4/15. Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA), Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI), and Sen. Edward Kaufman (D-DE) introduced S 3214 [LOC | WW | PDF], the "Surreptitious Video Surveillance Act of 2010". This bill would criminalize video surveillance in the home without consent.

It would treat this video surveillance similarly in most respects to how Title III currently treats wiretaps and intercepts of electronic communications. It would ban both private and governmental video surveillance. However, as with intercepts, the government could obtain court authorization.

Sen. Specter (at right) introduced this bill in part as a reaction to recent events in his home state of Pennsylvania. He stated in the Senate that "Earlier this year, in Lower Merion Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, it was discovered that laptops taken home by students could be activated by school officials and thereby see what was going on inside a private residence." See, Congressional Record, April 15, 2010, at Page S2379.

See also, stories titled "Senate Judiciary Subcommittee to Hold Hearing on Video Laptop Surveillance", "Class Action Complaint Alleges School District Use of Laptops to Surveil Students", "Analysis of Claims in Robbins v. Lower Marion School District", and "School District Webcams and 2252/2252A" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,062, March 23, 2010.

He stated, "Surprisingly, this kind of surreptitious surveillance is not prohibited under Federal law. The wiretap laws specify it is a violation of law to intercept a telephone conversation or to have a microphone that overhears a private conversation, but if it is visual, there is no prohibition."

He said that this bill "is necessary to protect our citizens from unwarranted intrusions in their homes. The bill regulates the use of surreptitious video surveillance in private residences where there is a reasonable expectation of privacy."

Sen. Specter also inserted a written statement in the Congressional Record in which he stated that "The bill strikes the necessary and correct balance of protecting important privacy rights without proscribing the visual surveillance needed to protect our property and safety. It does this simply by amending the Federal Wiretap Act to treat video surveillance the same as an interception of an electronic communication. Video surveillance is defined in the bill to mean the intentional recording of visual images of an individual in an area of a residence that is not readily observable from a public location and in which the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy."

He continued that "Many of us expect to be subject to certain kinds of video surveillance when we leave our homes and go out each day -- at the ATM machine, at traffic lights, or in stores for example. We expect this and we do not mind because we understand that such surveillance helps to protect us and our property. What we do not expect, however, is to be under visual surveillance in our homes, in our bedrooms, and most especially, we do not expect it for our children in our homes. Today cameras in computers and in cell phones are ubiquitous, making it more urgent that the Federal Wiretap Act be amended to prohibit video surveillance of people without their consent in their homes."

The bill was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC). Senators Specter, Feingold and Kaufman are all members.

Posner's Opinion in U.S. v. Torres. Sen. Specter quoted from the 1984 opinion of the U.S. Court of Appeals (7thCir), written by Judge Richard Posner, in U.S. v. Torres, 751 F.2d 875.

Judge Posner discussed video surveillance, which he called "television surveillance", but the Court did not ultimately hold that it requires a warrant like a wiretap.

He wrote that "Electronic interception, being by nature a continuing rather than one-shot invasion, is even less discriminating than a physical search, because it picks up private conversations (most of which will usually have nothing to do with any illegal activity) over a long period of time. Whether because it is more indiscriminate, or because people regard their conversations as more private than their possessions, or for both reasons, electronic interception is thought to pose a greater potential threat to personal privacy than physical searches, and Congress therefore pitched the requirements for a valid intercept warrant higher than those for a conventional Rule 41 warrant: except for probable cause, the requirements in 18 U.S.C. § 2518 are not found in Rule 41." (Parentheses in original.)

Judge Posner continued that "Television surveillance is identical in its indiscriminate character to wiretapping and bugging. It is even more invasive of privacy, just as a strip search is more invasive than a pat-down search, but it is not more indiscriminate: the microphone is as "dumb" as the television camera; both devices pick up anything within their electronic reach, however irrelevant to the investigation. If the government conducts television surveillance in conformity with the requirements of particularity that Title III imposes on electronic eavesdropping (not literal conformity, of course, since words such as "communications" and "intercept" in Title III do not fit television surveillance), the government has also conformed to the requirement of particularity in the Fourth Amendment's warrant clause." (Emphasis in original.)

But, the 7th Circuit held, "we are unwilling to go further and hold that warrants for television surveillance are subject to Title III, as warrants for bugging and wiretapping are".

Bill Summary. Title 18 of the U.S. Code pertains to criminal law and procedure. Chapter 119 pertains to wiretaps, bugs and intercepts. This bill would amend Chapter 119 by adding a new Section 2523, titled "Prohibition on use of video surveillance".

The basic prohibition provides that "It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in any video surveillance ..." The bill further provides that "video surveillance shall be considered to be an interception of an electronic communication". However, the bill also provides numerous exceptions.

Some exceptions are embodied in the definition of the term "video surveillance". The bill defines it as "the intentional acquisition, capture, or recording of a visual image or images of any individual if -- (1) the individual is in an area of a temporary or permanent residence that is not readily observable from a public location; (2) the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy in the area", the images are made without consent, and there is an interstate connection.

That is, this bill only regulates video surveillance conducted within a residence. It does not apply to surveillance in workplaces, schools, government buildings, restaurants, public accommodations, or public property.

Nothing in this bill would prohibit the Lower Merion Township from surveiling students in class rooms or locker rooms. Nothing in this bill would protect businesses from video surveillance by competitors seeking to steal business secrets.

The bill leaves some areas of uncertainty. For example, it does not specify whether a "temporary or permanent residence" covers the interior of a hotel room.

(See, U.S. v. Michael David Barrett. The defendant pled guilty on December 15, 2009, in the U.S. District Court (CDCal) to violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2261A following his use of a mobile phone to take videos of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews through peep holes in hotel rooms. See, Department of Justice release [PDF] and release.)

The bill also provides that "Sections 2511(2)(c), 2511(2)(d), 2512, 2513, and 2518(10)(c) shall not apply to video surveillance."

18 U.S.C. § 2511 contains the basis prohibition of intercepts and disclosures of wire and electronic communications.

Subsection (2)(c) provides that "It shall not be unlawful under this chapter for a person acting under color of law to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication, where such person is a party to the communication or one of the parties to the communication has given prior consent to such interception."

Subsection (2)(d) provides that "It shall not be unlawful under this chapter for a person not acting under color of law to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication where such person is a party to the communication or where one of the parties to the communication has given prior consent to such interception unless such communication is intercepted for the purpose of committing any criminal or tortious act in violation of the Constitution or laws of the United States or of any State."

Section 2511 pertains to intercepts of communications. In video surveillance there may be no communication, and no intercept. It would be impossible to apply these subsections to video surveillance.

18 U.S.C. § 2512 bans the manufacture, distribution, and use of certain communications interception devices. Similarly, 18 U.S.C. § 2513 provides for seizure by the federal government of certain communications interception devices. Sen. Specter's bill would not ban, or provide for federal seizure of, laptops, cell phones, camcorders, or other devices with video capture functionality.

18 U.S.C. § 2518 provides procedure for conducting lawful intercepts, by obtaining a court order. Subsection (10) provides for the suppression of evidence obtained by unlawful intercepts.

The bill also provides for suppression of illegal video surveillance evidence, parallel in most respects to the surveillance provisions of Subsection 2518(10).

Subsection 2518(10(c) provides that "The remedies and sanctions described in this chapter with respect to the interception of electronic communications are the only judicial remedies and sanctions for nonconstitutional violations of this chapter involving such communications." The bill provides that this does not apply to video surveillance.

Related Statutes. In 1968 the Congress enacted the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968. Title III of this Act addressed wiretaps in the context of analog telephone networks, and bugs. Title III is also sometimes referred to as the Wiretap Act. In 1986 the Congress enacted the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), amending the Wiretap Act, to include "electronic communications", and thereby bring internet based communications technologies within the scope of the statute.

The core of the statute is prohibiting interception or bugging of the conversions, phone calls, and electronic communications of others. The alleged activities of the Lower Merion Township fall short of violating this statute because there is no allegation of interception of any communications.

The statute provides at 18 U.S.C. § 2511 that "any person who ... intentionally intercepts, endeavors to intercept, or procures any other person to intercept or endeavor to intercept, any wire, oral, or electronic communication ... shall be punished ..."

It also provides that "any person who ... intentionally uses, or endeavors to use, the contents of any wire, oral, or electronic communication, knowing or having reason to know that the information was obtained through the interception of a wire, oral, or electronic communication in violation of this subsection ... shall be punished ..."

Also, Sen. Specter's bill, if enacted, would not be the first criminal statute to address video surveillance.

In 2004, the 108th Congress enacted the S 1301, the "Video Voyeurism Prevention Act". President Bush signed it into law on December 23, 2004. It is now Public Law No: 108-495. It is codified at 18 U.S.C. § 1801.

It provides that "Whoever, in the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, has the intent to capture an image of a private area of an individual without their consent, and knowingly does so under circumstances in which the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year".

The term "special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States" is defined in 18 U.S.C. § 7. This renders this statute of limited significance.

See also, stories titled "House Approves Video Voyeurism Prevention Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 981, September 22, 2004, and "Senate Approves Video Voyeurism Prevention Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,037, December 14, 2004.

Congressional Powers. The Congress has the power to enact legislation. However, it can only legislate on topics enumerated in the Constitution, and "To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers". The Congress has no general criminal law authority. To this day, the vast majority of police officers, as well as arrests and prosecutions, are state and local.

Nevertheless, the Congress enacts criminal statutes. In so doing it often asserts the interstate commerce clause as authority.

Wiretaps involve use of, and intercepts in, the telecommunications system, which is interstate and commercial. In contrast, video surveillance may be conducted by one individual, with no commercial purpose, and using one camcorder, cell phone, or laptop to surveil someone not engaged in commercial activity.

Sen. Specter could have followed the approach of the "Video Voyeurism Prevention Act", which applies only on federal property, and "special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States", which includes odd places like territorial waters and aircraft in flight. But, this would reach very few private homes, which are what Sen. Specter wants to protect.

Sen. Specter could have followed the approach of implementing by statute the 4th Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. The Supreme Court has held that this is binding on state and local governments as well as the federal government. The Lower Merion Township, whose school officials are alleged to have engaged in video surveillance, are a political subdivision of the state of Pennsylvania. However, Sen. Specter likely also wants his legislation to regulate purely private conduct, which the 4th Amendment does not reach.

Instead, Sen. Specter has introduced a bill that makes no statement of Congressional authority, but which takes the interstate commerce approach. His bill states that it applies if either the surveillance images were "produced using a device, apparatus, or other item that was mailed, shipped, or transported in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce by any means" or they were "transported or transmitted, in or affecting, or using any means or facility of, interstate or foreign commerce, including by computer".

This bill asserts that any computer is a facility of interstate commerce. It asserts that any consumer who uses a camcorder that was made in another state or country is himself engaged in interstate commerce. These are outlandish claims.

But then, the Supreme Court and Courts of Appeals have track records of upholding almost all federal criminal statutes that are based upon outlandish claims that interstate commerce is being regulated.

It is to be expected that if this bill, as introduced, is enacted into law, and the Department of Justice prosecutes alleged violators, they will challenge the Constitutionality of the statute.

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The House will not meet. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of April 19.

The Senate will meet at 2:00 PM. It will consider the nomination of Lael Brainard to be an Under Secretary of the Treasury.

Day one of a three day event hosted by the American Cable Association (ACA) titled "ACA's 17th Annual Summit". See, notice. Location: Gaylord National Resort, 201 Waterfront Street, National Harbor, MD.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Order and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding expanding the FCC's e-rate tax and subsidy program to cover non-educational uses. This NPRM is FCC 10-33 in CC Docket No. 02-6. The FCC adopted it on February 18, 2010, and released the text [26 pages in PDF] on February 19, 2010. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 5, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 43, at Page 10199-10203, and story titled "FCC Expands E-Rate Program to Cover Non-Educational Services" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,047, February 18, 2010.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Jurisdictional Separations and Referral to the Federal-State Joint Board". The FCC adopted this item on March 26, 2010, and released the text [22 pages in PDF] on March 29, 2010. This NPRM is FCC 10-47 in CC Docket No. 80-286. Jurisdictional separations is the process by which incumbent local exchange carriers (ILEC) apportion regulated costs between the intrastate and interstate jurisdictions. There is an order in effect, which the FCC keeps extending, that freezes category relationships and jurisdictional cost allocation factors, pending some hypothetical future comprehensive reform. This NPRM proposes to once again extend the freeze, which is currently set to expire on June 30, 2010, until June 30, 2011. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 5, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 64, at Pages 17109-17111.

The House will meet at 12:30 PM for morning hour, and at 2:00 PM for legislative business. The House will consider several non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 PM. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of April 19.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a three day closed meeting of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Science and Technology Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register: April 12, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 69, at Page 18516. Location: National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center, 110 Thomas Johnson Drive, Suite 400, Frederick, MD.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (ONCHIT) HIT Policy Committee's Meaningful Use Workgroup will holding a meeting by webcast and teleconference on "Patient Engagement". See, notice in the Federal Register, March 17, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 51, at Pages 12752-12753.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing titled "Oversight of the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division". The witness will be Thomas Perez, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Civil Rights Division. The SJC will webcast this event. Sen. Benjamin Cardin (D-MD) will preside. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

2:00 - 3:30 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division will host a seminar presented by Heski Bar-Isaac (NYU) titled "Search, Design and Market Structure". See, paper [32 pages in PDF] with the same title. It pertains to competition in the internet search market. For more information, contact Patrick Greenlee at 202-307-3745 or atr dot eag at usdoj dot gov. Location: DOJ, Liberty Square Building, 450 5th St., NW.

5:00 - 7:00 PM. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) will host a technology showcase titled "CES on the Hill". There will be a preview for reporters at 4:30 PM. Location: Caucus Room, Russell Building, Capitol Hill.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Intellectual Property Law Section 2010 Annual Spring Reception". The speakers will include Marybeth Peters (Register of Copyrights) and Judge Richard Linn (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit). See, notice. The price to attend ranges from $40 to $60. The DC Bar has a history of barring reporters from attending its events. Location: Dolley Madison House, 1520 H St., NW.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the American Cable Association (ACA) titled "ACA's 17th Annual Summit". See, notice. Location: Gaylord National Resort, 201 Waterfront Street, National Harbor, MD.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. The House will consider several non-technology related items. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of April  19.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Day two of a three day closed meeting of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Science and Technology Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register: April 12, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 69, at Page 18516. Location: National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center, 110 Thomas Johnson Drive, Suite 400, Frederick, MD.

9:00 AM - 5:30 PM. The Internet Caucus will host an event titled "State of the Mobile Net". See, notice. Location: Hyatt Regency, 400 New Jersey Ave., NW.

10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host an event titled "Open Meeting". See, agenda [PDF] and story titled "FCC Releases Tentative Agenda for April 21 Meeting" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,069, April 1, 2010. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "The National Broadband Plan: Deploying Quality Broadband Services to the Last Mile". See, notice. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing titled "Combating Cyber Crime and Identity Theft in the Digital Age". The witnesses will be Lanny Breuer (Assistant Attorney General in charge of the DOJ's Criminal Division), Ari Schwartz (Center for Democracy and Technology), Vincent Weafer (Symantec), and Orin Kerr (George Washington University law school). See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation will meet to consider a yet to to be introduced bill regarding National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) programs. The HSC will webcast this event. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (ONCHIT) HIT Policy Committee will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 31, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 61, at Page 16126. Location: Omni Shoreham Hotel, 2500 Calvert St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a lunch titled "5th Annual Mentoring Luncheon". See, registration form [PDF]. The price to attend is $25. For more information, contact Edgar Class at 202-719-7504 or eclass at wileyrein dot com or Micah Caldwell at 202-939-7901 or mcaldwell at fh-law dot com. Location: Wiley Rein, 1776 K St., NW.

Day three of a three day event hosted by the American Cable Association (ACA) titled "ACA's 17th Annual Summit". See, notice. Location: Gaylord National Resort, 201 Waterfront Street, National Harbor, MD.

Day one of a three day event hosted by the American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Antitrust Law titled "58th Antitrust Law Spring Meeting". See, conference web site. Location: JW Marriott Hotel and National Press Club.

6:30 - 9:30 PM. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) will host an event titled "Digital Patriots Dinner". The CEA will give awards to Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Vint Cerf (Google). Location: Andrew Mellon Auditorium, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Public Notice regarding the buildout requirements for the 2.3 GHz Wireless Communications Services (WCS) band. The FCC adopted this item on March 26, 2010, and released the text [8 pages in PDF] on March 29, 2010. It is FCC 10-46 in WTB Docket No. 07-293. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 6, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 65, at Pages 17349-17352.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. The House will consider several non-technology related items. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of April  19.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Antitrust Law titled "58th Antitrust Law Spring Meeting". See, conference web site. Location: JW Marriott Hotel and National Press Club.

9:30 AM - 1:00 PM. Day three of a three day closed meeting of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Science and Technology Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register: April 12, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 69, at Page 18516. Location: National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center, 110 Thomas Johnson Drive, Suite 400, Frederick, MD.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Senate Banking Committee (SBC) will hold a hearing titled "China's Exchange Rate Policy and Trade Imbalances". See, notice. Location: Room 538, Dirksen Building.

1:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties will hold a hearing titled "Achieving the Promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act in the Digital Age -- Current Issues, Challenges, and Opportunities". See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Public Telecommunications Facilities Program (PTFP) applications for digital power increase projects. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 19, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 53, at Pages 13259-13261.

5:30 - 7:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host an event titled "Happy Hour". For more information, contact Matt Gerst at mgerst at ctia dot org or Micah Caldwell mcaldwell at fh-law dot com. Location: Churchkey, 1337 14th St., NW.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Practical Strategies for the Preservation of IP Rights in Government Contracts and Remedies for Government Misuse of IP". This is the second of a two part series. The first was on April 15. The speakers will be David Bloch (Winston & Strawn), Richard Gray (DOD Office of General Counsel), John Lucas (Department of Energy), and James McEwen (Stein McEwen). 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.

Deadline to submit comments to the Library of Congress's (LOC) Copyright Royalty Judges (CRJ) regarding its proposed regulations governing the rates and terms for the digital performances of sound recordings by broadcasters and noncommercial educational webcasters and for the making of ephemeral recordings necessary for the facilitation of such transmissions for the period commencing January 1, 2011, and ending on December 31, 2015. This proceeding is Docket No. 2009-1, also known as CRB Webcasting III. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 1, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 62, at Pages 16377-16387.

The House may meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of April 19.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (ONCHIT) HIT Standards Committee's Clinical Quality Workgroup will meet by webcast and teleconference. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 17, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 51, at Page 12753.

12:00 NOON. The Cato Institute will host a program titled "Should Immigration Reform Include a National ID?". The speakers will be Jim Harper (Cato) and Christopher Calabrese (ACLU). See, notice and registration page. Lunch will be served. Location: Room B-340, Rayburn Building.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (ONCHIT) HIT Standards Committee's Privacy & Security Workgroup will meet by webcast and teleconference. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 17, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 51, at Page 12753.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its draft NIST IR-7676 [14 pages in PDF] titled "Maintaining and Using Key History on Personal Identity Verification (PIV) Cards".

Day three of a three day event hosted by the American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Antitrust Law titled "58th Antitrust Law Spring Meeting". See, conference web site. Location: JW Marriott Hotel and National Press Club.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its draft SP 800-119 [175 pages in PDF] titled "Guidelines for the Secure Deployment of IPv6".

Deadline to submit to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) nominations of individuals to serve on the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Evaluation Committee. The USPTO states that the twelve members of this Committee "are responsible for reviewing nominations and making recommendations for" the National Medal of Technology and Innovation (NMTI). See, notice in the Federal Register Federal Register, February 23, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 35, at Pages 8043-8044. See also, stories titled "Bush Awards National Medals of Technology and Science", "House Democrats Promote Their Innovation Agenda", and "Commentary: National Medal of Technology Program" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,312, February 17, 2006.

9:30 AM - 1:00 PM. The Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) will host an event titled "World Intellectual Property Day Policy Forum". Lunch will be served. For more information, contact Erin Humiston at 972-874-5139 or erin at ipi dot org. Location: Reserve Officers Association, 5th floor, 1 Constitution Ave., NE.

10:00 AM. Day one of a two day meeting of the Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 12, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 69, at Pages 18484-18485. Location: Department of Commerce, Room 3884, 14th Street between Pennsylvania and Constitution Aves., NW.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Video Programming and Distribution Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Revisiting Local MVPD Competition". The speakers will be Stacy Fuller (Directv), Mitsuko Herrera (Cable Franchise Office Director, Montgomery County), Gary Matz (Time Warner Cable), Nicholas Miller (Miller & Van Eaton), David Young (Verizon Communications), Rosemary Harold (Legal Advisor to FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell), and Wesley Heppler (Davis Wright Tremaine). Location: Sidley Austin, 6th floor, 1501 K St., NW.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (ONCHIT) HIT Policy Committee's Privacy & Security Policy Workgroup will meet by webcast and teleconference. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 17, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 51, at Pages 12752-12753.

3:00 PM. Deadline to submit to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) a "full proposal" for grant money under the NIST Construction Grant Program for FY 2010. This $50 Million program subsidizes the construction of research science buildings of colleges, universities, and non-profit science research organizations. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 2, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 40, at Pages 9392-9397.

11:59 PM. Deadline to submit to the Executive Office of the President's (EOP) Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) responses to OSTP's Request for Information regarding commercialization of university research. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 25, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 57, at Pages 14476-14478.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Jurisdictional Separations and Referral to the Federal-State Joint Board". The FCC adopted this item on March 26, 2010, and released the text [22 pages in PDF] on March 29, 2010. This NPRM is FCC 10-47 in CC Docket No. 80-286. Jurisdictional separations is the process by which incumbent local exchange carriers (ILEC) apportion regulated costs between the intrastate and interstate jurisdictions. There is an order in effect, which the FCC keeps extending, that freezes category relationships and jurisdictional cost allocation factors, pending some hypothetical future comprehensive reform. This NPRM proposes to once again extend the freeze, which is currently set to expire on June 30, 2010, until June 30, 2011. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 5, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 64, at Pages 17109-17111.

Extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [107 pages in PDF] that proposes to regulate the network management practices of broadband internet access service providers. The FCC titles this proceeding "In the Matter of Preserving the Open Internet Broadband Industry Practices". This NPRM is FCC 09-93 in GN Docket No. 09-191 and WC Docket No. 07-52. See, original notice in the Federal Register, November 30, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 228, at Pages 62637-62662. See also, notice of extension [PDF]. And see, stories titled "FCC Adopts Internet Regulation NPRM", "Text of Proposed Internet Regulation Rules", "Statutory Authority and Ancillary Jurisdiction", "More Praise for the FCC's NPRM", "More Criticism of the FCC's NPRM", and "Sen. McCain Introduces Bill to Block FCC Regulation of Internet or IP-Enabled Services" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,008, October 23, 2009, and story titled "FCC Extends Deadline to Submit Comments on Internet Regulation NPRM" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,073, April 8, 2010.