2/10. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted, but did not release, a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), regarding the practice of pretexting to obtain consumers' confidential phone records.

47 U.S.C. § 222 limits the use and dissemination by telecommunications carriers of customer proprietary network information (CPNI).

On August 30, 2005, Chris Hoofnagle of the Electronic Privacy Information Center's (EPIC) filed a petition for a rulemaking in CC Docket No. 96-115. This petition requested that the FCC commence a rulemaking proceeding "to establish more stringent security standards for telecommunications carriers" in releasing CPNI. The just adopted NPRM grants, or responds to, this petition.

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin wrote in a separate statement [PDF] that "This item responds directly to the petition filed with the Commission by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC). In its Petition, EPIC expresses concerns about the sufficiency of carrier practices relating to customer proprietary network information (CPNI) in light of numerous reports that online ``data brokers´´ and private investigators are engaged in the sale of customers’ personal telephone records. EPIC claims that these data brokers are obtaining unauthorized access to CPNI through various possible means, including through ``pretexting´´ -- that is, by pretending to be a customer seeking access to that customer's own telephone records."

The FCC has not yet released the NPRM. It only issued a press release with a brief description of its contents.

The FCC release states that the FCC seeks comments on five measures that might be taken to protect CPNI. They are as follows:

"Passwords set by consumers."
"Audit trails that record all instances when a customer’s records have been accessed, whether information was disclosed, and to whom."
"Encryption by carriers of stored CPNI data."
"Limits on data retention that require deletion of call records when they are no longer needed."
"Notice provided by companies to customers when the security of their CPNI may have been breached."

The FCC release also states that the FCC seeks comments "on a tentative conclusion that it should amend its rules to require carriers to file annual compliance certificates with the Commission, along with a summary of all consumer complaints received in the past year concerning the unauthorized release of CPNI and a summary of any actions taken against data brokers during the preceding year".

Finally, the FCC release states that the FCC seeks comments "on other ways to protect customer privacy, including whether carriers should be required to take the additional step of calling a subscriber's registered telephone number before releasing CPNI in order to verify that the caller requesting the information is actually the subscriber."

The FCC release references "carriers", and Section 222, which applies to "telecommunications carriers". The release does not address confidential consumer information held by providers of information services.

FCC Commissioner Michael Copps wrote in a separate statement [PDF] that "last year, we reclassified wireline broadband Internet access services, but left for another day the chilling question of whether or not privacy protections followed this regulatory remix."

Some of the bills currently pending in the Congress would address pretexting both in the context of carriers and VOIP service providers. See, story in this issue titled "Rep. Smith Introduces Bill to Criminalize Pretexting to Obtain Consumer Phone or VOIP Records".

FCC Commissioner Deborah Tate wrote in a separate statement [PDF] that "While my philosophy leans towards market-based solutions with minimal government intervention, this issue provides a perfect example of the appropriateness of government intervention, investigation, and enforcement. Indeed, national security is of utmost importance, but so is personal security. We must be as vigilant to protect our personal digital borders as we are our nation’s physical borders."

FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein wrote in a separate statement [PDF] that "I also support our efforts to bring swift enforcement action against companies that are violating our rules."

This NPRM is FCC 06-10 in Docket No. 96-115 and RM-11277.

2/8. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) and others introduced HR 4709, the "Law Enforcement and Phone Privacy Protection Act of 2006". The bill would criminalize the practice of pretexting to obtain confidential consumer records from telecommunications carriers and VOIP service providers. It would also criminalize the sale, transfer, or purchase of such confidential records, without the authorization of the consumer.

The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee (HJC), which is scheduled to mark it up on Wednesday, February 15, 2006.

This bill would add a new Section 1039 to Title 18, the criminal code. This bill contains no proposed changes to Title 47, regarding communications. The HJC has jurisdiction over criminal law bills, but not communications bills.

The bill provides that "Whoever knowingly and intentionally obtains, or attempts to obtain, confidential phone records information of a covered entity, by--
  (1) making false or fraudulent statements or representations to an employee of a covered entity;
  (2) making such false or fraudulent statements or representations to a customer of a covered entity;
  (3) providing a document to a covered entity knowing that such document is false or fraudulent; or
  (4) accessing customer accounts of a covered entity via the Internet without prior authorization from the customer to whom such confidential records information relates;
shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for not more than 20 years, or both."

Second, the bill provides that "any person, including any employee of a covered entity or any data broker, who knowingly and intentionally sells, transfers, or attempts to sell or transfer, confidential phone records information of a covered entity, without authorization from the customer to whom such confidential phone records information relates, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both."

Third, the bill provides that "any person who purchases confidential phone records information of a covered entity, knowing such information was obtained fraudulently or without prior authorization from the customer to whom such confidential records information relates, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both."

The bill exempts law enforcement agencies from these prohibitions.

The bill has bipartisan support on the HJC. The original cosponsors of this bill who are HJC members are Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA), Rep. Chris Cannon (R-UT), and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA). The other original cosponsors of the bill are Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), Rep. Stephanie Herseth (D-SD), and Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA).

The sponsors of the bill stated in a joint release that "There are few things more personal than our phone call records. Dishonest individuals and businesses are posing as cell phone customers to access the personal call records of other individuals. These people have flourished in a gray area of the law. But that is about to stop. These practices assault our individual privacy, and may even contribute to stalking or other crimes of violence. In the wrong hands, this information can be used to target police officers, their families, and confidential informants."

Other House Crime Bills. There are other pending House bills that would amend the criminal code to address pretexting and phone records.

Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL) introduced HR 4657, the "Secure Telephone Operations Act of 2006" on January 31, 2006. This short bill provides that "Whoever knowingly sells telephone customer proprietary network information shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both." It further provides that the term "telephone customer proprietary network information", or CPNI, has the same meaning as in 47 U.S.C. § 222.

Rep. Leonard Boswell (D-IA) introduced HR 4714, the "Phone Records Protection Act of 2006", on February 8, 2006. It provides that "Whoever knowingly and intentionally sells or fraudulently transfers or uses, or attempts to sell or fraudulently transfer or use, the records of a customer of a telephone service provider shall be fined in accordance with this title, imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both."

House FTC Bills. Other pending House bills would prohibit certain pretexting practices, and give civil enforcement authority to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The House Commerce Committee (HCC) has jurisdiction of the FTC and the FTC Act.

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), a member of the HCC, introduced HR 4662, the "Consumer Telephone Records Protection Act of 2006", on January 31, 2006. This bill now has 34 cosponsors.

This bill provides that "It shall be unlawful for any person to obtain or attempt to obtain, or cause to be disclosed or attempt to cause to be disclosed to any person, customer proprietary network information relating to any other person by -- (1) making a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation to an officer, employee, or agent of a telecommunications carrier; or (2) by providing, through any means including the Internet, any document or other information to a telecommunications carrier or an officer, employee, or agent of a telecommunications carrier, knowing that the document or other information is forged, counterfeit, lost, or stolen, was obtained fraudulently or without the customer's consent, or contains a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation."

This bill also provides that it is unlawful to request a person to obtain customer proprietary network information (CPNI) under false pretenses, and to sell CPNI obtained under false pretenses.

Rep. Janice Schakowsky (D-IL), also a member of the HCC, introduced HR 4678, the "Stop Attempted Fraud Against Everyone's Cell and Land Line (SAFE CALL) Act" on January 31, 2006. This bill would give civil enforcement authority to the FTC.

This bill provides that "It shall be unlawful for any person to obtain or attempt to obtain, or cause to be disclosed or attempt to cause to be disclosed to any person, customer proprietary network information relating to any other person by -- (A) making a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation to an officer, employee, or agent of a telecommunications carrier; or (B) by providing any document or other information to a telecommunications carrier or an officer, employee, or agent of a telecommunications carrier, knowing that the document or other information is forged, counterfeit, lost, or stolen, was fraudulently obtained, or contains a false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation."

Other House Bills. There are also bills pending in the House, that were introduced early last year, that address the issue of wireless carriers' disclosure of subscribers' numbers in directory assistance service databases. See, for example, HR 83, the "Wireless Privacy Protection Act of 2005", and HR 1139, the "Wireless 411 Privacy Act".

There are also numerous broader data security and privacy bills pending in the House. See, for example, HR 1080, the "Information Protection and Security Act ", HR 1263, the "Consumer Privacy Protection Act of 2005", HR 3140, the "Consumer Data Security and Notification Act of 2005", HR 3374, the "Consumer Notification and Financial Data Protection Act of 2005 ", HR 3375, the "Financial Data Security Act of 2005 ", HR 4127, the "Data Accountability and Trust Act (DATA)", HR 4731, the "Eliminate Warehousing of Consumer Internet Data Act of 2006".

Recent Hearings. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) held a hearing on February 8, 2006, titled "Protecting Consumers’ Phone Records". See, SCC web page with hyperlinks to opening statements of Senators and prepared statements of witnesses.

The House Commerce Committee (HCC) held a hearing on February 1, 2006, titled "Phone Records For Sale: Why Aren't Phone Records Safe From Pretexting?". See, HCC web page with hyperlinks to prepared testimony of witnesses.

2/10. The state of Texas filed a civil complaint [11 pages in PDF] in state court in Travis County, Texas, against John Strange dba usaskiptrace.com, AMS Research Services, Inc., and Worldwide Investigations, Inc. dba USA Skiptrace, alleging violation of Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (TDTPA) in connection with the defendants' acquisition and sale of consumers' confidential phone records from telecommunications carriers.

The complaint alleges that AMS Research Services, Inc. and Worldwide Investigations, Inc. are Colorado based companies that conduct business in Texas.

The complaint alleges that the defendants "operate an online data broker service" that finds and sells consumers phone records, without the consent of those consumers.

It alleges, upon information and belief, how the defendants obtain this confidential information. First, they "obtain these call detail records through a variety of deceptive pretexts including contacting telecommunications carriers’ customer service representatives and impersonating the person whose records are being sought, misrepresenting that they are providing assistance to a customer who cannot speak, or that they are associated with the carrier and need access to a certain person’s cell phone records for legitimate business reasons."

In addition, they "gain access to some customer call records, including that of Texas residents, by accessing accounts through the web sites maintained by the carriers for the use of customers. On information and belief, Defendants obtain personal information about the customers whose records they seek to access and in turn, use that personal information to gain access to the customer's telephone account records via the carriers’ web sites.

The complaint seeks injunctive relief and damages.

The Court issued a Temporary Restraining Order [4 pages in PDF] on February 9, 2006. It bars the defendants from "selling or offering to sell call detail records" either "to a Texas resident" or "of a Texas resident". It also bars the defendants from seeking to obtain telephone records by pretexting methods.

The state of Texas also issued a release that states that "The Attorney General continues to investigate other data brokers who may be violating the law and breaching the privacy of innocent consumers."

This case is State of Texas v. John Strange dba usaskiptrace.com, AMS Research Services, Inc., and Worldwide Investigations, Inc. dba USA Skiptrace, District Court of Travis County Texas, 250th Judicial District, Case No. D-1-GV-06-0001666.

Disclosure. One of the attorneys for the state of Texas associated with this case is a former classmate of the publisher of Tech Law Journal.

2/10. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted, but did not release, its report titled "12th Annual Report to Congress on Video Competition". This annual report is required by statute.

The FCC issued a release [4 pages in PDF] that describes the report. It states that the FCC "finds that the competitive MVPD market continues to provide consumers with increased choice, better picture quality, and greater technological innovation. The report concludes that almost all consumers may opt to receive video services from over-the-air broadcast television, a cable service, and at least two DBS providers."

The FCC release also states that "a growing number of consumers can access video programming through digital broadcast spectrum, fiber to the node or to the premises, or video over the Internet. Moreover, once consumers have selected a provider, technology such as advanced set-top boxes, digital video recorders, and mobile video services give them even more control over what, when, and how they receive information. Furthermore, many MVPDs offer nonvideo services in tandem with their traditional video services."

The FCC release states that "As of June 2005, there were 109.6 million TV households, compared to 108.4 million in June 2004. Of that number, approximately 94.2 million TV households subscribe to an MVPD service, as compared to 92.2 million as of June 2004." It adds that the cable share of MVPD subscribers declined from 71.6% in June of 2004 to 69.4% in June of 2005, while the DBS share continued to grow, to 27.7% in June of 2005.

The FCC release continues that "The amount of web-based video provided over the Internet continues to increase significantly each year. The sale and rental of home videos, including videocassettes and DVDs, offer consumers an alternative to the premium and pay-per-view offerings of MVPDs. Video-on-demand services provided by cable, DBS, and Internet providers have emerged, in turn, as competitive alternatives to home video."

The FCC release also states that U.S. incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) "have reported plans to provide video service". Also, "In foreign markets, a number of incumbent operators and new entrants are providing Internet protocol television (IPTV) over DSL."

Kyle McSlarrow, head of the National Cable Telecommunications Association (NCTA), stated in a release that "The FCC report confirms that the home video marketplace has never been more competitive and, `continues to provide consumers with increased choice, better picture quality, and greater technological innovation.´" He added that "As even more providers enter this competitive market, it is important that government policies continue to promote such investment and innovation, and treat all providers equally."

This report is FCC 06-11 in MB Docket No. 05-255.

2/10. National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) P/CEO David Rehr sent a letter [4 pages in PDF] to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin Martin regarding changing the FCC's broadcast ownership rules, and particularly the broadcast and newspaper ownership prohibition, and the television duopoly rule.

He wrote that "the complete prohibition on newspaper/broadcast combinations was no longer justified. The crossownership prohibition has inhibited the development of new innovative media services, especially digital and on-line services that have features of both the electronic and print media. The ban also precluded struggling newspaper and broadcast entities, including those in medium and small markets, from joining together to improve, or at least maintain, existing local news operations."

With respect to the duopoly rules, he argued that "local television broadcasters are bearing the expense of the DTV transition and the loss of network compensation at the same time they are facing ever-increasing competition from cable and Direct Broadcast Satellite for audiences and national and local advertising revenue. NAB stresses that these pressures on local station finances will only continue in the future with new forms of competition in the video marketplace. For example, video content is already being offered via the Internet, mobile phones and the iPod."

Hence, he argued that there is a "need to allow television stations in markets of all sizes to form more efficient and viable ownership arrangements, including duopolies."

2/10. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in a release that it has completed an exercise titled "Cyber Storm". The DHS stated that this was a "government-led cyber security exercise to examine response, coordination, and recovery mechanisms to a simulated cyber-event within international, federal, state, and local governments, in conjunction with the private sector". The DHS added that this "exercise simulated a sophisticated cyber attack through a series of scenarios directed against critical infrastructures", including "a cyber incident where a utility company's computer system is breached". The DHS did not disclose the results or findings of the exercise.

2/10. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report [PDF] titled "Telecommunications: Challenges to Assessing and Improving Telecommunications For Native Americans on Tribal Lands". The report states that "As of 2000, the telephone subscribership rate for Native American households on tribal lands was substantially below the national rate, while the rate for Internet subscribership on tribal lands was unknown due to a lack of data. According to data from the 2000 decennial census, about 69 percent of Native American households on tribal lands in the lower 48 states had telephone service, which was about 29 percentage points less than the national rate of about 98 percent. About 87 percent of Native American households in Alaska native villages had telephone service, also considerably below the national rate." (Footnote omitted.)

The House will not meet. See, Republican Whip Notice.

The Senate will meet at 12:00 NOON. It will begin consideration of HR 4297, the Tax Relief Act of 2005.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in AT&T v. FCC, App. Ct. No. 05-1096. This petition for review pertains to the proper regulatory classification (basic/ telecommunications or enhanced/ information) of AT&T's enhanced prepaid calling card (EPCC) service, and whether AT&T is liable for back universal service taxes. See, brief [45 pages in PDF] of the FCC. This case is the second on the Court's agenda. The Court scheduled 15 minutes per side for the first case. Judges Randolph, Garland and Williams will preside. Location: Prettyman Courthouse, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

10:40 AM. President Bush will present National Medals of Technology and National Medals of Science to two persons and five corporations. Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez and John Marburger (Director of the EOP's Office of Science and Technology Policy) will also participate. The recipients and their representatives will be Ralph Baer (engineering consultant), Roger Easton (RoBarCo), Gen-Probe Inc. (represented by Henry Nordhoff), IBM-Microelectronics Division (represented by Nicholas Donofrio), Industrial Light & Magic (represented by Chrissie England and George Lucas), Motorola (represented by Padmasree Warrior), and PACCAR Inc. (represented by Mark Pigott). (These recipients were announced in November of 2005. See, White House release.) The Department of Commerce notice states that "For press pre-set and final access deadlines, contact the White House Office of Media Affairs @ 202-456-6238" and "Media seeking White House credentials must RSVP to Donald Tighe or Mallie McCord at the Office of Science and Technology Policy Press Office with date of birth and Social Security number. Contact them at (202) 456-6045 or by e-mail to" Mallie_McCord at ostp dot eop dot gov. Location: East Room, White House (enter through northwest gate on Pennsylvania Ave.)

12:00 NOON. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "Luncheon with State PUC Officials". See, registration form [MS Word]. The price to attend ranges from $35 to $70. Location: Atrium Ballroom, Washington Court Hotel, 525 New Jersey Ave., NW.

12:00 NOON. The Cato Institute will host a panel discussion titled "The Federal Budget Outlook". The speakers will be Donald Marron (acting Director of the Congressional Budget Office), Chris Edwards (Cato), and Stephen Slivinski (Cato). See, notice and registration page. Lunch will be served. Location: Room 2237, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON. David Goldston, Chief of Staff of the House Science Committee (HSC), will host an event titled "Pen and Pad Press Availability". He will discuss HSC activities, the outlook for the second session of the 109th Congress, President Bush's American Competitiveness Initiative and FY 2007 budget proposal". Pizza will be served. RSVP to Joe Pouliot at joe dot pouliot at mail dot house dot gov or Zachary Kurz at zachary dot kurz at mail dot house dot gov. Location: Room 2325, Rayburn Building.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [26 pages in PDF] regarding Section 621(a)(1)'s directive that local franchising authorities (LFAs) not unreasonably refuse to award competitive franchises. The FCC adopted this NPRM on November 3, 2005, and released it on November 18, 2005. It is FCC 05-189 in MB Docket No. 05-311. See, notice in the Federal Register, December 14, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 239, at Pages 73973 - 73980. See also, story titled "FCC Adopts NPRM Regarding Local Franchising of Video Services" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,247, November 4, 2005.

Day two of a four day conference hosted by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) titled "2006 Winter Committee Meetings". See, notice. Location: Hyatt Regency Washington.

Valentine's Day.

The House will meet at 2:00 PM for legislative business. It will consider several non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 PM. See, Republican Whip Notice.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing titled "State and Local Issues and Municipal Networks". The witnesses will be Robert Sahr (South Dakota Public Utilities Commission), Diane Munns (National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners), John Perkins (National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates), Michael Altschul (CTIA), Douglas Boone (Premier Communications), Donald Berryman (EarthLink), Dianah Neff (City of Philadelphia). See, notice. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456, Aaron Saunders (Stevens) at 202 224-3991, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 562, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on the nominations of Randall Kroszner and Kevin Warsh (to be members of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System) and Edward Lazear (President's Council of Economic Advisors). See, notice. Location: Room 538, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The U.S. District Court (DC) will hold a status conference in U.S. v. Microsoft, D.C. Nos. 98-CV-1232 CKK, and 98-CV-1233. Location: Courtroom 28A, Prettyman Courthouse, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

11:00 AM. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and other House Democrats will host an event at which they will discuss the "House Democrats' Innovation Agenda" and "the need to create a new generation of innovators that reflects the diversity of our country". The participants will include Rep. Pelosi, Rep. George Miller (D-CA), Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA), Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-FL), and George Lucas (a movie director). For more information, contact Brendan Daly or Jennifer Crider (Pelosi's office) at 202 226-7616. Location: Room HC-5, Capitol Building.

5:30 PM. The House Armed Services Committee will meet to mark up HRes 645, which requests the Bush administration "to transmit to the House of Representatives all information in the possession of the President or the Secretary of Defense relating to the collection of intelligence information pertaining to persons inside the United States without obtaining court-ordered warrants authorizing the collection of such information and relating to the policy of the United States with respect to the gathering of counterterrorism intelligence within the United States". Location: Room 2118, Rayburn Building.

Day three of a four day conference hosted by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) titled "2006 Winter Committee Meetings". See, notice. Location: Hyatt Regency Washington.

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

8:45 AM. Representatives of domain name registrars, including Network Solutions and GoDaddy.com, will host a "press breakfast ... on issues related to ICANN's pending decision in regard to the revised proposals for the .com contract extension and settlement agreement with VeriSign". RSVP by 3:00 PM. Tuesday, February 14, to Mary Greczyn at 202 371-2997 or mg at ftidc dot com. Location: Freedom Technologies, 1317 F Street, NW, fourth floor.

9:30 AM. The Senate Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on several pending nominations, including that of James Finley to be Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology. Location: Room 106, Dirksen Building.

POSTPONED. 10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing titled "FCC Activities and Policy". See, notice. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456, Aaron Saunders (Stevens) at 202 224-3991, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 562, Dirksen Building.

RESCHEDULED FROM JANUARY 31. 10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing titled "Video Franchising". The witnesses will be Ivan Seidenberg (Verizon), James Ellis (AT&T), Thomas Rutledge (Cablevision Systems Corporation), Brad Evans (Cavalier Telephone), Lori Tillery (National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors), Anthony Riddle (Alliance for Community Media), Gene Kimmelman (Consumers Union), and Gigi Sohn (Public Knowledge). See, notice. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456, Aaron Saunders (Stevens) at 202 224-3991, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 562, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) may hold a hearing on the nominations of Stephen Larson (to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California) and Jack Zouhary (Northern District of Ohio). The SJC frequently cancels or postpones hearing without notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee (HJC) will meet to mark up numerous items, including HRes 643, which requests the Attorney General (AG) to submit to the House "all documents in the possession of the Attorney General relating to warrantless electronic surveillance of telephone conversations and electronic communications of persons in the United States conducted by the National Security Agency", HRes 644, which requests the President and AG to give the House within 14 days "documents in the possession of those officials relating to the authorization of electronic surveillance of citizens of the United States without court approved warrants", and HR 4709, the "Law Enforcement and Phone Privacy Protection Act of 2006". See, notice. Press contact: Terry Shawn at 202 225.2492. The meeting will be webcast by the HJC. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "The Law and Economics of Interchange Fees". See, notice. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) will meet to received the Federal Reserve Board's (FRB) semiannual monetary policy report. FRB Chairman Ben Bernanke will testify. See, HFSC release. Location: Room 2128, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The House Science Committee (HSC) will hold a hearing titled "An Overview of the Federal R&D Budget for Fiscal Year 2007". The witnesses will be John Marburger (Director of the EOP's Office of Science and Technology Policy), Samuel Bodman (Secretary of Energy), David Sampson (Deputy Secretary of Commerce), Arden Bement (Director of the National Science Foundation), and Charles McQueary (Undersecretary for Science and Technology at the DHS). For more information, contact Peter Rooney (Republican staff) at 202 225-6371, or Christal Sheppard (Democratic staff) at 202 225-6375. The hearing will be web cast by the HSC. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

10:30 AM. The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled "President's Fiscal Year 2007 Budget". Secretary of the Treasury John Snow will testify. See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

1:30 PM. The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled "President Bush's Trade Agenda". The only witness will be U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman. See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Department of State's International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will hold the sixth in a series of weekly meetings to prepare for the International Telecommunications Union's (ITU) 2006 ITU Plenipotentiary Conference, to be held November 6-24, 2006, in Antalya, Turkey. See, notice in the Federal Register, December 21, 2005, Vol. 70, No. 244, at Page 75854. This notice incorrectly states that these meetings will be held on Tuesdays; they are on Wednesdays. For more information, contact Julian Minard at 202 647-2593 or minardje at state dot gov. Location: AT&T, 1120 20th St., NW.

2:30 PM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing to examine developments in nanotechnology. See, notice. Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) at 202 224-8456, Aaron Saunders (Stevens) at 202 224-3991, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 562, Dirksen Building.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit applications to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for its 2006 SURF grants. These are the Gaithersburg Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program, and the Boulder Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program. The NIST distributes grants for, among other topics, electronics and electrical engineering, and information technology. See, notice in the Federal Register, January 9, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 5, at Pages 1411 - 1416.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Common Carrier Practice Committee will host a continuing legal education seminar (CLE) titled "Federal Universal Service Regulation and Policy: Where are We Going, and Why?" The first of two panels is titled "USF Contribution Mechanisms". The speakers will be Joel Lubin (AT&T), Tina Pidgeon (GCI), Donald Stockdale (FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau), and Rick Cimerman (NCTA). The second panel is titled "USF Distribution Policies". The speakers will be Paul Feldman (Fletcher Heald & Hildreth), Eric Einhorn (AT&T), Nannette Thompson (GCI), and Bob Rowe (Rowe & Balhoff). See, notice [MS Word] and registration form [MS Word]. The price to attend ranges from $75 to $125. Location: Wiley Rein & Fielding, 1776 K Street, NW.

Day four of a four day conference hosted by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) titled "2006 Winter Committee Meetings". See, notice. Location: Hyatt Regency Washington.

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

10:00 AM. The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing titled "First Monetary Policy Report to the Congress for 2006". Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke will testify. See, notice. Location: Room 538, Dirksen Building.

10:30 AM. The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on the Bush administration's trade agenda for 2006. Location: Room 215, Dirksen Building.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About Copyright and Fair Use". The speakers will include Ronald Dove (Covington & Burling), Margaret Esquenet (Finnegan Henderson), and Matthew DelNero (Covington & Burling). The price to attend ranges from $15-$25. For more information, call 202 626-3463. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

TIME? The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host a half day conference titled "Private Securities Litigation Ten Years After the PSLRA: What’s Working, What’s Not?". See, notice. Location: U.S. Chamber, 1615 H St., NW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Engineering Committee will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "FCC Regulation of New Technologies". The speakers will be Mitchell Lazarus (Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth), Julius Knapp (Deputy Chief of the FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology), Rashmi Doshi (Chief of the FCC's OET's Laboratory Division), Karl Nebbia (National Telecommunications Information Administration), Barry Ohlson (assistant to FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein), and Jay Birnbaum (Current Communications Group). See, notice and registration form [PDF]. The price to attend ranges from $50 to $125. Location: Dow Lohnes & Albertson, 1200 New Hampshire Ave., NW.

8:15 PM. Georgetown University Law Center (GULC) will host a panel discussion titled "The War on Terror: Civil Defense vs. Civil Liberties". The speakers will be Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA), Neal Katyal (GULC), Seymour Hersh, and Wolf Blitzer (CNN). Location: GULC, Hart Auditorium, McDonough Hall, 600 New Jersey Ave., NW.

The House may meet. The Republican Whip Notice states that "no votes are expected".

George Washington's birthday.

The House will not meet on Monday, February 20, through Friday, February 24. See, Majority Whip's calendar.

The Senate will not meet on Monday, February 20, through Friday, February 24. See, 2006 Senate calendar.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and other federal offices will be closed. See, Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) list of federal holidays.

12:00 NOON UTC. Deadline to submit comments to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) regarding the proposed agreements that would settle litigation between VeriSign and the ICANN. See, story titled "ICANN Seeks Comments on Settlement of Litigation with VeriSign" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,300, January 31, 2006.

2/10. President Bush nominated Gordon England to be Deputy Secretary of Defense. See, White House release. President Bush gave England a recess appointment on January 4, 2006. See, White House release. Bush originally nominated England for this position in April of 2005.

2/10. President Bush nominated Robert Lenhard to be a member of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for a term expiring April 30, 2011. President Bush nominated Hans von Spakovsky to be a member of the FEC for a term expiring April 30, 2011. President Bush nominated Steven Walther to be a member of the FEC for a term expiring April 30, 2009. See, White House release. President Bush gave all three recess appointments on January 4, 2006. See, White House release. See also, story titled "Bush Announces FEC Nominations" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,276, December 20, 2005.

2/10. President Bush nominated Boyden Gray to be the U.S. Representative to the European Union. See, White House release. Gray currently holds a recess appointment. See also, story titled "Bush Nominates Boyden Gray to be US Representative to EU" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,182, July 26, 2005.

2/10. President Bush nominated Julie Myers to be an Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security, for the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. See, White House release. Bush gave her a recess appointment on January 4, 2006. See, White House release.

2/10. President Bush nominated Benjamin Powell to be General Counsel of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. See, White House release. Bush gave him a recess appointment on January 4, 2006. See, White House release.

2/9. Claude Allen, President Bush's top domestic policy advisor, resigned. See, White House release.

2/8. Mike Snyder was named CEO of Vonage Holdings Corporation. Jeffrey Citron, the founder, and Chairman of the Board, was named Chairman and Chief Strategist. See, Vonage release.

2/7. Robert Eulau will resign as SVP/CFO of Rambus, effective March 2, 2006. Harold Hughes, who is the CEO, will serve as interim CFO until a replacement has been found. See, Rambus release.

2/7. David Tennenhouse was named CEO of A9.com, Inc., a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Inc. See, Amazon release.

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