State Lawmakers to Address Telecom, High-Tech Issues

There’s no better time to put this issue on the table to get perspectives from all 50 states, said Democratic Tex. State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, who co-chairs NCSL’s task force on telecom and e-commerce taxation. “We have an overlay of federal regulations but each state, in particular, is grappling with the same issue of the technology sweeping ahead and the regulations always lagging behind,” Van de Putte told us. New developments have made it possible for video, voice and data to converge and be delivered in multiple ways by competing carriers, she said. “Telecom is no longer about phones -- it’s telecom and data services and entertainment services and the Internet,” Van de Putte said: “It was really simple when we knew how to tax wires and also assess fees to wires. But because now the technology may vary to deliver the same service, it’s always a concern of the state legislatures.”

Expecting a federal Telecom Act rewrite, NCSL’s telecom & technology committee wants a broadband universal service fund (USF) resolution detailing members’ desire for equitable treatment of rural areas in high-speed Internet deployment. The group wants USF cost recovery eligibility extended to broadband carriers with open network architecture. “Access to USF must be based upon the actual investment of a carrier and not upon the cost of a competing carrier or upon a pseudo formula,” the group said. To offset higher demand for USF funds if broadband is covered, contributions to the USF kitty “must be spread over all parties using the broadband network” of end-users, ISPs, VoIP providers and other stakeholders, NCSL said. A session on VoIP, broadband and the future of USF is planned. Scheduled speakers include Rick Cimerman, dir.-telecom policy for the National Cable & Telecom Assn., MCI Chief Policy Counsel Carl Giesy, Sprint Senior Regulatory Economist Brian Staihr and Columbus (Kan.) Telephone Co. Pres. Jim Dahmen.

Legislators will examine new high-tech tools that affect Internet-age policymaking. One presenter, Pew Internet & American Life Project Dir. Lee Rainie, told us he plans to deliver a sweeping “report from the field,” since for some lawmakers the new media landscape is unmarked territory. More Americans than ever are using the Web to get political information and interact with public officials, and the media ecology itself is changing as new services and devices emerge, he said. “Particularly for younger Americans, it’s a powerful new way to connect,” Rainie added. He will also discuss blogs, especially by public officials, as a way to reach constituents.

Some members will tour Wash.’s wired capitol to observe demonstrations of high-tech tools for managing floor activity, voting, bill drafting and rule making. A visit to Microsoft’s Center for Information Work, will offer a sneak peak at productivity software that’s 5 years off, while the Microsoft Home will forecast residential technologies 5-10 years out. Microsoft Chmn. Bill Gates is scheduled to start the meeting with a keynote.

Municipal Wi-Fi will take center stage Wed. Experts will discuss the tactic, increasingly popular among local govts., of providing wireless connectivity to citizens -- irking some major telecom providers. Telecom attorney Michael Balhoff, Qualcomm Vp Jonas Neihardt and Heartland Institute Senior Fellow Steven Titch will wrestle with the policy implications. A highly publicized campaign to kill municipal Wi-Fi in Tex. failed this year when the House and Senate failed to agree on a controversial telecom law rewrite. Ill., Ind., W.Va., Va. and Ore. legislatures have killed bills to ban municipal Wi-Fi, but lawmakers in Mich. and Ohio have measures pending. More than a dozen states have laws blocking community-provided Internet, according to Free Press media activists.

Conferees will ponder wireless technology regulation. While cellphones mainly are regulated by the FCC, states have a role in protecting consumer interests, the group said. Speakers at a Wed. forum include representatives of the Cellular Telecom & Internet Assn., Consumers’ Union and Sprint. High-tech and privacy issues, specifically state rulings on RFID technology, will be covered at the conference, organizers said. In 2005, at least 11 states introduced privacy legislation concerning RFID tags. The tracking devices, which can be used to improve efficiency in govt. and business, raise hackles among those who want to protect personal information. Presenters include Electronic Frontier Foundation Senior Staff Attorney Lee Tien and Microsoft Senior Researcher Steven Shafer.