3/31. Larry Klayman, head of Freedom Watch, filed a pro se complaint [PDF] in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia Civil Division against Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook, Inc., alleging assault and negligence, in connection with the operation of the Facebook web site, in which users have created, and published statements in, a web page titled "Third Palestinian Intifada".

It is an inartfully drafted complaint that bears more attributes of a political polemic directed at public opinion, than a legal pleading directed to a court of law.

Klayman alleges that this Facebook web page "calls ... for an uprising beginning on May 15, 2011".

The complaint further states that the government of Israel asked Facebook to remove the web page, but that it refused.

Klayman's complaint does not plead violation of any federal or District of Columbia civil rights statute. Rather, it alleges assault and negligence.

The assault count alleges that the Facebook web page at issue "and other related and similar sites, amount to a threat of the use of force against non-Muslims, and particularly Jews, who are public figures like Plaintiff". It further alleges that "Defendants ... have ... assaulted Plaintiff ...".

The negligence count alleges that "Defendants owed Plaintiff a duty of care, which they violated and breached by allowing and furthering the death threats by the Third Palestinian Intifada, and related and similar sites." The complaint does not plead any injury to the plaintiff.

Klayman requests that the Court "enjoin Defendants from allowing the Facebook page titled ``Third Palestinian Intifada,´´ and other related and similar sites, which advocate violence and death to Jews, like Plaintiff and others, from operating on facebook.com, now and in the future."

He also asks for "One Billion Dollars".

Klayman is also the head of Judicial Watch.

Section 230 Immunity. Facebook may assert that it possesses immunity from liability for the statements of its users.

47 U.S.C. § 230 provides that "No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider."

47 U.S.C. § 230(f)(2) provides that "The term ``interactive computer service´´ means any information service, system, or access software provider that provides or enables computer access by multiple users to a computer server, including specifically a service or system that provides access to the Internet and such systems operated or services offered by libraries or educational institutions."

Perhaps it should be noted that on March 24, 2004, the U.S. Court of Appeals (4thCir) issued its opinion [2 pages in PDF] in Noah v. AOL, affirming the District Court's opinion that Section 230 immunized AOL when it provided chat rooms in which subscribers mocked Islamic religious beliefs. See also, story titled "4th Circuit Affirms That Section 230 Immunity Extends to Federal Civil Rights Action" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 863, March 25, 2004.

Other Defenses. The complaint does not allege that the plaintiff is a resident of, or present in, Israel. Nor does the complaint allege that the web page is directed to him. Hence, Facebook may also assert that Klayman lacks standing to bring this action.

In addition, Facebook may assert, with respect to the request of injunctive relief, that Klayman has not shown likelihood of irreparable harm to himself.

Also, the complaint contains no allegations that would support imposition of liability upon Zuckerberg individually for the actions of the corporation.

3/30. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) released a report [391 pages in PDF] titled "2011 National Trade Estimate: Report on Foreign Trade Barriers".

This report is "the twenty-sixth in an annual series that surveys significant foreign barriers to U.S. exports". It summarizes "foreign barriers affecting U.S. exports of goods and services, foreign direct investment by U.S. persons, and protection of intellectual property rights".

However, it does not address barriers imposed by the U.S. government to exports from the U.S. Nor does it address barriers imposed by the U.S. government to imports into the U.S. from other countries.

PRC. This report's section on the People's Republic of China (PRC) is 35 pages.

The report states that "China has continued to restrict the importation (and distribution) of copyright-intensive products such as books, newspapers, journals, theatrical films, DVDs and music, in contravention of its trading rights (and distribution services) commitments, leading the United States to mount a successful WTO challenge to these policies. China has agreed to remove these restrictions by March 2011 in order to comply with the WTO ruling against it. The United States will closely monitor China’s implementation of this ruling." (Parentheses in original.)

See, story titled "WTO Panel Rules in PRC IPR Case" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,889, February 2, 2009, and story titled "US to Complain to WTO Regarding PR China's Failure to Protect IPR" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,562, April 9, 2007.

With respect to intellectual property rights (IPR), the report states that "Persistent inadequacies in the protection and enforcement of IPR represent barriers to U.S. exports and investment. Key concerns listed in the report included unacceptable levels of retail and wholesale counterfeiting, as well as persistently high-levels of book and journal piracy, end-user piracy of business software and copyright piracy over the Internet."

It adds that "weaknesses in China’s enforcement system -- criminal, civil and administrative -- contribute to China’s poor IPR enforcement record. There are also a number of other obstacles to effective enforcement. High value and volume thresholds must be met in order to initiate criminal prosecution of IPR infringement. U.S. trademark and copyright industries also report that administrative fines are too low, and imposed too infrequently, to be a deterrent. Consequently, infringers view administrative seizures and fines merely as a cost of doing business. Civil damages for infringement are likewise inadequate."

The report also restates U.S. concerns about the PRC's indigenous innovation policies. It states that "a troubling trend that emerged more conspicuously in 2009, and continued in 2010, was China’s willingness to encourage domestic or “indigenous” innovation at the cost of foreign innovation and technologies. One example, discussed below in the Government Procurement section, involves the Circular Launching the 2009 National Indigenous Innovation Product Accreditation Work, which aimed to improve ``indigenous´´ innovation in computer and other technology equipment by imposing qualifying criteria for government procurement preferences such as the ownership or development of a product’s intellectual property in China." See also, story titled "U.S. Tech Groups Complain About PRC's Use of Domestic IP as Trade Barrier" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,040, February 2, 2010.

The report also summarizes the status of U.S. WTO action against the PRC regarding electronic payment services. It states that the U.S. "requested WTO consultations in September 2010 over China’s various restrictions on foreign suppliers of electronic payment services. Consultations were held in October 2010, but those consultations did not resolve the dispute. In February 2011, the United States requested the establishment of a dispute settlement panel to hear the case."

Taiwan. In contrast, the section [7 pages in PDF] of the report on Taiwan states that "Taiwan generally provides strong IPR protection and enforcement." However, it adds that "rights holders continue to express concern regarding: infringement of copyrighted material on the Internet; illegal textbook copying on and around university campuses; inadequate protection for the packaging, configuration, and outward appearance of products (trade dress); and the continued availability of counterfeit pharmaceuticals in Taiwan. The importation and transshipment of counterfeit products from China is also a problem, as well as the collusion of some Taiwan companies in supplying components to mainland factories producing ``Shanzhai´´ counterfeits (e.g. mobile phones, netbooks, and other electronic devices). Taiwan also needs to provide an effective system to address patent issues expeditiously in connection with applications to market pharmaceutical products." (Parentheses in original.)

The report continues that "Piracy on the Internet remains a serious IP enforcement concern in Taiwan. In April 2009, the Legislative Yuan amended the Taiwan Copyright Law to require Internet service providers (ISP) to undertake specific and effective notice-and-takedown actions against online infringers to avoid liability for the infringing activities of users on their networks. Rights holders expect to reach agreement on a ``code of conduct´´ with ISP operators for implementation of the new ISP law regulation."

"In January 2010, the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment to the Copyright Collective Management Organization Act and an amendment to article 37 of the Copyright Law. Copyright collection groups complained that both amendments, which require a single portal and a joint tariff rate for fee collection, and exempt secondary public broadcasting users from criminal liability, weaken copyright owners' ability to collect remuneration for the use of their works."

Japan. The section [18 pages in PDF] of the report on Japan states that "Japan generally provides strong IPR protection and enforcement".

It also notes that "Japan is also an active participant in the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) negotiations, which were concluded in November 2010. The ACTA establishes an international framework that will assist parties in their efforts to effectively combat the infringement of intellectual property rights, in particular the proliferation of counterfeiting and piracy, which undermines legitimate trade and the sustainable development of the world economy." See also, stories titled "ACTA Draft Released", "Summary of ACTA", and "Reaction to ACTA" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2.140, October 11, 2010.

The report states that U.S. "continues to urge reforms in the financial sector, including in the areas of online financial services".

It also states that in telecommunications, the U.S. "continues to urge Japan to: ensure fair market opportunities for emerging technologies and business models; ensure a regulatory framework appropriate for addressing converged and Internet-enabled services; and strengthen competitive safeguards on dominant carriers". The report elaborates on fixed line interconnection, dominant carrier regulation, universal service cross subsidies, mobile termination, and wireless licenses.

3/30. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) released a report [391 pages in PDF] titled "2011 National Trade Estimate: Report on Foreign Trade Barriers". The section [35 pages in PDF] on the People's Republic of China (PRC) addresses rare earth materials (REM).

Rare earth elements, such as Neodymium, are used to make permanent magnets, which are used in computer hard drives and other tech products.

The OUSTR stated in a December 23, 2010, report [124 pages in PDF] titled "2010 Report to Congress On China's WTO Compliance" that the OUSTR is considering filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) alleging that the PRC's restrictions on the export of REMs violates its WTO obligations. See, story titled "OUSTR Is Considering Filing WTO Complaint Against PRC For Its Rare Earths Export Restraints" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,189, December 29, 2010.

The just released report, which restates verbatim much of the language on REMs from the December 23, 2010, report, states that "China has continued to impose restraints on exports of raw materials", including "rare earths".

The March 30 report states that "These types of export restraints can significantly distort trade, and for that reason WTO rules normally outlaw them. In the case of China, the trade-distortive impact is exacerbated because, for many of the raw materials at issue, China is the world’s leading producer."

Also, "China's export restraints affect U.S. and other foreign producers of a wide range of downstream products, such as  ... hard-disc drives, magnets, lasers, ... semiconductor chips, ... fiber optic cables ... among numerous others."

The report states that "The export restraints can create serious disadvantages for these foreign producers by artificially increasing China's export prices for the raw material inputs, which also drives up world prices. At the same time, the export restraints can artificially lower China's domestic prices for the raw materials due to significant increases in domestic supply, enabling China’s domestic producers of downstream products to produce lower-priced products from the raw materials and thereby creating significant advantages for China’s domestic downstream producers when competing against foreign producers of these products both in the China market and in other countries' markets. The export restraints can also create incentives for foreign downstream producers to move their operations and technologies to China."

4/1. Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA), Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) and eight other Democrats introduced HR 1314 [LOC | WW], the "Resource Assessment of Rare Earths Act of 2011", or "RARE Act", a bill that would direct the Department of the Interior's (DOI) U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to conduct a global assessment of rare earth materials (REM).

Rep. Johnson (at left) stated in a release that "The RARE Act will dramatically advance our ability to access rare earths worldwide". He added that "This bill represents an important piece of a much-needed comprehensive approach to understanding current and future domestic and international supply of and demand for rare earth elements".

Rep. Markey stated in this release that "Unfortunately, we have gone from self reliance in the production of our rare earth materials to 100 percent reliance on imports, mostly from China. This bill will help reverse that troubling trend and give industry the tools and information to get America back in the rare earths business."

It was referred to the House Natural Resources Committee.

111th Congress. The Congress considered, but did not enact, REM related bills in the 111th Congress.

The House, but not the Senate, passed HR 6160 [LOC | WW], the "Rare Earths and Critical Materials Revitalization Act of 2010". HR 6160 was a very limited bill. It would merely require the DOE to study the issue, including possible use of alternative materials, which the DOE is already doing, and write plans. The bill would also have authorized the DOE to make loan guarantees to incent private sector activity. The bill would also have amended the National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act of 1980, which is codified at 30 U.S.C. § 1604, et seq.

See also, story titled "House Passes Rare Earths Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,136, September 30, 2010, and "House Science Committee Approves Rare Earths Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,134, September 28, 2010.

In the Senate, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), the ranking Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee (SENRC), introduced S 3521 [LOC | WW], titled the "Rare Earths Supply Technology and Resources Transformation Act of 2010". The SENRC held a hearing on September 30, 2010, which she did not attend. She was engaged in a close re-election campaign.

Also, on December 15, 2010, former Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) and former Sen. Kit Bond (R-MO) introduced S 4031 [LOC | WW], the "Rare Earths Supply-Chain Technology and Resources Transformation Act of 2010" or "RESTART Act". See, story titled "Outgoing Senators Bayh and Bond Introduce Rare Earths Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,189, December 29, 2010.

3/29. Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX) and Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) sent letters to AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile USA, and Sprint asking for information regarding their collection of data on customers. See, letter to AT&T, which is substantially similar to the three other letters.

Rep. Markey (at right) stated in a release that "Collecting, storing and disclosing a consumer's exact whereabouts for commercial purposes without their express permission is unacceptable and violates current law."

These letters ask, for example, for the companies to "describe the policies and procedures your company utilizes to comply" with 47 U.S.C. § 222, the customer proprietary network information (CPNI) statute.

The letters also ask "What personally identifiable information does your company collect from its customers?", and "How is this information collected ..."?

The letters also inquire about uses made of this information, how it is stored, and how it is disposed.

They also ask, "Other than pinpointing a customer's location for purposes of identifying the strongest signal, does your company use any other mechanisms for determining the location of a customer's mobile phone, such as how the customer checks her email?"

Finally, the letter asks about notice to customers of information collection and use.

The two Representatives ask for responses by April 19, 2011.

4/4. Sen. Kay Hutchison (R-TX), ranking Republican on the Senate Commerce Committee (SCC), named Courtney Sanders her news media contact for the SCC. Sanders replaced Joe Brenckle, who is now news media contact for the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee for Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY), its ranking Republican.

3/28. The CTIA hired Jaime Hjort as director of government affairs. Hjort has worked for former Sen. George Allen (R-VA) and former Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA). See, CTIA release.

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The House will meet at 12:00 NOON for morning hour, and at 2:00 PM for legislative business. The House will consider HR 1246 [LOC | WW], a bill regarding printing at the Department of Defense. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 PM. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week of April 4.

The Senate will meet at 2:00 PM. It will consider the nomination of Jimmie Reyna to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir).

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Demystifying Social Media -- What Every Lawyer Should Know". The speakers will be Tasha Coleman, Tom Foster, Laura Possessky, Michelle Thomas. See, notice. Free. For more information, contact Daniel Mills at 202-626-1312. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

12:30 - 2:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) International Telecommunications Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Internet Ecosystem". The speakers will include Jack Nadler (Squire Sanders), Michael Kende (Analysys Mason USA), Paul Kouroupas (Global Crossing), Eric Loeb (AT&T), and Dennis Weller (Navigant Economics). For more information, contact Jennifer Ullman at jennifer at thejgroupplanning dot com. Location: Squire Sanders, Suite 500, 1201 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

2:00 PM. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA), and representatives of copyright industries and labor groups will hold a news conference to discuss the harms of online infringement. Location: Room S-115, Capitol Building.

5:00 PM. The House Rules Committee (HRC) will meet to adopt a rule for consideration of HJRes 37, a resolution disapproving the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) rules regulating broadband internet access service (BIAS) providers. See, notice. The HRC will webcast this event. See, stories titled "House Commerce Committee Approves HJRes 37" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,204, March 15, 2011, and "House Subcommittee Passes Resolution of Disapproval of FCC BIAS Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,201, March 10, 2011. Location: H-313, Capitol Building.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding extending to June 30, 2012, the current freeze of jurisdictional separations category relationships and cost allocation factors. This NPRM is FCC 11-34 in CC Docket No. 80-286. The FCC adopted and released it on March 1, 2011. See, Federal Register, March 14, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 49, at Pages 13576-13579.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. The schedule for the week includes consideration of HJRes 37, a resolution disapproving the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) rules regulating broadband internet access service (BIAS) providers. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week of April 4.

9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Global Business Dialogue will host an event titled "Unwanted Trade: A Look at Trade That Steals, Corrupts, and Destroys". The speakers will be Louis Shelley (George Mason University), Jeannie Cameron (British American Tobacco), Nancy Boswell (Transparency International, USA), Loren Yager (GAO). See, notice. Location: National Press Club, First Amendment Lounge, 529 14th St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The Net Caucus will host an panel discussion titled "Enabling Online Privacy With Do Not Track: By Congress, Corporations or Code?". The speakers will be Erich Andersen (Microsoft), Stuart Ingis (Venable, and Digital Advertising Alliance), Maneesha Mithal (FTC's Division of Privacy and Identity Protection), and Ashkan Soltani. Lunch will be served. Free. Register by email to rsvp at netcaucus dot org or by phone to 202-407-8829. Location: Room B-340, Rayburn Building.

2:00 - 3:30 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division will host a presentation titled "Explaining adoption and use of payment instruments by US consumers". The speaker will be Seigei Koulayev (Boston College), one of the co-authors of a paper with the same title. There are hyperlinks to copies of this and related papers in Koulayev's personal web site. For more information, contact Thomas Jeitschko at 202-532-4826 or atr dot eag at usdoj dot gov. Location: Liberty Square Building, 450 5th St., NW.

2:30 PM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing titled "Closing the Digital Divide: Connecting Native Nations and Communities to the 21st Century". See, notice. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. The schedule for the week includes consideration of HJRes 37, a resolution disapproving the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) rules regulating broadband internet access service (BIAS) providers. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week of April 4.

8:30 AM - 4:30 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Advisory Committee on the Electronic Records Archives (ACERA). See, notice in the Federal Register, March 21, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 54, at Page 15349. Location: 700 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

9:00 AM. The House Appropriations Committee's (HAC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing on the FY 2012 budget request for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The witness will be FBI Director Robert Mueller. Location: Room 2359, Rayburn Building.

9:00 AM - 5:30 PM. Day one of a two day seminar hosted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) titled "USPTO China Road Show: Protecting Your Intellectual Property in China and the Global Marketplace". Free. Open to the public. The deadline to register is April 5. See, notice and registration page. Location: USPTO, James Madison Auditorium North, 600 Dulany Street, Concourse Level, Alexandria, VA.

9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "workshop" regarding its February 8, 2011, NPRM regarding its intercarrier compensation system and universal service fund. See also, NPRM [289 pages in PDF] adopted on February 8, 2011, and released on February 9, 2011. It is FCC 11-13 in WC Docket No. 10-90, GN Docket No. 09-51, WC Docket No. 07-135, WC Docket No. 05-337, CC Docket No. 01-92, CC Docket No. 96-45, and WC Docket No. 03-109. See, notice. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW..

POSTPONED. 10:00 AM. The House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC) will hold a hearing titled "Export Controls, Arms Sales, and Reform: Balancing U.S. Interests, Part 1". The witnesses will be Eric Hirschhorn (head of the Bureau of Industry and Security), Ellen Tauscher (Department of State), and James Miller (Department of Defense). See, notice. Location: Room 2172, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing titled "The Electronic Communications Privacy Act: Government Perspectives on Protecting Privacy in the Digital Age". The witnesses will be Cameron Kerry (General Counsel, Department of Commerce) and James Baker (Associate Deputy Attorney General). The SJC will webcast this hearing. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Executive Office of the President (EOP) will host events titled "Spectrum Auctions: Unlocking the Innovative Potential of Wireless Broadband". The participants will be Austan Goolsbee (Chairman of the EOP's Council of Economic Advisers), Julius Genachowski (FCC Chairman), Jason Furman ( Deputy Director of the National Economic Council), Paul Milgrom (Stanford University), Hal Varian (Google), Michelle Connolly (Duke University), and Michael Riordan (Columbia University). The final gather will be at 9:30 AM in the Brady Press Briefing Room. Location: South Court Auditorium, Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

10:45 AM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "Promoting Investment and Protecting Commerce Online: Legitimate Sites v. Parasites, Part II". See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

1:00 PM. The House Small Business Committee (HSBC) will hold a hearing titled "How Passing Free Trade Agreements Will Help Small Businesses Create New Jobs". See, notice. Location: Room 2360, Rayburn Building.

1:00 - 4:30 PM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a half day conference titled "Rare Earth Crisis?". See, notice. This event is free and open to the public. Location: AEI, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "Congressional Reception". See, notice and registration form [PDF]. Prices vary. The FCBA excludes reporters from some of its events. Location: Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill, 400 New Jersey Ave., NW.

Day one of a four day conference hosted by the the American Bar Association (ABA) titled "26th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference". See, notice. Location: Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, VA.

The House will meet at 9:00 AM legislative business. The schedule for the week includes consideration of HJRes 37, a resolution disapproving the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) rules regulating broadband internet access service (BIAS) providers. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week of April 4.

Day one of a two day event hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) titled "Cloud Computing Forum & Workshop III". See, notice in the Federal Register, March 15, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 50, at Pages 13984-13985. Location: NIST, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

9:00 AM - 5:30 PM. Day two of a two day seminar hosted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) titled "USPTO China Road Show: Protecting Your Intellectual Property in China and the Global Marketplace". Free. Open to the public. The deadline to register is April 5. See, notice and registration page. Location: USPTO, James Madison Auditorium North, 600 Dulany Street, Concourse Level, Alexandria, VA.

9:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Advisory Committee on the Electronic Records Archives (ACERA). See, notice in the Federal Register, March 21, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 54, at Page 15349. Location: 700 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

10:00 AM - 1:00 PM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will hold a closed hearing titled "National Reconnaissance Program and National Geospatial Program FY 2012 Budget Overview". See, notice. Location: Room HVC-304, Capitol Visitor Center.

10:00 AM. The House Small Business Committee's (HSBC) Subcommittee on Healthcare and Technology will hold a hearing on HR __, the "Creating Jobs Through Small Business Innovation Act of 2011". This bill pertains to the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (SBTT) programs. See, notice. Location: Room 2360, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Appropriations Committee's (HAC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing on the FY 2012 budget request for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The witness will be NIST Director Patrick Gallagher. Location: Room H-309, Capitol Building.

10:00 AM. The House Ways and Means Committee's (HWMC) Subcommittee on Trade will hold a hearing on the pending U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement. See, notice. Location: Rooom 1100, Longworth Building.

10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "open meeting". The FCC will webcast this event. The FCC will webcast this event. See, agenda. See also, story titled "FCC Releases Tentative Agenda for April 7 Meeting" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,207, March 23, 2011. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda again includes consideration of Goodwin Liu (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit). The agenda also includes consideration Esther Salas (USDC/DNJ), Paul Oetken (USDC/SDNY), and Paul Engelmayer (USDC/SDNY). The agenda also includes consideration of S 410 [LOC | WW], the "Sunshine in the Courtroom Act". The SJC rarely follows its published agendas. The SJC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

11:15 AM. The Senate Appropriations Committee's (SAC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science and Related Agencies will hold a hearing on the FY 2012 budget request for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The witness will be FBI Director Robert Mueller. Location: Room 192, Dirksen Building.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The Tech Freedom and Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) will host an event titled "What Should Lawmakers Do About Rogue Websites?". The speakers will be Juliana Gruenwald (National Journal), Daniel Castro (Information Technology & Innovation Foundation), Larry Downes (TF), Danny McPherson (VeriSign), Ryan Radia (CEI), David Sohn (Center for Democracy & Technology), and Thomas Sydnor (Association for Competitive Technology). Register by email: nciandella at cei dot org. Lunch will be served. Free. Open to the public. Location: National Press Club, 13th Floor, 529 14th St. NW.

4:00 PM. George Mason University (GMU) will host a lecture by Shane Greenstein (Northwestern University business school) titled "The Mythology of Networks and Other Lessons from the Commercial Internet". See, notice. Location: Room 120, Hazel Hall, GMU law school, Arlington, VA.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Preserving Intellectual Property Rights in Government Contracts: A Beginner’s Guide (Part 1)". The speakers will be David Bloch (Winston & Strawn), Richard Gray (Department of Defense, Office of General Counsel), John Lucas (Department of Energy), and James McEwen (Stein McEwen). See, notice. The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. CLE credits. For more information, call 202-626-3488. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

Day two of a four day conference hosted by the the American Bar Association (ABA) titled "26th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference". See, notice. Location: Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, VA.

Deadline to submit comments to be considered by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in advance of its April 28, 2011, event titled "Public Workshop: Debt Collection 2.0: Protecting Consumers as Technologies Change". See, notice in the Federal Register, March 15, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 50, at Pages 14010-14014, and story titled "FTC Workshop to Address Use of Facebook and Other New Technologies for Debt Collection" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,204, March 15, 2011.

The House will not meet. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week of April 4.

Day two of a two day event hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) titled "Cloud Computing Forum & Workshop III". See, notice in the Federal Register, March 15, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 50, at Pages 13984-13985. Location: NIST, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

Day three of a four day conference hosted by the the American Bar Association (ABA) titled "26th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference". See, notice. Location: Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, VA.

Day four of a four day conference hosted by the the American Bar Association (ABA) titled "26th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference". See, notice. Location: Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, VA.

3:30 - 5:00 PM. The Heritage Foundation (HF) will host an event titled "Taiwan's Future in the Asian Economic Order". The speakers will be Rupert Hammond-Chambers (US-Taiwan Business Council), Rick Ruzicka (American Institute in Taiwan), Jay Eizenstat (Miller & Chevalier), and Derek Scissors (HF). See, notice. Free. Open to the public. Location: HR, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Software Development Contracts: Practical Advice on Drafting, Managing, and Litigating". The speaker will be David Temeles, Cornerstone Venture Law. See, notice. The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. CLE credits. For more information, call 202-626-3488. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

Day one of a three day convention hosted by the American Cable Association (ACA). See, convention web site. Location: Hyatt Regency Hotel, 400 New Jersey Ave., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) regarding its supplementary guidelines for the examination of claims in patent applications for compliance with the second paragraph of 35 U.S.C. § 112, which requires that claims particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter that applicant regards as his or her invention. See, notice in the Federal Register, February 9, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 27, at Pages 7162-7175.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding spectrum use in the Experimental Radio Service (ERS). The FCC adopted and released this NPRM on November 30, 2010. It is FCC 10-197 in ET Docket No. 10-236. See, notice in the Federal Register, February 8, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 26, at Pages 6927-6956.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [58 pages in PDF] regarding development of a technical interoperability framework for a nationwide public safety broadband network in the 700 MHz band. The FCC adopted this NPRM on January 25, 2011, and released the text on January 26, 2011. It is FCC 11-6 in PS Docket No. 06-229, WT Docket 06-150, and WP Docket 07-100. See, notice in the Federal Register, February 24, 2011, Vol. 76, No. 37, at Pages 10295-10299.