5/26. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a paper [14 pages in PDF] that contains public opinion survey based findings regarding the billing practices of cell phone service providers.

The survey was conducted for the FCC it by Abt/SRBI and Princeton Survey Research Associates. The paper was written by the FCC's John Horrigan and Ellen Satterwhite.

The paper states that "83% of adult Americans have a cell phone and 80% of adults have a personal cell phone (i.e., one for which their employer does not pay the bill)." (Parentheses in original.)

Also, "58% said they were very satisfied with how many places they can get a good signal, and another 29% said they were somewhat satisfied with this dimension of their service." That is, 87% state that they are very or somewhat satisfied.

The FCC paper states that "17% of American adults with a personal cell phone said that at one time their cell phone bill increased suddenly from one month to the next, even though they had not changed their calling or texting plans". This finding is likely to be cited by the FCC in the event that it decides to write rules addressing consumer bill shock as a justification for those rules. See, related story in this issue titled "FCC Starts Bill Shock Proceeding".

The paper also states that "For those with personal cell phones, 54% said they would have to pay an ETF and 18% did not know whether they would have to pay a fee", and "For home broadband customers, 21% said they would have to pay an ETF and 38% did not know if they would have to pay a fee."

Joel Gurin, Chief of the FCC's Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, stated in a release that "Several carriers are taking steps to make their fees and billing more transparent, and we would like this to become a universal practice. We're confident that we will be able to work with both wireless carriers and public interest groups to help consumers avoid these unwelcome surprises."

Steve Largent, head of the CTIA, which represents wireless service providers, stated in a release that "I am very troubled with the current direction the FCC is taking with respect to the wireless industry -- from the messaging sent last week in the Mobile Competition Report to today's survey release."

See, FCC's May 20, 2010, Fourteenth Report [308 pages in PDF], and story titled "FCC Adopts Mobile Wireless Competition Report" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,087, May 26, 2010.

Largent continued that "It seems the Commission is going to attempt to micromanage what is an incredible array of choices for consumers. From prepaid to postpaid, subsidized handsets to unsubsidized, contracts with ETFs to those without, large, medium or small buckets of minutes and `all-you-can-use´ plans, consumers have an unbelievable range of choices. Contrary to the statements in the press release, the industry does provide 'simple and easy to understand’ plans for every type of American consumer."

The FCC did not disclose who wrote the survey questions. The FCC disclosed the text and responses for some, but not all, of the survey questions.

5/25. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a Public Notice on May 11, 2010, that initiates a bill shock avoidance proceeding. The FCC published a notice in the Federal Register on May 20, 2010, and another Public Notice on May 25, 2010, that set comment deadlines.

The term "bill shock" does not appear anywhere in the Communications Act. Nor does the Public Notice cite any statutory authority for conducting this proceeding. Nor does the Public Notice define the term "bill shock". However, the Public Notice states that the FCC seeks to imitate the European Union's "bill shock" regulatory regime.

The FCC uses the newly minted slang term "bill shock" in the context of consumers' reactions to items on their monthly bills for wireless services.

Although, the FCC excludes from consideration consumers' reactions to the size of state, local and federal taxes that appear on their bills. It also excludes from consideration consumers' views about the policy merits of each of these taxes.

Also, this term has nothing to do with cramming (adding unauthorized items to bills) or slamming (changing a customer's long distance provider with authority of the customer), which are long established slang terms for business practices that are prohibited by statute.

Rather, the FCC limits the term "bill shock" to "unexpected charges" for services to which the consumers have subscribed, and which are covered by their service contracts.

The Public Notice seeks comments "on the feasibility of instituting usage alerts and cut-off mechanisms similar to those required under the EU regulations that would provide wireless voice, text, and data consumers in the United States a way to monitor, on a real-time basis, their usage of a wireless communications service, as well as the various charges they may incur in connection with such usage (e.g., roaming services, voice service “minute plans,” text message plans)." (Parentheses in original.)

"Specifically, we seek comment on whether technological or other differences exist that would prevent wireless providers in this country from employing similar usage controls as those now required by the EU."

It adds, "We also seek comment on the extent to which consumers currently have the means at their disposal to monitor their wireless usage and are fully aware of the consequences of exceeding their predetermined allocations of voice minutes, text message limits, or data usage."

This is only a Public Notice seeking comments, and not an Order announcing new rules, or a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). However, it may indicate the future direction of FCC rulemaking.

This item is DA 10-803 in CG Docket No.  09-158. On May 25, 2010, the FCC released a second Public Notice that announces comment deadlines. Initial comments are due by July 6, 2010. Reply comments are due by July 19, 2010. See also, Federal Register, May 20, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 97, at Pages 28249-28250.

5/25. The Public Knowledge (PK) submitted a comment [9 pages in PDF] to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) and Department of Commerce (DOC) regarding the membership of its industry trade advisory committees (ITACs). The author is the PK's Rashmi Rangnath.

The comment states that "Increasingly, international obligations are influencing U.S. intellectual property (IP) law and policy. IP chapters of many international trade agreements have adopted unsettled interpretations of U.S. law to the benefit of rights owners ignoring the policy decisions made in our domestic laws, which promote learning, innovation, and culture by striking a balance between rights of owners and citizens generally."

It continues that the ITACs include representatives of "IP industries such as the pharmaceutical industry, the motion picture industry, and the recording industry", they should also include "non-business representation", including representatives of libraries, museums, and archives.

The PK comment argues that "Non-business representation would improve the quality of information provided to the Secretary of Commerce and the USTR as the presence of both non-business and industry representatives would ensure the presentation of a balanced and nuanced view of U.S. IP law, which should be the basis of IP chapters adopted in trade agreements. In addition, inclusion of all interests without marginalizing any perspective would lend greater legitimacy to policy positions taken by the USTR in international negotiations. It would also enhance the public’s confidence in the outcome of negotiated agreements."

The PK is also an advocate of greater transparency in the negotiation of free trade agreements. For example, it argues that working drafts of proposed treaties, such as the Anti-counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), should be made public.

The just submitted comment argues that "intellectual property chapters of many U.S. trade agreements have tended to ignore the interests of the public and assume international obligations that are harmful to them".

Moreover, the ACTA "raises the specter of eroding user rights". The PK elaborates that "ACTA would require establishment of a statutory damages regime in signatory countries, require Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to take down material that allegedly infringes copyright without proper safeguards to prevent misrepresentations in take down notices sent by copyright owners, and require institution of new seizure and forfeiture penalties for infringing goods and implements used to make these goods. Each of these provisions pose several concerns for users of copyrighted works."

The PK argues that "while representatives of industry have the ability to influence the design of these provisions, non-business interests do not". Therefore, "representatives of non-business interests should be included".

May 25, 2010, was the deadline to submit comments to the OUSTR and the DOC's International Trade Administration (ITA) in response to their joint request for comments regarding the ITAC component of the trade advisory committee system. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 27, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 80, at Pages 22121-22122.

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The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. It may consider HR 4213 [LOC | WW]. See, story titled "House to Take Up Tax Bill with Tech Provisions" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,086, May 21, 2010. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of May 24, and schedule for May 27.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM. It will resume consideration of HR 4899 [LOC | WW], a supplemental appropriations bill.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of the nominations Robert Chatigny to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals (2ndCir) and John Gibney to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court (EDVa). The SJC rarely follows its published agendas. The SJC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation will hold a hearing titled "Interoperability in Public Safety Communications Equipment". The witnesses will be David Boyd (Department of Homeland Security), Dereck Orr (National Institute of Standards and Technology), Ernest Hofmeister (Motorola), and Jeffrey Johnson (International Association of Fire Chiefs). This HSC will webcast this event. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Judicial Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Citizens United and Media Companies -- What are the Practical and Political Implications of the Supreme Court's Decision for Media Companies?" The speakers will be Caleb Burns (Wiley Rein), Meredith McGehee (Campaign Legal Center), and Mark Schneider (Service Employees Int'l Union). Location: Wiley Rein, 1776 K St., NW.

2:30 PM. The Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Bureau of Economics will host a presentation by Adair Morse (University of Chicago business school). For more information, contact Loren Smith at lsmith2 at ftc dot gov or Tammy John at tjohn at ftc dot gov. Location: FTC, ground floor Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Ave., NW.

5:00 PM. The House Appropriations Committee (HAC) will meet to mark up a FY 2010 supplemental appropriations bill. Location: Room 2359, Rayburn Building.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its draft SP 800-85 A 2 [156 pages in PDF] titled "PIV Card Application and Middleware Interface Test Guidelines".

The House may meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of May 24.

Effective date of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Order on Reconsideration [94 pages in PDF] eliminating the home roaming exclusion. The FCC adopted and released this item on April 21, 2010. It is FCC 10-59 in WT Docket No. 05-265. See also, notice in the Federal Register, April 28, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 81, Pages 22263-22276.

The House will not meet the week of May 31 - June 4, 2010. See, 2010 House calendar.

The Senate will not meet the week of May 31 - June 4, 2010. See, 2010 Senate calendar.

Memorial Day. This is a federal holiday. See, Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) web page titled "2010 Federal Holidays".

9:30 - 11:00 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "Comcast Ruling: Now What?". See, ITIF notice. See also, April 6, 2010, opinion [36 pages in PDF] of the U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir). And see, story titled "Court of Appeals Vacates FCC's Comcast Order", and related stories, in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,072. Location: ITIF, Room 610, 1101 K St., NW.

Extended deadline to comply with certain rules promulgated by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Department of the Treasury pursuant to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). This deadline pertains to the rules that require non-exempt participants in designated payment systems to establish and implement written policies and procedures that are reasonably designed to identify and block or otherwise prevent or prohibit unlawful Internet gambling transactions restricted by the UIGEA. See, notice in the Federal Register, December 1, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 229, at Pages 62687-62688. The UIGEA was enacted in 2007 in the 109th Congress Title VIII of HR 4954 (109th), the "Port Security Improvement Act of 2006". It is now Public Law No. 109-347.

Deadline to submits comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) regarding environmental issues associated with the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement (TPP). See, notice in the Federal Register, March 25, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 57, at Pages 14479-14481.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding the Federal State Joint Board on Separations' interim adjustment of separations allocation factors and category relationships pending comprehensive separations reform. See, Public Notice released on March 30, 2010. It is FCC 10J-1 in CC Docket No. 80-286.

Deadline to submit comments to the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regarding its Interim Final Rule with Request for Comment regarding writing prescriptions for controlled substances electronically. The DEA requests comments regarding identity proofing, access control, authentication, biometric subsystems and testing of those subsystems, internal audit trails for electronic prescription applications, and third-party auditors and certification organizations. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 31, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 61, at Pages 16235-16319.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding changes to Part 90 of the FCC's rules regarding wireless technologies, devices, and services. The FCC adopted this item on March 3, 2010, and released the text [44 pages in PDF] on March 10, 2010. It is FCC 10-36 in WP Docket No. 07-100. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 14, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 71, at Pages 19340-19345.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. David Kappos, head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), will give a speech titled "Unleashing Intellectual Property to Fuel Growth and Create Jobs". See, notice. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Location: Center for American Progress, 10th floor, 1333 H St., NW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding whether, how, and under what circumstances federally recognized Native American Tribes and Alaska Native Villages should receive a bidding credit in auctions for new radio stations, and whether and how the Tribal Priority adopted in the First Report and Order (First R&O) in this proceeding might be claimed by Tribes that do not possess defined tribal lands. This FNPRM is FCC 10-24 in MB Docket No. 09-52. The FCC adopted it on January 28, 2010, and released the text [58 pages in PDF] on February 3, 2010. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 4, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 42, at Pages 9856-9859.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding tank level probing radar (TLPR) devices to operate in the 77-81 GHz frequency band on an unlicensed basis under Part 15 of the FCC's rules. This NPRM is FCC 10-14 in ET Docket Nos. 10-23, 07-96, and 06-216. The FCC adopted it on January 14, 2010, and released the text [21 pages in PDF] on January 19, 2010. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 4, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 42, at Pages 9850-9856.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its second draft of IR 7628 [305 pages in PDF] titled "Smart Grid Cyber Security Strategy and Requirements". See also, notice in the Federal Register, April 13, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 70, at Pages 18819-18823.

8:00 AM - 12:15 PM. The Public Knowledge (PK) will host a half day conference titled "Toward a Sustainable Spectrum Policy: Rethinking Federal Spectrum". Location: Washington Court Hotel on Capitol Hill, 525 New Jersey Ave., NW.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) International Telecommunications and Privacy and Data Security Committees will host a brown bag lunch titled "Addressing Privacy Issues Abroad, Including Changes to EU Directives, key issues facing the U.S., EU and Markets Such as Asia, Latin America and Updates on Current Global Privacy Debates". The speakers will be Christopher Boam (Verizon Communications), Timothy Tobin (Hogan & Hartson), Tony Hadley (Experian), Damon Greer (DOC's International Trade Administration), Yael Weinman (Federal Trade Commission). For more information, contact Linda Cicco at Linda dot cicco at bt dot com or Jennifer Ullman at Jennifer dot ullman at verizon dot com. Location: Willkie Farr & Gallagher, 1875 K St., NW.