6/7. The House Rules Committee (HRC) adopted a structured rule for the consideration of HR 5252, the "Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006" (COPE Act). The House may begin consideration of the bill on Thursday, June 8.

The House Commerce Committee (HCC) amended and approved this bill on April 26, 2006. See, HR 5252 as reported [62 pages in PDF] by the HCC, and story titled "Amendment by Amendment Summary of Full Committee Mark Up of COPE Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,360, April 28, 2006.

The HRC made in order a manager's amendment [6 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the Chairman of the House Commerce Committee (HCC), and lead sponsor of the bill.

The HRC made in order the network neutrality amendment [PDF] offered by Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA), Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), and Rep. Jay Inslee (D-WA).

However, the HRC did not make in order another amendment offered by Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee (HJC), that would have given the courts authority under the Clayton Act to enforce network neutrality principles. But, the HRC made in order an amendment [3 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) regarding preservation of antitrust authority.

The HRC also rejected an amendment offered by Rep. Charles Gonzalez (D-TX) that would have extended network neutrality principles to cover large content aggregators, such as Google and Yahoo.

The HRC also made in order an amendment [3 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R-MN) and others that would expand the entities that would be required to pay universal service taxes to include VOIP service providers. It would also require VOIP service providers to pay "for the transportation of a VOIP service over the facilities and equipment of another provider".

The HRC rejected many amendments pertaining to Title I of the bill, which establishes a national cable franchise. It rejected proposals to add buildout requirements (amendment offered by Rep. Hilda Solis) and further anti-discrimination requirements (Rep. Hilda Solis). It rejected a proposal to provide for local enforcement of rights of way disputes (Rep. Mike Doyle). It also rejected a proposal to provide VOIP service providers the same statutory immunity from liability for providing 911 and E911 service that communications carriers already (Rep. Bart Gordon).

The HRC also rejected many proposed amendments with little, if any, connection to the underlying bill. It rejected amendments pertaining to media concentration (Rep. Maurice Hinchey), revival of the fairness doctrine (Rep. Maurice Hinchey), resolution of the Washington Nationals cable rights dispute (Rep. Jim Davis), and creating an Office of Internet Safety and Public Awareness at the FTC (Rep. Melissa Bean).

Network Neutrality. Rep. Markey (at right) spoke at the HRC meeting on June 7 to advocate his network neutrality amendment.

He argued that the "non-discriminatory nature of the internet" should not be changed by the cable and phone companies. He argued that without his amendment those companies will afflict the internet with their bureaucratic analog mind set.

The bill currently, in Title II, provides that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is authorized to enforce its August 2005 policy statement [3 pages in PDF] regarding network neutrality through case by case adjudicatory proceedings.

The Markey amendment would replace the current language with a broader network neutrality mandate. This amendment is based upon (but makes many changes to) HR 5273, the "Network Neutrality Act of 2006", a bill introduced by Rep. Markey and others on May 2, 2006. See, story titled "Rep. Markey Introduces Network Neutrality Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,363, May 3, 2006.

The amendment first identifies a collection of national policies regarding maintaining an open internet. It then imposes a collection of duties upon each "broadband network provider". It then enumerates excepted activities. It then provides for an expedited complaint process at the FCC.

One of the provisions that is in this amendment, but not HR 5273, is an antitrust savings clause. It provides that "Nothing in this section shall be construed to modify, impair, or supersede the applicability of the antitrust laws, as such term is defined in section 602(e)(4) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996."

Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) (at left), the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee (HJC), and Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), the ranking Democrat on the HJC, offered a related amendment, that was not made in order. It is substantially similar to HR 5417, the "Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act of 2006", which the HJC approved on May 25, 2006. See, story titled "House Judiciary Committee Approves Net Neutrality Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,379, May 26, 2006.

While the Markey amendment, which was made in order, would impose certain duties upon each "broadband network provider", and then give the FCC enforcement authority, the Sensenbrenner amendment would have amended the Clayton Act to prohibit certain practices by "any broadband network provider". That is, it would have provided for judicial enforcement.

Rep. Sensenbrenner argued that "the antitrust laws should apply uniformly across the board", while HR 5252 leaves the FCC with exclusive authority to deal with anti-competitive conduct by broadband network providers.

Rep. Sensenbrenner also argued that if the HRC were to make this amendment in order, it would avoid the problem of bringing two separate bills to the House floor, and sending two related bills to the Senate.

Two members of the HRC, Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL) and Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), expressed support for this amendment. However, it was not made in order.

However, the HRC made in order a more limited amendment offered by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), a member of the HJC, which would add a new subsection (d) to network neutrality language in the bill. It is as follows:

   "(d)(1)RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.---Nothing in this section shall be construed to modify, impair, or supercede the applicability of the antitrust laws or the jurisdiction of the district courts of the United States to hear claims arising under the antitrust laws.
   (2) DEFINITION OF ANTITRUST LAWS.---The term 'antitrust laws' has the meaning given to it in subsection (a) of the first section of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)), except that such term includes section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent that such section 5 applies to unfair methods of competition."

Rep. Smith did not attend the HRC meeting.

Rep. Charles Gonzalez (D-TX) (at right) offered a related amendment, that was not made in order. It would have extended network neutrality principles to major content aggregators, such as Google and Yahoo. He said that Google and Yahoo in the search market, and eBay in the auction market, are close to being monopolies.

He also said that they already have entered into contracts that provide for the sort of prioritization that the proponents of the Markey amendment predict the broadband network providers will enter into.

His amendment was not made in order. It serves the purpose of shifting some attention from the motivations and likely business practices of the large access providers, such as SBC, AT&T and Verizon, to the motivations and business practices of the large internet content providers.

Gutknecht Amendment. Rep. Gutknecht's amendment provides, in part, as follows:

"RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.---Nothing in this Act (including the amendments made in this Act) shall be construed to exempt a VOIP service provider from requirements imposed by the Federal Communications Commission or a State commission on all VOIP service providers to
   (1) pay appropriate compensation for the transportation of a VOIP service over the facilities and equipment of another provider; or
   (2) contribute on an equitable and non-discriminatory basis to the preservation and advancement of universal service."

Rep. Gutknecht, who was joined by Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) and Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN), argued the universal service portion of this amendment. He argued that services in rural areas need to be subsidized.

Other Amendments Made in Order. The HRC also made in order several amendments to Title I of the bill. The HRC made in order an amendment [2 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Sheila Lee (D-TX) that would reduce the PEG/iNET fee from 1% to .5% for "a cable operator that is a small business concern owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals or a small business concern that is owned and controlled by women".

The HRC also made in order an amendment [7 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Al Wynn (D-MD) that would allow local franchising authorities to issue an order requiring compliance with FCC consumer protection rules.

The HRC also made in order an amendment [2 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Eddie Johnson (D-TX) that would increase from $500,000 to $750,000 the penalty for an operator who discriminates by denying access to a service on the basis of income.

The HRC also made in order an amendment [3 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Bobbie Rush (D-IL) that provides for a complaint process to resolve fee disputes.

Data Retention. There is nothing in the bill as reported by the HCC, the manager's amendment, or any of the other amendments made in order, that would impose a data retention requirement on internet service providers.

During the HCC mark up on April 26, 2006, Rep. Barton and Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) discussed adding a data retention mandate to the bill when the bill went to the full House. See, story titled "House Commerce Committee Considers Data Retention Mandate" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,365, May 8, 2006.

The House could take up the COPE Act on Thursday, June 8. However, the House has several other items on its schedule for Thursday, including HR 5522, the "Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2007".

It is possible that the House will not begin consideration of the COPE Act until Friday, June 9. Alternatively, it might take up the rule for consideration of the bill on Thursday, but leave consideration of the bill for Friday.

6/7. The House approved S 193, the "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005", by a vote of 379-35. See, Roll Call No. 230. The Senate approved the bill on May 18, 2006. President Bush will sign this bill.

This bill amends 47 U.S.C. § 503 to increase the maximum forfeiture penalty for the broadcast of obscene, indecent, or profane language from $32,500 to $325,000.

Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), stated that "It is time that we reclaim America's airwaves for decency, and this bill is a firm message that we have had enough".

President Bush stated in a release that "I applaud the Congress for passing S. 193, the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act. I believe that government has a responsibility to help strengthen families. This legislation will make television and radio more family friendly by allowing the FCC to impose stiffer fines on broadcasters who air obscene or indecent programming. I look forward to signing this important legislation into law."

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin wrote that "I welcome Congress' decision to give the Commission increased fining authority in our efforts to protect children from inappropriate programming. Many parents are increasingly concerned about what is on television and radio today. Today's vote demonstrates that Congress shares their concern and has a clear desire for a more meaningful enforcement of our decency standard. The Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act gives the Commission more tools to enable parents to watch television and listen to radio as a family. In addition, I believe that concerns regarding content should be addressed in a comprehensive fashion by empowering parents to choose the programming that comes into their homes."

FCC Commissioner Deborah Tate wrote that "Congress has once again sent a firm message that the minds of our children are a national priority. Increased fines strengthen the FCC’s ability to enforce the law. I take this responsibility very seriously. However, it will take more than cleaning up indecency to make television a positive force in our children’s lives. We need to also give parents more choice in the channels sent into their homes, find ways to make our children more media literate, and promote the production of more positive, educational, and inspirational children’s programming."

6/7. The House Science Committee HSC) amended and approved HR 5356, the "Early Career Research Act of 2006". The HSC approved an amendment in the nature of a substitute that incorporated HR 5357, the "Research for Competitiveness Act of 2006", into HR 5356.

6/7. The House Science Committee HSC) amended and approved HR 5358, the "Science and Mathematics Education for Competitiveness Act of 2006".

6/7. The House Judiciary Committee (HJC) amended and approved HR 2840, the "Federal Agency Protection of Privacy Act of 2005".

6/7. The House Small Business Committee held a hearing titled "Contracting the Internet: Does ICANN create a barrier to small business?". See, opening statement of Rep. Don Manzullo (R-IL), Chairman of the Committee. See also, prepared testimony of Beckwith Burr (Wilmer Hale), prepared testimony of John Jeffrey (General Counsel of the ICANN), prepared testimony of Richard White (member of VeriSign's Internet Advisory Board), prepared testimony of Champ Mitchell (Ch/CEO of Network Solutions), prepared testimony of Steven DelBianco (Executive Director of NetChoice), and prepared testimony of Craig Goren (CEO of Clarity Consulting).

6/7. The Progress and Freedom Foundation (PFF) published a transcript [33 pages in PDF] of its March 31, 2006, panel discussion titled "Orphan Works: A Search for Solutions". The Copyright Office issued its report [133 pages in PDF] titled "Report on Orphan Works" on January 31, 2006. The House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property approved HR 5439 [PDF], the "Orphan Works Act of 2006", by voice vote, on May 24, 2006.

6/7. The U.S. Court of Appeals (1stCir) issued its opinion in Puerto Rico Telephone Company v. Municipality of Guayanilla, affirming the judgment of the District Court.

The Municipality of Guayanilla enacted an ordinance imposing a 5% of gross revenue fee on telecommunications providers for their use of public rights of way within the municipality.

Puerto Rico Telephone Company (PRTC) filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (DPR) against the municipality alleging violation of 47 U.S.C. § 253. The District Court held that the ordinance is preempted by Section 253.

The Court of Appeals affirmed.

This case is Puerto Rico Telephone Company, Inc. v. Municipality of Guayanilla, et al., U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, App. Ct. No. 05-1400, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, Judge Salvador Casellas presiding.

6/7. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Deborah Tate named Ian Dillner to be one of her Legal Advisors. He was previously an acting Legal Advisor for FCC Chairman Kevin Martin. See, FCC release [PDF].

6/7. President Bush nominated Gregory Frizzell to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma. See, White House release.

6/8. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) published a notice in the Federal Register that describes, and sets the comment deadline (July 10, 2006) for, its notice of inquiry (NOI) regarding "implementation of the Spectrum Sharing Innovation Test-Bed (Test-Bed) where Federal and non-Federal users can study the feasibility of increasing the efficient use of the spectrum". See, Federal Register, June 8, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 110, at Pages 33282-33284.

6/7. The Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published a notice in the Federal Register that summarizes its findings that Swiss Telecom violated the Export Administration Regulations for exporting telecommunications equipment and technical information to Iran. See, Federal Register, June 7, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 109, at Pages 32920-32923.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. The Republican Whip Notice states that the House will take up HR 5252, the "Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006" (COPE Act), on June 8 or 9.

The Senate will meet at 9:00 AM. It will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to HR 8, the "Death Tax Repeal Permanency Act".

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day two of a two day hearing held by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission titled "China's Enforcement of IPR and the Danger of the Movement of Counterfeited and Pirated Goods into U.S.". See, agenda. Location: Room 385, Russell Building.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board (ISPAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, May 31, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 104, at Pages 30876-30877. Location: Doubletree Hotel and Executive Meeting Center, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD.

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) may hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of the nominations of Andrew Guilford (to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California), Frank Whitney (U.S.D.C., Western District of North Carolina), Kenneth Wainstein (Assistant Attorney General in charge of the National Security Division), and Charles Rosenberg (U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia). The agenda also includes consideration of S 2453, the "National Security Surveillance Act of 2006", S 2455, the "Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2006", S 2468, a bill to provide standing for civil actions for declaratory and injunctive relief to persons who refrain from electronic communications through fear of being subject to warrantless electronic surveillance for foreign intelligence purposes, S 3001, the "Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Improvement and Enhancement Act of 2006", and S 2831, the "Free Flow of Information Act of 2006". See, notice. The SJC rarely follows its published agenda. The SJC frequently cancels or postpones meetings without notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

MOVED TO JUNE 15. 9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The event will be webcast by the FCC. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

10:00 AM. The House Government Reform Committee will hold a hearing titled "Once More Into the Data Breach: The Security of Personal Information at Federal Agencies". The witnesses will be Clay Johnson (Office of Management and Budget), David Walker (Government Accountability Office), James Nicholson (Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs), William Gray (Social Security Administration), Daniel Galik (Internal Revenue Service). Press contact: Robert White at 202-225-5074. Location: Room 2154, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on several pending nominations, including those of Donald Kohn (to be Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board) and Kathleen Casey to be a member of the Securities and Exchange Commission). See, notice. Location: Room 538, Dirsksen Building.

POSTPONED TO JUNE 20. 10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will meet to mark up S 2686 [135 pages in PDF], the "Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006". Press contact: Aaron Saunders (Stevens) at 202-224-3991 or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202-224-4546. The meeting will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 216, Hart Building.

4:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property may meet to mark up the discussion draft [52 pages in PDF] of HR __, the "Section 115 Reform Act (SIRA) of 2006". See, notice. Press contact: Jeff Lungren (HJC) or Terry Shawn (HJC) at 202-225-2492, or Beth Frigola (Rep. Smith) at 202-225-4236. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

Day four of a four day event titled "Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education". See, notice. Location: UMUC Inn and Conference Center, 3501 University Boulevard East, Adelphi, MD.

The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. The Republican Whip Notice states that the House will take up HR 5252, the "Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006" (COPE Act), on June 8 or 9.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board (ISPAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, May 31, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 104, at Pages 30876-30877. Location: Doubletree Hotel and Executive Meeting Center, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing titled "Cyber Security Challenges at the Department of Energy". See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the HCC. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Wireless Telecommunications Practice Committee will host a lunch titled "Wireless Emergency Alert Service". The price to attend is $15.00. See, registration form [PDF]. Location: Sidley Austin, 6th Floor, 1501 K St., NW.

10:00 AM. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will hold a roundtable meeting on the use of interactive data and Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL). See, SEC release and story titled "SEC to Hold Series of Roundtable Meetings on XBRL" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,328, March 13, 2006. Location: SEC, 100 F St., NE.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Professional Responsibility Committee will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Client Creation, Conflicts and Confidentiality in the Administrative Process". See, registration form [PDF]. Prices vary. The deadline to register is 5:00 PM on June 8. Location: Wiley Rein & Fielding, 1776 K Street, NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding its draft [122 pages in PDF] of its Federal Information Processing Standard titled "Digital Signature Standard (DSS)". This is FIPS Pub 186-3. See also, notice in the Federal Register, March 13, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 48, at Pages 12678-12679.

Deadline to submit comments to the Department of Defense's (DOD) Defense Acquisition Regulations System (DARS) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) with respect to the exemption from the Buy American Act for the acquisition of commercial information technology. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 12, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 70, at Pages 18694-18695.

Deadline to submit applications to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Rural Utilities Service (RUS) for Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Program grants. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 11, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 69, at Pages 18271-18276.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Copyright Office regarding its proposal to amend its rules governing the submission of royalty fees to the Copyright Office to require such payments to be made by electronic funds transfer. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 27, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 81, at Pages 24829-24831.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding Draft Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 186-3 [122 pages in PDF], titled "Digital Signature Standard (DSS)".

8:45 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology. See, notice in the Federal Register: May 24, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 100, at Page 29919. Location: Employees Lounge, Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, MD.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold the third of three hearings on S 2686, the "Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006". See, notice. Press contact: 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 106, Dirksen Building.

3:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law will hold a hearing titled "State Taxation of Interstate Telecommunications Services". See, notice. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202-225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding mandatory thousands-block number pooling. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 15, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 50, at Pages 13323-13328. This NPRM is FCC 06-14 in CC Docket No. 99-200.

9:00 - 11:00 AM. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology. See, notice in the Federal Register: May 24, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 100, at Page 29919. Location: Employees Lounge, Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, MD.

9:00 - 11:30 AM. The Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC) will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 30, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 103, at Pages 30717-30718. Location: Embassy Suites Hotel, Capital A Meeting Room, 900 10th Street, NW.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet to prepare for the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2006 on November 6-24, 2006, in Ankara, Turkey. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 29, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 60, at Page 15798. Location: __.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The DC Bar Association's Intellectual Property Law Section will host a panel discussion titled "Fair Use (Part II) -- Fair Use of Copyrighted Works in the Digital Environment". The speakers will include Jonathan Band and Robert Kasunic (Principal Legal Advisor, Copyright 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.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Cable Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The topic will be "Views from the Hill". The scheduled speakers are James Assey (Minority Senior Counsel for Communications, Senate Commerce Committee), Will Nordwind (Counsel and Policy Coordinator, House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet), Johanna Shelton (Minority Counsel, House Commerce Committee), Lisa Sutherland (Majority Staff Director for Sen. Ted Stevens). RSVP to Frank Buono at fbuono at willkie dot com. Location: Willkie Farr & Gallagher, 1875 K Street, NW.

RESCHEDULED FROM JUNE 7. 2:00 PM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection will hold a hearing titled "Violent and Explicit Video Games: Informing Parents and Protecting Children". See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the HCC. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

7:00 - 9:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a reception. See, registration form [PDF]. Prices vary. Location: Corcoran Art Gallery, 500 17th Street, NW.

8:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting to the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 22, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 98, at Page 29356. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 1235, Arlington, VA.

8:30 AM - 4:00 PM. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Privacy Office will host a public workshop titled "Operationalizing Privacy: Compliance Frameworks & Privacy Impact Assessments", to explore policy, legal, and operational frameworks for Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) and Privacy Threshold Analyses (PTAs). See, notice in the Federal Register: May 24, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 100, at Page 29968. Location: GSA Regional Headquarters, Auditorium, 7th & D Streets, SW.

POSTPONED TO JUNE 21. 9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The event will be webcast by the FCC. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

The Defense Science Board 2006 Summer Study on Information Management for Net-Centric Operations will hold a one day close meeting See, notice in the Federal Register, April 11, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 69, Page 18292. Location: 3601 Wilson Boulevard, 3rd Floor, Arlington, VA.

Deadline for the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) entity titled "Independent Panel Reviewing the Impact of Hurricane Katrina on Communications Networks" to submit its report to the FCC.

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