will hold a closed meeting to review research and development efforts in electronics and photonics. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 19, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 180, at Page 54902. Location: Noesis, Inc., 4100 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 800, Arlington, VA.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in American Association of Paging Carriers v. FCC, No. 04-1359. This petition for review pertains to paging carriers and licensing by itinerant mobile radio transmitters on a nationwide, non-coordinated basis. The AAPC challenges the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Memorandum Opinion and Order (MOO) adopted September 1, 2004, and released on September 8, 2004. This MOO is FCC 04-212 in WT Docket No. 01-146. See, brief [43 pages in PDF] of the AAPC. Judges Henderson, Garland and Griffith will preside. Location: Prettyman Courthouse, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

1:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law will hold a hearing on HR 1956, the "Business Activity Tax Simplification Act of 2005". The meeting will be webcast by the HJC. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "How to Litigate a Patent Infringement Case". The speakers will be Patrick Coyne and Jerry Ivey (both of Finnegan Henderson). The price to attend ranges from $80-$125. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

10:00 AM - 2:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a pre-auction seminar for the MVDDS Auction (Auction No. 63). See, notice and registration form [PDF]. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a seminar titled "Electronic Filing At The Trademark Office". The speaker will be Craig Morris (US Patent and Trademark Office). The price to attend ranges from $20-$40. For more information, call 202 626-3463. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

12:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Professional Responsibility Committee will host a brown bag lunch. This will be an organizational and planning meeting. RSVP to Tina Screven at  escreven at wbklaw dot com. Location: Wilkinson Barker Knauer, 2300 N St., NW, 7th floor large conference room.

1:00 PM. The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled "United States Japan Economic and Trade Relations". See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

2:00 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee's (SJC) Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights may hold a hearing on "whether there is more consolidation or new choices for consumers regarding video competition in 2005". The SJC frequently cancels or postpones hearings without notice. Press contact: Blain Rethmeier (Specter) at 202 224-5225, Amanda Flaig (DeWine) at 202 224-7997, or Lynn Becker (Kohl) at 202 224-5653. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

Extended effective date of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) VOIP customer lockout order. See, the order contained in the FCC's document titled "Public Notice' [PDF], numbered DA 05-2085, and released on July 26, 2005. It requires, among other things, that every interconnected voice over internet protocol (VOIP) service provider must send every one of its subscribers an FCC mandated statement regarding E911, and that every interconnected VOIP service provider must send to every one of its customers the FCC mandated VOIP warning stickers. This order further requires that every interconnected VOIP service provider obtain acknowledgement from every one of its subscribers, and that it "disconnect, no later than August 30, 2005, all subscribers from whom it has not received such acknowledgements". See, extension order [4 pages in PDF].

9:30 AM - 5:00 PM. The Antitrust Modernization Commission (AMC) will hold a hearing on the state action doctrine and exclusionary conduct. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 8, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 173, at Page 53331. Location: Federal Trade Commission, Main Building, Room 432, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "Public Safety Communications from 9/11 to Katrina: Critical Public Policy Lessons". The hearing will be webcast by the HCC. See, notice. Press contact: Larry Neal at 202 225-5735. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold the second of two hearings titled "Communications in Disaster". See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) 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 562, Dirksen Building.

10:30 AM. The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled "Implementation of the United States Bahrain Free Trade Agreement". See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Department of States' (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet to prepare for ITU-T Advisory Group. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 13, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 133, at Page 40414. Location: undisclosed. The DOS states that "Access to these meetings may be arranged by contacting Julian Minard at minardje at state dot gov.

4:00 - 5:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) and other groups will host a panel discussion titled "Making Effective Presentations before Congress and the FCC". The speakers will be Johanna Shelton (Minority Counsel, House Commerce Committee), Lauren Belvin (Legal Advisor to FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy), and Anita Wallgren (Sidley Austin Brown & Wood). The price to attend ranges from $0-15. For more information, and to RSVP, contact Anita Wallgren at 202 736-8468 or awallgren at sidley dot com. Location: Sidley Austin, 1501 K Street NW.

The Public Knowledge will host an awards ceremony and reception. For more information, contact Art Brodsky at 202 518-0020 x103. See, PK release. Location: Sewall-Belmont House, 144 Constitution Ave., NE (next to the Hart Building on Capitol Hill).