9/24. Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) introduced S 1714 [LOC | WW], the "Open College Textbook Act of 2009'", a bill pertaining to copyright and books.

The Constitution creates a mechanism for incenting the research, writing, production and distribution of books and other written works. It give Congress the power "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries". Congress has responded by enacting and continually updating the Copyright Act.

Sen. Durbin's bills would take an entirely different approach -- government subsidies. He proposes government spending for open license books, to be distributed online, to any user, that are not subject to the exclusive rights of copyright. The title of the bill references "College Textbook", but the bill would make books available to "the public".

Bill Summary. S 1714 states in its recitation of findings that "The growth of the Internet has enabled the creation and sharing of open content, including open educational resources."

It continues that "The College Board reported that for the 2007-2008 academic year an average student spent an estimated $805 to $1,229 on college books and supplies", and that "Making high quality open textbooks freely available to the general public could significantly lower college textbook costs and increase accessibility to such education materials."

The bill would not amend the Copyright Act. Nor would it withdraw copyright protection from any works. Rather, it would finance the acquisition of licenses for the general public to copy and alter works. It would authorize appropriations for the Department of Education to spend on the award of grants to "eligible entities" for "creating, updating, or adapting open textbooks". The bill does not authorize any specific amounts.

The bill defines an "open textbook" as "a textbook or set of course materials in electronic format designed for use in a college course at an institution of higher education that is licensed under an open license".

It defines "open license" as "an irrevocable intellectual property license that grants the public the right to access, customize, and distribute a copyrighted material".

The bill provides that "The full and complete digital content of each open textbook created, updated, or adapted under paragraph (1) shall be (A) posted on an easily accessible and interoperable website, which site shall be identified to the Secretary by the eligible entity; and (B) made available free of charge to, and may be downloaded, redistributed, changed, revised, or otherwise altered by, any member of the general public".

House Bills. This bill has similarities to HR 1464 [LOC | WW], the "Learning Opportunities With Creation of Open Source Textbooks (LOW COST) Act of 2009" introduced by Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL) on March 12, 2009. HR 1464 has been referred to the House Science and Technology Committee and the House Education and Labor Committee, which have taken no action on the bill.

Also, HR 3221 [LOC | WW], the "Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009", which the House passed on September 17, 2009, permits the Secretary of Education to use grant funding for online course and instructional materials.

It provides at Section 505 as follows: "Open Online Education. From the amount appropriated to carry out this section, the Secretary is authorized to make competitive grants to, or enter into contracts with, institutions of higher education, philanthropic organizations, and other appropriate entities to develop, evaluate, and disseminate freely-available high-quality online courses, including instructional materials, for training and postsecondary education readiness and success."

Analysis. Sen. Durbin (at right) wrote in his Senate statement that "I believe this initiative will help make higher education more accessible for students, especially non-traditional students or students living in rural areas far away from brick-and-mortar institutions. Because the courses will be available for free, the initiative will also help bring down the high cost of a college education for students struggling to pay." See, Congressional Record, September 24, 2009, at Page S9850.

Neither Sen. Durbin's bill, nor Rep. Foster's, would do anything to address the market irregularities that contribute to the prices of textbooks. For example, in many college courses decisions regarding the structure of a course, and which books must be read, are made by the course professor, who does not bear the cost of the purchasing the book. The students, like any consumers purchasing a good or service, have an incentive to search for the lowest priced offerings in a given market. But, they do not have this choice in college books. And, professors are acting pursuant to different incentives, which can lead to assignment of high priced books.

Many universities are organized according to principles, such as prevailing concepts of academic freedom, that would preclude college management from directing professors regarding which books to assign. The bill does not attempt to alter the structure of universities.

Moreover, any attempt by the federal government to mandate the use of certain books would face invalidation by the judicial branch on First Amendment grounds.

Hence, the bill merely states that "It is the sense of Congress that institutions of higher education should encourage the consideration of open textbooks by professors within the generally accepted principles of academic freedom that established the right and responsibility of faculty members, individually and collectively, to select course materials that are pedagogically most appropriate for their classes."

Sen. Durbin added that "a set of high-quality college textbooks that could be adopted in any introductory course at any college in the country. This would be a limited investment of Federal grant funding over just a few years, not a permanent federal funding stream. The choice would ultimately still be the professor's. Each professor could choose whether to assign the open textbook to his class, but I hope that he would seriously consider this high-quality, free online option that would save his students $150 or $200 each at the college bookstore."

9/22. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Sen. Kay Hutchison (R-TX) introduced S 1694 [LOC | WW], an untitled bill that would allow the funding for the interoperable emergency communications grant program established under the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005 to remain available until expended through fiscal year 2012.

The bill was referred to the Senate Commerce Committee (SCC). Sen. Rockefeller (at left) and Sen. Hutchison are the Chairman and ranking Republican, respectively. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), also a member of the SCC, joined as a cosponsor on September 25, 2009.

The "Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005" was enacted as Title III of S 1932 (109th Congress), the "Deficit Reduction Act of 2005". President Bush signed the bill on February 8, 2006. It is now Public Law No. 109-171. It is codified in 47 U.S.C. § 330 and 47 U.S.C § 309 (notes). See also, story titled "Congress Enacts DTV Transition Legislation" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,303, February 3, 2006.

S 1694 provides first that "Notwithstanding section 3006(a)(2) of the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005 (47 U.S.C. 309 note), sums made available to administer the Public Safety Interoperable Communications Grant Program under section 309(j)(8)(E) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 309(j)(8)(E)) shall remain available until expended, but not beyond September 30, 2012."

It then provides that "The period for performance of any investment approved under the Program as of the date of enactment of this Act shall be extended by one year, but not later than September 30, 2011, except that the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information may extend, on a case-by-case basis, the period of performance for any investment approved under the Program as of that date for a period of not more than 2 years, but not later than September 30, 2012. In making a determination as to whether an extension beyond September 30, 2011, is warranted, the Assistant Secretary should consider the circumstances that gave rise to the need for the extension, the likelihood of completion of performance within the deadline for completion, and such other factors as the Assistant Secretary deems necessary to make the determination."

Sen. Rockefeller explained that the Digital Television and Public Safety Act of 2005 authorized the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (DHS), in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), to implement the Public Safety Interoperable Communications Grant Program. He said that "This program provided a one-time, formula-based, matching grant opportunity for public safety agencies to improve interoperable communications systems." See, Congressional Record, September 22, 2009, at Page S9680

He continued. "But now millions of these dollars are at risk. The September 30, 2010, deadline for expending funds that is a holdover from the original legislation could inadvertently jeopardize the effectiveness of public safety communications projects in States across the country. Many grantees spent the first year of the grant period developing required plans and justifications and then awaiting approvals" from the DHS and NTIA.

"As a result, many grantees did not have the full 3-year award period to acquire and deploy interoperable communications equipment. They face the real possibility of reaching the September 30, 2010, deadline with communications projects incomplete. In short, it is no longer sensible to bind the States to this original deadline in 2010."

Sen. Rockefeller concluded that "By extending the September 30, 2010, deadline by one year and on a case-by-case basis two years, we can make sure that the funds are used exactly as Congress intended. We can make sure that public safety projects are not stranded due to arbitrary deadlines."

9/23. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) introduced S 1696 [LOC | WW], the "Green Gaming Act of 2009", a bill that requires that the Secretary of Energy "shall conduct a study of ... video game console energy use". It was referred to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

9/22. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), and Sen. Ted Kaufman (D-DE) introduced S 1692 [LOC | WW], the "USA PATRIOT Act Sunset Extension Act of 2009", a bill to extend for four years several provisions of the 2001 surveillance act that are set to expire at the end of the year, and to make amendments to surveillance related statutes.

9/17. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) and others introduced S 1686 [LOC | WW], the "Judicious Use of Surveillance Tools In Counterterrorism Efforts Act of 2009" or "JUSTICE Act", a bill to amend surveillance related statutes.

6/8. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and others introduced S 1653 [LOC | WW], the "Federal Judgeship Act of 2009", a bill to increase the number of judgeships. All of the 18 cosponsors are Democrats. The enthusiasm of Senators and Representatives for creating more judgeships correlates directly with whether or not those legislators' party controls the Senate and the White House. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing on this bill at 2:30 PM on Wednesday, September 30, 2009.

9/25. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed an amicus curiae brief with the Supreme Court in American Needle. v. National Football League, an antitrust case involving the issue of whether a entity with members is engaged in collective action.

The National Football League (NFL) and its 32 separately owned and operated member teams have agreed to license their trademarks and logos to manufacturers exclusively through the National Football League Properties (NFLP). The NFLP entered into an exclusive contract with Reebok. The plaintiff in the District Court, and the petitioner to the Supreme Court, is a manufacturer who did not get a contract with the NFLP, American Needle.

It alleged violation by the NFL, its member teams, and the NFLP of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, which is codified at 15 U.S.C. § 1. However, as construed by the Supreme Court, Section 1 only prohibits collective action by separate entities. The issue in this case is whether the defendants should be treated as one entity. The District Court granted summary judgment to the NFL defendants on the Section 1 claim. The U.S. Court of Appeals (7thCir) affirmed.

The DOJ and FTC argue that the judgment below should be vacated, and the case remanded. This case is significant, not only for sports leagues, but also for other hybrid entities, such as real estate multiple listing services, and charge card companies.

This case is American Needle, Inc. v. National Football League, Sup. Ct. No. 08-661, a petition for writ of certiorari to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, App. Ct. No. 07-4006. See also, Supreme Court docket.

9/17. The Senate confirmed Gerard Lynch to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. See, Congressional Record, September 17, 2009, at Page S9573.

9/15. The Senate confirmed six persons to be U.S. Attorneys for four year terms: Neil MacBride (Eastern District of Virginia), Steven Dettelbach (Northern District of Ohio), Carter Stewart (Southern District of Ohio), Peter Nerohna (Rhode Island), Daniel Bogden (Nevada), and Dennis Burke (Arizona). See, Congressional Record, September 15, 2009, at Page S9390.

9/25. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released a paper titled "Designed for Change: End-to-End Arguments, Internet Innovation, and the Net Neutrality Debate". The author is the ITIF's Richard Bennett. He argues that "fears of a telecom and cable industry takeover of the Internet are vastly overblown". He concludes that "The Internet of the Future will embed a great deal more traffic engineering capability into the infrastructure than the research Internet did. This development need not be cause for alarm as long as access to new capabilities inside the network is reasonable, pro-competitive, and conducive to innovation in the application space. As the evolution continues, we will come to understand that the ultimate value of end-to-end arguments is the caution they provide against migrating functions from network endpoints to the network middle without empirical justification. We should understand end-to-end arguments as laying out a design and implementation process, not a wholesale ban on network-based acceleration. This understanding of the end-to-end arguments brings them in line with the current state of the Internet -- and is actually consistent with the original formulations of the datagram architecture that’s found its fullest expression in the Internet."

9/24. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) released its Senate Report No. 111-079, its report on S 251 [LOC | WW], the "Safe Prisons Communications Act of 2009". Sen. Kay Hutchison (R-TX) introduced this bill on January 15, 2009. The SCC held a hearing on July 15, 2009. The SCC amended and approved the bill on August 5, 2009. See, story titled "Senate Commerce Committee Approves Bill to Allow Cell Phone Jamming by State Prisons" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,976, August 5, 2009.

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Yom Kippur.

The House will not meet.

The Senate will not meet.

9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host an event titled "Benchmarking Leading Countries' National Innovation Policies". The speakers will be Rob Atkinson (ITIF), Stephen Ezell (ITIF), Debra Amidon (Entovation International), Peter Westerstråhle (government of Finland), and Christopher Caine (Mercator XXI). See, notice. The ITIF will webcast this event. Location: ITIF, 1101 K St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Diversity Committee will host a brown bag lunch for planning purposes. For more information, contact Edgar Class at eclass at wileyrein dot com or 202-719-7504. Location: Wiley Rein, Conference Room 9E, 1750 K St., NW.

EXTENDED TO OCTOBER 16. Deadline to submit reply comments to the Copyright Office regarding its proposed rules regarding registration of copyright in online works. See, original notice in the Federal Register, July 15, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 134, at Pages 34286-34290, and extension notice in the Federal Register, September 22, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 182, at Page 48191. See also, story titled "Copyright Office Proposes New Rules for Registration of Online Only Works" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,970, July 15, 2009.

EXTENDED TO SEPTEMBER 30. Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its Notice of Inquiry (NOI) [23 pages in PDF] in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Implementation of Section 6002(b) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (and) Annual Report and Analysis of Competitive Market Conditions With Respect to Mobile Wireless including Commercial Mobile Services". (Parentheses added.) This NOI is FCC 09-67 in WT Docket No. 09-66. The FCC adopted and released this NOI on August 27, 2009. See, notice of extension (FCC 09-72).

EXTENDED TO SEPTEMBER 30. Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its Notice of Inquiry (NOI) [23 pages in PDF] in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Fostering Innovation and Investment in the Wireless Communications Market (and) A National Broadband Plan For Our Future". (Parentheses added.) This NOI is FCC 09-66 in GN Docket Nos. 09-157 and No. 09-51. The FCC adopted and released this NOI on August 27, 2009. See, notice of extension (FCC 09-73).

The House will meet at 12:30 PM for morning hour, and at 2:00 PM for legislative business. It will consider numerous non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 PM. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 28.

The Senate will meet at 11:30  AM. It will resume consideration of HR 3326 [LOC | WW], the "Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010".

Opening conference of the Supreme Court, October Term 2009. See, Supreme Court calendar.

8:00 - 10:00 AM. The TechAmerica and the Career College Association will host a panel discussion titled "Building the Health IT Workforce in an Era of Industry Reform". The speakers will include Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D-PA), Aneesh Chopra (federal Chief Technology Officer), and others. Breakfast will be served. Location: Room B-339, Rayburn Building, Capitol Hill.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. The Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) and MOFCOM's High Technology Working Group (HTWG) will meet. At 1:30 - 3:00 PM there will be a panel on information technology. See, agenda. Location: Ronald Reagan International Trade Center.

10:00 AM. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee's (SHSGA) Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight will hold a hearing titled "Improving Transparency and Accessibility of Federal Contracting Databases". The witnesses will be Vivek Kundra (Federal Chief Technology Officer), Trey Hodgkins (TechAmerica), William Woods (GAO), and Adam Hughes (OMB Watch), See, notice. Location: Room 342, Dirksen Building.

1:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host an event titled "open meeting". The agenda [PDF] includes a staff report on the status of the FCC drafting of document titled "National Broadband Plan". See also, revised notice released on September 22. For more information, contact Jen Howard at 202-418-0506 or jen dot howard at fcc dot gov. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "How to Protect and Enforce Trademark Rights". The speakers will be Shauna Wertheim (Marbury Law Group) and Steven Hollman (Hogan & Hartson). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. Most DC Bar events are not open to the public. This event qualifies for continuing legal education (CLE) credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3488. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

Day one of a two day conference hosted by the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) titled "Identity Management 2009: Transparent Government: Risks, Rewards, and Repercussions". Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Chief Privacy Officer Mary Ellen Callahan and Ari Schwartz (Center for Democracy and Technology) will give keynote speeches at about 11:15 AM. See, conference web site and agenda for September 29. Location: National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. It will consider numerous non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 28.

8:20 AM. The Bethesda Chapter of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) will host a breakfast and panel discussion. One of the speakers will be Bruce McConnell, Counselor to National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) Deputy Under Secretary Phil Reitinger. See, notice. Prices vary. See, notice. Location: Bethesda North Marriott Hotel, 5701 Marinelli Road, Bethesda, MD.

9:00 AM - 12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "Workshop: Cyber Security". See, FCC web page related to the drafting of a document titled "National Broadband Plan", and web page for this event. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing titled "Advancing Freedom of Information in the New Era of Responsibility". The witnesses will be Thomas Perrelli (Associate Attorney General), Miriam Nisbet (National Archives and Records Administration), Tom Curley (AP), and Meredith Fuchs (GWU's National Security Archive). The SJC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee (SHSGAC) will hold a hearing titled "Eight Years After 9/11: Confronting the Terrorist Threat to the Homeland". The witnesses will be Janet Napolitano (Secretary of Homeland Security), Robert Mueller (Director of the FBI), and Michael Leiter (Office of the Director of National Intelligence). Location: Room 342, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Small Business Committee's (HSBC) Subcommittee on Contracting & Technology will hold a hearing titled "Expiring Tax Incentives: Examining their Importance for Small Businesses on the Road to an Economic Recovery". Location: Room 2360, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Antitrust Law will host a brown bag lunch titled "The Origins of the Federal Trade Commission". The topic will be "the history of the antitrust laws and U.S. regulatory institutions". The speaker will be Marc Winerman (attorney adviser to FTC Commissioner William Kovacic). To request permission to participate by teleconference, see notice. To request permission to attend, contact Ellen Owens at elowens at jonesday dot com. Location: Jones Day, 7th floor, 300 New Jersey Ave., NW.

2:00 PM. The House Homeland Security Committee's (HHSC) Subcommittee on Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection will hold a hearing titled "The Future of the Registered Traveler Program". The HHSC will webcast this hearing. Location: Room 311, Cannon Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee's (SJC) Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts will hold a hearing titled "Responding to the Growing Need for Federal Judgeships: The Federal Judgeship Act of 2009". See, notice. The SJC will webcast this event. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

3:00 - 4:30 PM. The American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Intellectual Property Law will host a panel discussion, by audio webcast and teleconference, titled "Trademark Fraud on the USPTO: A New Landscape". See, August 31, 2009, opinion [12 pages in PDF] of the U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) in In Re Bose, App. Ct. No. 2008-1448. The speakers will be Bill Barber (Pirkey Barber), Beth Chapman (Oblon Spivak), Charles Hieken (Fish & Richardson), and John Welch (Lando & Anastasi). Prices vary. See, notice.

6:00 - 7:30 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Making Trademark Owners Whole: An Insightful Overview of Measuring and Proving Trademark Damages". The speakers will be Abram Hoffman and Danny Awdeh (Finnegan Henderson). The price to attend ranges from $20 to $35. Most DC Bar events are not open to the public. This event does not qualify for continuing legal education (CLE) credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3488. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

Day two of a two day conference hosted by the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) titled "Identity Management 2009: Transparent Government: Risks, Rewards, and Repercussions". At about 8:30 AM, Jim Harper (Director of Information Policy Studies at the Cato Institute) will give a keynote speech titled "Identity Systems and People: Understanding the Values that Technical Systems Affect". At 12:00 NOON, Ramaswamy Chandramouli (Supervisory Computer Scientist, Information Technology Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology) will give a speech titled "Perspectives on the Cloud and Standards". At 1:00 PM, Giles Hogben (European Network & Information Security Agency) will give a remote speech titled "Cloud Nine? Assessing the Risks in Cloud Computing". See, conference web site and agenda for September 30. Location: NIST, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

Scheduled date for the Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Department of Transportation's (DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to approve and announce grant awards under under the E-911 grant program authorized by the ENHANCE 911 Act. See, notice in the Federal Register, June 5, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 107, at Pages 26965-26981, and story titled "NTIA and NHTSA Publish E-911 Grant Program Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,949, June 5, 2009.

Deadline to submit to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) nominations for membership on its Technological Advisory Council (TAC). See, notice in the Federal Register, September 8, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 172, at Pages 46198-46199.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its draft SP 800-81 Rev. 1 [118 pages in PDF] titled "Secure Domain Name System (DNS) Deployment Guide".

Extended deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its Notice of Inquiry (NOI) [23 pages in PDF] in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Implementation of Section 6002(b) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (and) Annual Report and Analysis of Competitive Market Conditions With Respect to Mobile Wireless including Commercial Mobile Services". (Parentheses added.) This NOI is FCC 09-67 in WT Docket No. 09-66. The FCC adopted and released this NOI on August 27, 2009. See, notice of extension (FCC 09-72).

Extended deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its Notice of Inquiry (NOI) [23 pages in PDF] in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Fostering Innovation and Investment in the Wireless Communications Market (and) A National Broadband Plan For Our Future". (Parentheses added.) This NOI is FCC 09-66 in GN Docket Nos. 09-157 and No. 09-51. The FCC adopted and released this NOI on August 27, 2009. See, notice of extension (FCC 09-73).

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 28.

8:30 AM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee (ETRAC) will hold a partially closed meeting. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 16, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 178, at Page 47558. Location: DOC, Room 4830, 14th St. between Pennsylvania and Constitution Aves., NW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of HR 985 [LOC | WW] and S 448 [LOC | WW], both titled the "Free Flow of Information Act of 2009", and S 1692 [LOC | WW], the "USA PATRIOT Act Sunset Extension Act of 2009". The agenda also includes consideration of four judicial nominees: Joseph Greenaway (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit), Roberto Lange (USDC/DSDak), Irene Berger (USDC/DWVa), and Charlene Honeywell (USDC/MDFl). See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

POSTPONED. 10:00 AM. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation will hold a hearing titled "The Department of Homeland Security’s R&D Priorities for Fiscal Year 2010". The HSC will webcast this hearing. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold hearing titled "Capital Formation in the Broadband Sector" to assist it in drafting a "National Broadband Plan". See, release. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

2:00 PM. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee's (HOGRC) Subcommittee on Information Policy will hold a hearing titled "Requirements and Compliance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act". Location: Room 2154, Rayburn Building.

2:30 PM. The Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Bureau of Economics will host a presentation by Kate Ho (Columbia). She has published papers on health care markets. Location: FTC, ground floor Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Ave., NW.

Effective date of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) rules changes that allow AM stations to use currently authorized FM translators for fill-in service within their current coverage areas. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 1, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 168, at Pages 45126-45131.

Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 28 states that "no votes are expected in the House".

TIME? The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) will hold a hearing to assist it in preparing its annual report to the Congress on the People's Republic of China's (PRC) compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 31, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 167, at Pages 44895-44896. Location: OUSTR, Room 1, 1724, F St., NW.

8:30 AM. Day two of a meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee (ETRAC). See, notice in the Federal Register, September 16, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 178, at Page 47558. Location: DOC, Room 3884, 14th St. between Pennsylvania and Constitution Aves., NW.

8:30 AM - 4:45 PM. George Mason University (GMU) School of Law will host a partially closed event titled "Tragedies of the Gridlock Economy: How Mis-configuring Property Rights Stymies Social Efficiencies". The event is open to the public from 8:30 to 10:30 AM. It is closed from 10:30 AM to 4:45 PM. The closed portion includes panel discussions titled "Patent Thickets", "Relocation of the TV Band", and "Google Books Litigation". At 8:30 AM Michael Heller and Richard Epstein will discuss Heller's book [Amazon] titled "The Gridlock Economy: How Too Much Ownership Wrecks Markets, Stops Innovation, and Costs Lives". The speakers for the patent panel will be Michael Meurer (Boston University law school), Scott Kieff (Washington University school of law), and Adam Mossoff (GMU law school). The speakers for the spectrum panel will be Kevin Werbach (University of Pennsylvania business school), Thomas Hazlett (George Mason University law school), and Gerald Faulhaber (University of Pennsylvania business school). The speakers for the Google Books panel will be Doug Lichtman (UCLA law school), Robert Merges (UC Berkeley law school), and Chris Newman (GMU law school). To solicit an invitation to the closed portion of the event, contact iep dot gmu at gmail dot com. Location: GMU School of Law, Arlington, VA.

9:00 -11:30 AM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a panel discussion titled "The Supreme Court's Business". The speakers will be Michael Greve (AEI), Brian Brooks (O'Melveny & Myers), John Elwood (Vinson & Elkins), and Jeremy Rabkin (George Mason University Law School). See, notice. Breakfast will be served. Location: AEI, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

9:30 AM - 4:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "Workshop: Diversity and Civil Rights Issues in Broadband Policy". See, FCC web page related to the drafting of a document titled "National Broadband Plan", and web page for this event. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Inquiry (NOI) [62 pages in PDF] in its proceeding titled "In the Matters of Inquiry Concerning the Deployment of Advanced Telecommunications Capability to All Americans in a Reasonable and Timely Fashion, and Possible Steps to Accelerate Such Deployment Pursuant to Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, as Amended by the Broadband Data Improvement Act (and) A National Broadband Plan for Our Future". (Parentheses added.) This NOI is FCC 09-65 in GN Docket Nos. 09-137 and 09-51. The FCC adopted this NOI on July 31, 2009, and released the text on August 7, 2009.

Day one of a three day event hosted by the Future of Music Coalition titled "Future of Music Coalition Policy Summit". See, schedule. Location: Gaston Hall and Conference Center, Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets, NW.

There will be no votes in the House.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the Future of Music Coalition titled "Future of Music Coalition Policy Summit". See, schedule. Location: Gaston Hall and Conference Center, Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets, NW.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hold oral argument in Rural Cellular Association v. FCC, App. Ct. Nos.08-1284 and 08-1285. These are petitions for review of the FCC's order setting a cap on the high cost universal service support subsidies given to competitive eligible telecommunications carriers. See, FCC's brief [PDF]. Judges Tatel, Brown and Williams will preside. Location: 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Peer Communications v. Skype, App. Ct. No. 1069. This is a patent infringement case involving peer to peer communications technology. Location: Courtroom 203.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in IGT v. Alliance Gaming, App. Ct. No. 2009-1110. Location: Courtroom 201.

7:00 - 8:30 PM. The National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) will host a premeeting for its two day meeting of October 6-7. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 25, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 185, at Page 49041. Location: Holiday Inn Rosslyn-Key Bridge, 1900 N. Fort Myer Drive, Arlington, VA.

7:30 - 9:30 PM. The New America Foundation (NAF) and the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) will host an event titled "Fun With Key Management". For example, data can be given an expiration date. The speaker will be Radia Perlman (Sun Microsystems). See, notice and registration page. Location: NAF, 4th floor, 1899 L St., NW.

Effective date of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) rules implementing HR 3403 [LOC | WW], the "New and Emerging Technologies 911 Improvement Act of 2008" or "NET 911 Act". President Bush signed this bill into law on July 23, 2008. The FCC adopted and released its Report and Order [59 pages in PDF] containing these rules on October 21, 2008. It is FCC 08-249 in WC Docket No. 08-171. See also, stories titled "FCC Adopts VOIP 911 Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,847, October 27, 2008. See also, notice in the Federal Register, July 6, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 127, at Pages 31860-31874.

Deadline to submit comments to the Census Bureau (CB) in response to its "interim final rule" amending the Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR) to eliminate the requirement to report a social security number (SSN) as an identification number when registering to file and filing electronic export information in the Automated Export System (AES) or AESDirect. The CB further states that the "effective date" of this rules change is September 4, 209, and the "implementation date" is December 3, 2009. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 5, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 149, at Pages 38914-38916.