6/4. The U.S. Court of Appeals (9thCir) issued an order denying en banc rehearing in Nelson v. NASA, a case regarding informational privacy. Several judges wrote dissenting opinions. This lets stand the June 20, 2008, opinion of the three judge panel.

The case concerns the National Aeronautic and Space Administration's (NASA) requirement that California Institute of Technology's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) scientists and engineers working on certain government projects -- including those in low risk positions -- submit to in depth background investigations, including questioning of the scientists, questioning of third parties, and accessing government electronic databases of information.

Robert Nelson and others objected, and filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court (CDCal) alleging violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), violation of the Constitutional right to informational privacy, and violation of the 4th Amendment's ban on unreasonable searches. The District Court denied the scientists' motion for a preliminary injunction. They brought the present interlocutory appeal.

The three judge panel issued its second opinion on June 20, 2008. See, story titled "9th Circuit Issues Revised Opinion On Informational Privacy and 4th Amendment" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,784, June 23, 2008.

The three judge panel affirmed on the APA and 4th Amendment claims, but reversed on the District Court on the information privacy claim. The Court of Appeals wrote that "We have repeatedly acknowledged that the Constitution protects an ``individual interest in avoiding disclosure of personal matters.´´ ... This interest covers a wide range of personal matters, including sexual activity, ... medical information, ... and financial matters".

It continued that "If the government's actions compel disclosure of private information, it ``has the burden of showing that its use of the information would advance a legitimate state interest and that its actions are narrowly tailored to meet the legitimate interest.´´ ... We must ``balance the government’s interest in having or using the information against the individual’s interest in denying access,´´ ..."

Chief Judge Alex Kozinski, in his just released dissent from the order denying en banc review, questioned whether there is a Constitutional informational privacy right. He wrote that the only Supreme Court authority on point is a single clause in the 1977 opinion in Whalen v. Roe, 429 U.S. 589.

Judge Andrew Kleinfeld wrote in his dissent that the opinion is "likely to impair national security by enjoining reasonable reference checks on applicants for federal government functions".

Judge Consuelo Callahan wrote in her dissent that the opinion "constitutes an unprecedented expansion of the constitutional right to informational privacy", and is "at odds with other circuits".

See also, story about the Court of Appeals' first (and vacated) opinion, titled "9th Circuit Addresses Privacy and Government Background Investigations of Private Sector Scientists" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,703, January 22, 2008.

This case is Robert Nelson, et al. v. NASA, et al., U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, App. Ct. No. 07-56424, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, D.C. No. CV-07-05669-ODW, Judge Otis Wright presiding. Judge Kim Wardlaw wrote the opinion of the Court of Appeals, in which Judges David Thompson and Edward Reed (USDC/DNev), sitting by designation, joined.

6/3. Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee (SIC), spoke in the Senate regard the "court" established by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), at 50 U.S.C. § 1803(a), and Judge Colleen Kotelly's just completed membership in that "court".

Kotelly (at right) was appointed to the U.S. District Court (DC) by former President Clinton in 1997, and remains a District Court Judge.

Sen. Feinstein stated that "By law, after serving for a maximum of 7 years, judges of the FISA Court, who are designated from the U.S. districts courts by the Chief Justice of the United States to serve on the FISA Court in addition to their regular judicial responsibilities, are not eligible for redesignation."

Sen. Feinstein added that "it is fitting to take note of the admirable service she has rendered as the presiding judge of an institution that is central to our Nation's commitment to conduct foreign intelligence within the rule of law."

Sen. Feinstein added that Kotelly's term, from 2002 to 2009, has been "a period of enormous challenge for the FISA Court. The work of the court, apart from limited releases of statistical information and the rare case in which a redacted opinion has been released publicly, occurs in secrecy."

"But while little is publicly known about her service as presiding judge, from the vantage point of the Senate Intelligence Committee I can say with confidence that the American people should be very grateful for her leadership of this most important court", said Sen. Feinstein.

Judge Kotelly's two most notable responsibilities in recent years have been presiding over the government's regulation of Microsoft, and reviewing government requests for FISA orders.

6/3. Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA), Rep. Howard Coble (R-NC), Rep. John Conyers (Dd-MI), and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) introduced HR 2675 [LOC | WW], the "Antitrust Criminal Penalty Enhancement and Reform Act of 2004 Extension Act".

The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee (HJC). Rep. Johnson (at left) and the other original cosponsors are all members of the HJC.

The 108th Congress passed HR 1086. Title II of that bill is the "Antitrust Criminal Penalty Enhancement and Reform Act of 2004". Former President Bush signed it into law on June 22, 2004. It is now Public Law No. 108-237.

Title II codified statutory authority for the antitrust leniency program, which is administered by the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division. However, the DOJ has had a leniency program since 1978.

The DOJ web page titled "Leniency Program" states that "The Antitrust Division's Leniency Program is its most important investigative tool for detecting cartel activity. Corporations and individuals who report their cartel activity and cooperate in the Division's investigation of the cartel reported can avoid criminal conviction, fines, and prison sentences if they meet the requirements of the program."

It creates an incentive for companies and people to report price fixing and other cartel activities to the DOJ.

However, the 2004 Act has a five year sunset. Section 211 states that "sections 211 through 214 shall cease to have effect 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act". That is, unless the Congress enacts further legislation, this statutory section will expire in two weeks. However, the 2004 Act provides antitrust leniency agreements that have already been entered into shall remain in effect.

The just introduced bill would extend the 2004 Act's antitrust leniency program, but only for one year.

The bill states that "Section 211(a) of the Antitrust Criminal Penalty Enhancement and Reform Act of 2004 (15 U.S.C. 1 note) is amended by striking `5 years´ and inserting `6 years´." It adds that "The amendment made by section 2 shall take effect immediately before June 22, 2009."

The DOJ does not disclose its leniency program agreements, or even leniency applicants. However, its criminal prosecutions for illegal cartel activities are public. For example, in the tech sector, the DOJ has criminally prosecuted both DRAM and LCD makers for price fixing.

6/4. By Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) and Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA) introduced HR 2695 [LOC | WW], the "Credit Card Fair Fee Act of 2009". This bill would amend the Clayton Act to provide limited antitrust immunity for internet and other merchants who accept credit and debit card payments when they jointly negotiate fees and terms with payment system providers.

The HJC issued a release. It states that "the merchant is charged a fee. As much as 90% of this fee comprises a so-called ``interchange fee,´´ which is the payment made by the merchant's bank to the consumer's bank. These fees are ultimately passed on to all consumers in the form of higher prices for goods and services. The fee percentage is set by the credit card companies, generally Visa or MasterCard, and averages 1.75% of the total purchase."

It adds that "In 2008, interchange fees from these two companies totaled approximately $48 billion, an increase of 189% since 2001. Visa and MasterCard control over 73% of the volume of transactions on general purpose cards in the United States and approximately 90% of the cards issued. Merchants are forced to deal within this system because it is simply not an option to refuse to accept Visa or MasterCard from their customers. They are presented with take-it-or-leave-it options and are not part of the process by which the fees are set."

Rep. Conyers (at left) stated in this release that "It is time to level the playing field for merchants and consumers".

He said that this bill "will give merchants a seat at the table in the determination of these fees. It is not an attempt at regulating the industry and does not mandate any particular outcome. This bill simply enhances competition by allowing merchants to negotiate with the dominant banks for the terms and rates of the fees."

The bill provides that "in negotiating access rates and terms any providers of a single covered electronic payment system and any merchants may jointly negotiate and agree upon the rates and terms for access to the covered electronic payment system, including through the use of common agents that represent either providers of a single covered electronic payment system or merchants on a nonexclusive basis".

The Clayton Act is codified at 15 U.S.C. §§ 12-27 and 29 U.S.C. §§ 52-53.

The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee (HJC). Rep. Conyers is the Chairman. Rep. Shuster is not a member.

6/4. Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA) and others introduced HR 2710 [LOC | WW], the "Enhancing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education Act of 2009".

This bill would require the creation of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) related units within the Executive Office of the President's (EOP) Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Department of Education.

It is intended to enhance STEM education by increasing coordination among government entities. See, Rep. Honda's web page for this legislation.

Rep. Honda introduced a similar bill in the 110th Congress, HR 6104 [LOC | WW]. Then Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) introduced the companion bill in the Senate, S 3047 [LOC | WW]. Neither body took any action on either bill.

6/5. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) held a meeting. See, video. New members were announced.

6/4. Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it once again held over consideration of S 417 [LOC | WW], the "States Secret Protection Act", and HR 985 [LOC | WW] and S 448 [LOC | WW], both titled the "Free Flow of Information Act of 2009". These items are again on the agenda for the SJC's next executive business meeting, scheduled for Thursday, June 11.

6/4. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee approved by voice vote HR 2392 [LOC | WW], the "The Government Information Transparency Act". See also, story titled "Rep. Issa Introduces XBRL Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,947, June 3, 2009.

6/4. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law held a hearing on HR 1508 [LOC | WW], the "Sunshine in Litigation Act of 2009". This bill would limit the ability of federal courts to issue protective orders and seal cases and settlement agreements. Leslie Bailey (Public Justice) wrote in her prepared testimony that "much of the civil litigation in this country is taking place in secret. Corporate defendants ... often refuse to produce documents in pretrial discovery without a protective order barring the plaintiff from sharing them with others. Gag orders prevent countless injury victims from publicly discussing the cause of their injuries as a condition of settling the case. Courts seal entire case files, making it impossible for the public or press to find out what happened. In short, through protective orders, secret settlements, and sealed court records, the public courts are being used by private parties to hide smoking-gun evidence of wrongdoing." In contrast, Judge Mark Kravitz (USDC/DConn) wrote in his prepared testimony that "the bill is unnecessary", would be burdensome to the courts, and would make it "difficult to protect important privacy interests".

6/4. The House Small Business Committee (HSBC) held a hearing titled "Legislative Initiatives to Strengthen and Modernize the SBIR and STTR Programs". SBIR is the Small Business Innovation Research program. STTR is the Small Business Technology Transfer program. See, HSBC web page with hyperlinks to prepared testimony.

6/4. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) issued its opinion [PDF] in Agilent v. Affymetrix, reversing the judgment of the District Court, which had sustained the decision of the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI) in an interference action brought by Agilent pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 146. This case is Agilent Technologies, Inc. v. Affymetrix, Inc., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, App. Ct. No. 2008-1466, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, D.C. No. 06-CV-05958, Judge James Ware presiding. Judge Rader wrote the opinion of the Court of Appeals, in which Judges Mayer and Richard Posner (7thCir) joined.

6/4. Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) spoke in the House regarding a blogger incarcerated in Egypt. He said that "A young human rights activist, Kareem Amer, was sentenced in February of 2007 to rot in prison for 4 years based solely on what he wrote on his blog. He is the first blogger of the Arab world to be jailed completely for his Internet comments. And his only crime was criticizing extremists who persecute women and minorities." He added that "President Obama should call for the release of Kareem to protect the free speech of all of us on the Internet." See, Congressional Record, June 4, 2009, at Page H6158. See also, June 3, 2009, statement in Rep. Kirk's web site.

6/3. Rep. Joe Pitts (R-PA) (at right) spoke in the House regarding freedom of speech on the internet in the People's Republic of China. He said that "China has made significant progress towards economic reform, but political reform is still needed to ensure the fundamental rights of the people, such as freedom of religion, expression and assembly. The Chinese Government continues to intimidate reporters, block Web sites, jam broadcasts and censor the Internet." See, Congressional Record, June 3, 2009, at Pages H6079-H6080.

6/3. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, spoke in the House regarding the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to be a Justice of the Supreme Court. He stated in the House that "national media have conspicuously ignored two recent stories about Judge Sotomayor. The Washington Times reported last week that three out of five majority decisions written by Judge Sotomayor and reviewed by the United States Supreme Court have been overturned. That's a 60 percent overturn rate. In another story, the Washington Times reported on findings of the Almanac of the Federal Judiciary. It revealed that out of 21 judges reviewed, Judge Sotomayor was the only one who received decidedly negative comments about her demeanor on the bench." See, Congressional Record, June 3, 2009, at Page H6127. The Constitution gives the Senate, but not the House, authority to confirm or reject judicial nominations.

5/28. The Digital Watermarking Alliance released a paper [PDF] titled "Digital Serial Numbers and Piracy Deterrence: The Deterrent Effect of Digital Serial Numbers on Illegal File-Sharing and Downloading". It argues, based on a survey of 994 people, that "DSN systems would have a strong deterrent effect on digital piracy". See also, DWA release.

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The House will meet at 12:30 PM for morning hour, and at 2:00 PM for legislative business. The House will consider HR 1736 [LOC | WW], the "International Science and Technology Cooperation Act of 2009", and HR 1709 [LOC | WW], the "STEM Education Coordination Act of 2009", under suspension of the rules. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 PM. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of June 8.

The Senate will meet at 2:00 PM. It will resume consideration of HR 1256 [LOC | WW], the "Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act".

9:00 AM - 4:30 PM. Day one of a two day event hosted by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) titled "2009 Software Developers Conference". See, notice in the Federal Register, April 27, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 79, at Page 19124. Location: Marriott Crystal Gateway Hotel, 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Sky Technologies v. SAP, App. Ct. No. 2008-1606. Location: Courtroom 201.

5:30 PM. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee will hold a business meeting to consider the nomination of Rand Beers to be the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Under Secretary for National Protection and Programs. See, notice. Location: Room 216, Capitol Building.

Day three of a five day event hosted by the Federation Internationale Des Conseils En Propriete Industrielle (FICPI) titled "World Congress". This event is open to FICPI members only. See, conference brochure [PDF]. Location: JW Marriott.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Copyright Royalty Judges (CRJ) in response to its Notice of Inquiry (NOI) regarding "the costs of census versus sample reporting to assist the Judges in the revision of the interim regulations for filing notices of use and the delivery of records of use of sound recordings under two statutory licenses of the Copyright Act". See, notice in the Federal Register, April 8, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 66, at Pages 15901-15904. See also, the CRJ's notice in the Federal Register regarding its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), Federal Register, December 30, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 250, at Pages 79727-79734, and the CRJ's web page with hyperlinks to the comments submitted in response to the NPRM.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Inquiry [59 pages in PDF] regarding the drafting of a "national broadband plan", as required by Section 6001(k) of HR 1 [LOC | WW], the huge spending bill passed by the Congress in February. See also, "Broadband Plan Statute: Public Law No. 111-5, § 6001(k)" and stories titled "FCC Releases NOI on Broadband Plan" and "Additional Questions Asked by FCC's Broadband Plan Notice of Inquiry" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,924, April 11, 2009. This NOI is FCC 09-31 in Docket No. GN 09-51.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in response to its notice of inquiry (NOI) regarding the September 30, 2009, expiration of the Joint Project Agreement (JPA) between the NTIA and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). There are hyperlinks to the original JPA and its amendments and modifications ICANN web page titled "ICANN's Major Agreements and Related Reports". See, notice in the Federal Register, April 24, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 78, at Pages 18688-18690.

Deadline to submit applications to the Department of State's (DOS) Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs' (BECA) Office of English Language Programs for grants under its E-Teacher Scholarship Program and Professional Development Workshop. The DOS will give $750,000 in grants to universities to teach English via the internet to persons in other countries. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 24, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 78, at Pages 18786-18792.

Deadline to submit applications to the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Privacy Office for appointment to the DHS Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 5, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 85, at Pages 20718-20719.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding the petition for extension of waiver filed by AT&T and Sprint Nextel requesting a one year extension of the current waiver of the FCC's rules to the extent that provision requires TRS providers providing relay service via the PSTN or a TTY to automatically and immediately call an appropriate PSAP when receiving an emergency 711-dialed call placed by an interconnected VOIP user. See, FCC Public Notice of April 1, 2009 (DA 09-749), and notice in the Federal Register, May 7, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 87, at Pages 21364-21366. This relates to WC Docket No. 04-36, CG Docket No. 03-123, WT Docket No. 96-198 and CC Docket No. 92-105

The House will meet at 10:30 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. The schedule for the week includes consideration of HR 2344 [LOC | WW], the "Webcaster Settlement Act of 2009", and HR 2675 [LOC | WW], the "Antitrust Criminal Penalty Enhancement and Reform Act of 2004 Extension Act". See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of June 8.

8:30 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 (VCAT). The agenda includes a discussion of documentary standards and health care information technology. See, notice in the Federal Register: May 15, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 93, at Page 22887. Location: Employees Lounge, Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, MD.

9:00 AM - 4:30 PM. Day two of a two day event hosted by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) titled "2009 Software Developers Conference". See, notice in the Federal Register, April 27, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 79, at Page 19124. Location: Marriott Crystal Gateway Hotel, 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA.

9:00 AM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee (RPTAC) will hold a partially closed meeting. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 26, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 98, at Page 23998. Location: Room 3884, Hoover Building, 14th St. NW, between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues.

9:00 - 11:00 AM. The Heritage Foundation will host an event titled "The Taiwan Relations Act's Enduring Legacy on Capitol Hill". See, notice. Location: Heritage, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

9:30 AM. Mary Ellen Callahan, the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Chief Privacy Officer will speak about fusion center privacy issues at the Governor's Homeland Security Advisory Council Meeting. Location: The Westin Arlington Gateway, 801 North Glebe Road, Arlington, VA.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law will hold a hearing HR 1521 [LOC | WW], the "Cell Tax Fairness Act of 2009". See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Homeland Security Committee's (HHSC) Subcommittee on on Emergency Communications, Preparedness, and Response Hearing will hold a hearing titled "The FY 2010 Budget for the Federal Emergency Management Agency". The FEMA has responsibilities regarding the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS). The HHSC will webcast this event. Location: Room 311, Cannon Building.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in ResQNet.com v. Lansa, App. Ct. No. 2008-1365. Location: Courtroom 201.

2:00 - 3:30 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division will host a seminar conducted by Cory Capps (Bates White) on his paper titled "Antitrust Treatment of Nonprofits". Capps is an economist who focuses on the health care sector. To request permission to attend, contact Patrick Greenlee at 202-307-3745 or atr dot eag at usdoj dot gov. Location: Bicentennial Building, 600 E St., NW.

Day one of a two day event titled "World Copyright Summit". See, conference web site. Location: Ronald Reagan Center.

Day four of a five day event hosted by the Federation Internationale Des Conseils En Propriete Industrielle (FICPI) titled "World Congress". This event is open to FICPI members only. See, conference brochure [PDF]. Location: JW Marriott.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of June 8.

8:30 - 11:45 AM. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology (VCAT). The agenda includes a discussion of documentary standards and health care information technology. See, notice in the Federal Register: May 15, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 93, at Page 22887. Location: Employees Lounge, Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, MD.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Privacy Office will host a public workshop titled "Privacy Compliance Fundamentals -- PTAs, PIAs, and SORNs". See, notice in the Federal Register, May 26, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 99, at Pages 24864-24865. Location: auditorium, GSA Regional Headquarters Building, 7th and D Streets, SW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee (SHSGAC) will hold a hearing on the nominations of Tara O’Toole to be the DHS's Under Secretary for Science and Technology and Jeffrey Zients to be the OMB's Deputy Director for Management. See, notice. Location: Room 342, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Research and Science Education will hold a hearing titled "Cyber Security R&D". The witnesses will be Seymour Goodman (Georgia Institute of Technology), Liesyl Franz (TechAmerica), Anita D'Amico (Applied Visions, Inc.), Fred Schneider (Cornell University), and Timothy Brown (CA Security Management). The HSC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

11:00 AM. Savi, a Lockheed Martin company, will host a news conference titled "Most Evrything Will Be Tracked & Managed Wirelessly". For more information, contact Mark Nelson at 650-316-4872 mnelson at savi dot com Location: National Press Club, 13th Floor, 529 14th St., NW.

12:00 NOON. The Cato Institute will host a panel discussion titled "Who Are the Real Free Traders in Congress?". The speakers will include Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) and Daniel Griswold (Cato). See, notice and registration page. Lunch will be served. Location: Room 608, Dirksen Building.

12:00 NOON - 3:00 PM. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will host a public seminar regarding compliance with its new rules requiring that financial reports be filed using XBRL. See, notice. Location: SEC, Room L-002, 100 F St., NW.

12:30 PM. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) will host a news conference titled "IAB Releases First-Ever Comprehensive Analysis of the Internet Economy". For more information, contact Maria Aaron at 212-380-4714 or maria at iab dot net. Location: Zenger Room, National Press Club, 13th Floor, 529 14th St., NW.

5:30 - 7:30 PM. TechAmerica will host an event titled "Annual Technology for Government Reception". The speakers will include Vint Cerf. Prices vary. Location: Mayflower Hotel.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The New America Foundation (NAF) will host an event titled "The Open Technology Initiative". The speakers will be Rick Whitt (Google), Christopher Libertelli (Skype), Ben Scott (Free Press), Helen Brunner (Media Democracy Fund), and Sascha Meinrath (NAF). See, notice. Wine will be served. Location: NAF, 4th floor, 1899 L St., NW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "The Judicial Year in Review". The speakers will be Richard Welch and Joseph Palmore (FCC Office of the General Counsel), Sam Feder and William Hohengarten (Jenner & Block), Aaron Panner (Kellogg Huber), Kannon Shanmugam (Williams & Connolly), and Helgi Walker (Wiley Rein). Prices vary. Location: Wiley Rein, 1776 K St., NW.

Day five of a five day event hosted by the Federation Internationale Des Conseils En Propriete Industrielle (FICPI) titled "World Congress". This event is open to FICPI members only. See, conference brochure [PDF]. Location: JW Marriott.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of June 8.

8:30 AM. Day one of a two day meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee (ETRAC). The agenda includes consideration of deemed exports. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 26, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 99, at Pages 24819-24820. Location: Room 3884, Hoover Building, 14th St. NW, between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues.

8:45 AM - 4:00 PM. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission will hold an open meeting titled "The Implications of China's Naval Modernization on the United States". See, notice in the Federal Register, May 28, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 101, at Page 25611. Location: Room 562, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda yet again includes consideration of S 417 [LOC | WW], the "States Secret Protection Act", and HR 985 [LOC | WW] and S 448 [LOC | WW], both titled the "Free Flow of Information Act of 2009". See, stories titled "Senate Judiciary Committee to Consider State Secrets Bill" and "9th Circuit Rules in State Secrets Case" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,933, April 29, 2009. The agenda also again includes consideration of the nominations of David Lynch to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals (2ndCir) and Mary Smith to be Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Tax Division. The SJC rarely follows its published agendas. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet will meet regarding HR 1084 [LOC | WW], the "Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act", or "CALM", HR 1147 [LOC | WW], the "Local Community Radio Act Of 2009", and HR 1133 [LOC | WW], the "Family Telephone Connection Protection Act Of 2009". The HCC web site does not specify whether this is a hearing or a mark up. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON. The Cato Institute will host a panel discussion titled "Fusion Centers: Domestic Spying or Sensible Surveillance?". The speakers will include Bruce Fein (The Lichfield Group), Harvey Eisenberg (Chief, National Security Section, Office of United States Attorney, District of Maryland), Michael German (ACLU), and Tim Lynch (Cato). See, notice and registration page. Lunch will be served after the program. Location: Cato, 1000 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

12:00 NOON. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a lunch. The speaker will be Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA). Location: Capital Hilton, 1001 16th St., NW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to the FCC's notice regarding the National Exchange Carrier Association's (NECA) proposed compensation rates for interstate traditional telecommunications relay service (TRS), interstate Speech-to-Speech (STS) relay service, interstate captioned telephone service (CTS) and interstate and intrastate Internet Protocol (IP) captioned telephone service (IP CTS), interstate and intrastate IP Relay, and interstate and intrastate Video Relay Service (VRS). This is also the deadline to submit reply comments in response to the proposed carrier contribution factor and funding requirement for the Interstate TRS Fund. This item is FCC 09-39 in CG Docket No. 03-123 and WC Docket No. 05-196. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 21, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 97, at Pages 23859-23860.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking whether or not it should adopt new Video Relay Service (VRS) reimbursement rates that reflect the cost data in the fund administrator's recent filing with the FCC, rather than continuing the current rates. This item is FCC 09-39 in CG Docket 03-123. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 21, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 97, at Pages 23815-23816.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order [63 pages in PDF] regarding revising the FCC's Schedule of Regulatory Fees. The FCC adopted this item on May 11, 2009, and released the text on May 14. It is FCC 09-38 in MD Docket No. 09-65. See also, notice in the Federal Register, June 2, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 104, at Pages 26329-26360.

The House may meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of June 8.

8:30 AM. Day two of a two day meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee (ETRAC). The agenda includes consideration of deemed exports. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 26, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 99, at Pages 24819-24820. Location: Room 3884, Hoover Building, 14th St. NW, between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The Progress & Freedom Foundation (PFF) will host a panel discussion titled "Broadband Competition: Is the Glass Half Empty or Half Full?". The speakers will be Jeffrey Eisenach, Larry Darby (Darby Associates), George Ford (Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies), Robert Atkinson (Information Technology and Innovation Foundation), and Thomas Hazlett (George Mason University). Lunch will be served. See, notice. Location: Congressional Meeting Room North (CVC-268), Capitol Visitor's Center.

12:15 - 1:45 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) Homeland Security/Emergency Communications Practice Committee will host brown bag lunch titled "Latest Developments in Cybersecurity". The speakers will be Deborah Parkinson (Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee staff), James Lewis (Center for Strategic and International Studies), and Marcus Sachs (Verizon). For more information, contact Nneka Ezenwa at Nneka dot n dot ezenwa at verizon dot com. Location: Verizon, 5th floor, 1300 I St., NW.

Extended deadline to submit grants applications to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) under the Low Power Television and Translator Digital to Analog Conversion Program.

Extended deadline for full power television stations to cease analog broadcasting. See, S 352 [LOC | WW], the "DTV Delay Act".

Deadline to register with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to participate in it pre-auction seminar for Auction 79, regarding 122 construction permits in the FM broadcast service. See, May 29, 2009, public notice (DA 09-152), and notice in the Federal Register, May 29, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 102, at Pages 25737-25744.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its SP 800-117 [25 pages in PDF] titled "Guide to Adopting and Using the Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP)".

12:00 NOON. The Cato Institute will host a panel discussion titled "Restoring the Pro-Trade Consensus". The speakers will be Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) and Daniel Ikenson (Cato). See, notice and registration page. Lunch will be served. Location: Room B-340, Rayburn Building.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Engineering and Technical Practice Committee, Wireless Telecommunications Practice Committee, and Young Lawyers Committee, will host a brown bag lunch titled "Bridging the Gap: Wireless 101 -- An Introduction to Wireless Technologies and Regulation". The speaker will be Tom Dombrowsky (engineering consultant at Wiley Rein). For more information, contact Cathy Hilke at chilke at wileyrein dot com or Micah Caldwell at mcaldwell at fh-law dot com. Location: Wiley Rein, 1776 K St., NW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding the petition for rulemaking [60 pages in PDF] filed by the American Bird Conservancy (ABC), Defenders of Wildlife and National Audubon Society. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 8, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 88, at Pages 21613-21614. See, FCC Public Notice of April 29, 2009 (DA 09-904), February 19, 2008 opinion [PDF] of the U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) in ABC v. FCC, and story titled "DC Circuit Vacates FCC Order Regarding Birds and Towers" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,724, February 27, 2008. This relates to WT Docket Nos. 08-61 and 03-187.

Deadline to submit replies to oppositions to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to the petitions for partial reconsideration of the FCC's Second Report and Order and Order on Reconsideration (also know as the second internet based TRS order) filed by the Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc. and the TDI Coalition, and by GoAmerica, Inc. The FCC adopted and released this second internet based TRS order [47 pages in PDF] on December 19, 2009. It is FCC 08-275 in CG Docket No. 03-123 and WC Docket No. 05-196. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 20, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 96, at Pages 23715-23716.