| Major Telecom Reform Legislation Currently Before Congress | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill No. | Title | Sponsor(s) | Committee | Key Provisions | Status |
| S. 1504 | Broadband Investment and Consumer Choice Act | John Ensign, R-NV John McCain, R-AZ |
Commerce, Science and Transportation | * Eliminates nearly all forms of economic regulation; * Eliminates nearly all unbundling requirements; * Limits franchise fees to recovery of right-of-way costs; * Permits fee-based bandwidth prioritization; * Prohibits blocking of legal content and applications; * Limits, but does not prohibit, municipal networks |
Referred to Committee |
| S. 1349/H.R. 3146 | Video Choice Act of 2005 (Senate and House versions) | Gordon Smith, R, OR (Senate) Jay Rockefeller, D-WV (Senate) Marcia Blackburn, R-TN (House) Albert Wynn, D-MD (House) |
Commerce, Science and Transportation (Senate) Energy and Commerce (House) |
* Eliminates local franchise requirement for competitive video providers; * Permits local franchise authorities to collect a percent-of-revenue fee on video-related revenues equivalent to fees charged incumbent cable companies |
Referred to Committees |
| S. 2113 | Digital Age Communications Act of 2005 | Jim DeMint, R-SC | Commerce, Science and Transportation | * Eliminates most economic regulation; * Overhauls universal service mechanisms; * Prohibits competitive municipal-owned networks * Prescribes corrective, not pre-emptive, FCC action for anti-competitive behavior * Limits FCC review of industry mergers; |
Referred to Committee |
| Draft Bill | Draft Telecom Reform Bill (“BITS II”) | Joe Barton, R-TX Fred Upton, R-MI |
Energy and Commerce | * Creates separate categories for voice, VoIP, video and “broadband Internet transmission services.” * Retains most regulations on basic voice; * Limits regulation of data and video services; * Streamlines video franchising process; * Standardizes franchise fees at 5% of video service revenues; * Limits, but does not prohibit, municipal broadband |
Draft Form, Not yet introduced |
| S. 1294 | Community Broadband Act of 2005 | Frank Lautenberg, D-NJ John McCain, R-AZ |
Commerce, Science and Transportation | * Prohibits states from passing laws barring municipal broadband projects | Referred to Committee |
| H.R. 2726 | Preserving Innovation on Telecom Act of 2005 | Pete Sessions, R-TX | Energy and Commerce | * Prohibits municipal or other government-owned broadband networks | Referred to Committee |
Steven Titch
Steven Titch is a policy analyst focusing on telecommunications, Internet and information technology. He is also a policy advisor to The Heartland Institute.
