[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1613 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1613

To improve coordination in the formulation of telecommunications policy 
          within the executive branch, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 1, 1993

   Mrs. Collins of Illinois introduced the following bill; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To improve coordination in the formulation of telecommunications policy 
          within the executive branch, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

                              short title

    Section 1. This Act may be cited as the ``Telecommunications Policy 
Coordination Act of 1993''.

                              definitions

    Sec. 2. For purposes of this Act:
            (1) The term ``Committee'' means the Advisory Committee on 
        Telecommunications Policy established under section 10.
            (2) The term ``Office'' means the Office of 
        Telecommunications Policy established in section 3.
            (3) The term ``Deputy Director'' means the Deputy Director 
        of the Office appointed under section 5(b).
            (4) The term ``Director'' means the Director of the Office 
        appointed under section 5(a).

                             establishment

    Sec. 3. There is hereby established in the Executive Office of the 
President the Office of Telecommunications Policy.

                               functions

    Sec. 4. (a) The Office, acting through the Director, shall--
            (1) take such action as may be necessary to provide for the 
        preparation of national telecommunications policy options;
            (2) serve as the principal advisor to the President in 
        matters relating to telecommunications issues and policies;
            (3) act as the arbiter of disputes and differences which 
        may arise between or among Government agencies in connection 
        with the development and implementation of national 
        telecommunications policies;
            (4) communicate the views of Government agencies, as well 
        as the views of the President, with respect to 
        telecommunications matters to the Federal Communications 
        Commission, and communicate the views of the President and 
        Government agencies (other than the Commission) to the 
        Congress;
            (5) monitor the development of new telecommunications 
        technologies, study the effects of new telecommunications 
        facilities, services, and systems, and make recommendations to 
        the President and to the Congress with respect to the 
        introduction of new technologies into the national economy; and
            (6) perform such other functions vested in the President 
        relating to telecommunications as the President may delegate to 
        the Office.
    (b) The authority of the Office under this Act shall not affect the 
authority of the Federal Communications Commission under the 
Communications Act of 1934 or the Satellite Communications Act of 1962.
    (c) The functions of the Office under subsection (a)(3) and (4), 
and the corresponding obligations of other agencies affected 
thereunder, shall be in accordance with regulations which the President 
shall prescribe.

               director and staff; organization of office

    Sec. 5. (a) The head of the Office shall be the Director, who shall 
be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of 
the Senate. The Director shall be paid at a rate equal to the rate of 
basic pay which is payable from time to time for level II of the 
Executive Schedule under section 5313 of title 5, United States Code.
    (b) The Office shall have a Deputy Director, who shall be appointed 
by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The 
Deputy Director shall be paid at a rate equal to the rate of basic pay 
which is payable from time to time for level IV of the Executive 
Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United States Code. The Deputy 
Director shall perform such duties and exercise such powers as the 
Director may prescribe. The Deputy Director shall act for, and exercise 
the powers of, the Director during any absence or disability of the 
Director or during any vacancy in the office of Director.
    (c)(1)(A) The Director may appoint not more than two full-time 
professional staff members who shall perform such duties as the 
Director may direct. The Deputy Director may appoint not more than one 
such staff member who shall perform such duties as the Deputy Director 
may direct.
    (B) The appointments specified in subparagraph (A) may be made 
without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, 
governing appointments in the competitive service. Such staff member 
may be paid without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and 
subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, relating 
to classification and General Schedule pay rates. The Director may fix 
the compensation of not more than one such staff member at a rate not 
in excess of the maximum rate payable from time to time for grade GS-18 
of the General Schedule under section 5332 of title 5, United States 
Code. The remaining staff members appointed under subparagraph (A) may 
be compensated at a rate fixed by the Director or the Deputy Director, 
as the case may be, not in excess of the maximum rate payable from time 
to time for grade GS-16 of the General Schedule under section 5332 of 
title 5, United States Code.
    (2) The Director may appoint and fix the pay of such clerical and 
other support personnel as the Director considers desirable. Such 
personnel shall be appointed subject to the provisions of title 5, 
United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, 
and shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of chapter 51 and 
subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title relating to classification 
and General Schedule pay rates.
    (d) The Director may organize the personnel of the Office into such 
bureaus, divisions, or offices as the Director may consider necessary.

                  authority and functions of director

    Sec. 6. (a) The Director shall exercise all the executive and 
administrative functions of the Office.
    (b) The Director--
            (1) may obtain services as authorized in section 3109 of 
        title 5, United States Code, at rates not to exceed the daily 
        rate prescribed for GS-18 of the General Schedule under section 
        5332 of title 5, United States Code, for persons employed 
        intermittently in Federal Government service;
            (2) may delegate to the Deputy Director, or to any other 
        employee of the Office, any authority of the Director 
        established in this Act;
            (3) shall prescribe such rules as may be necessary to carry 
        out the provisions of this Act;
            (4) shall distribute business among any personnel appointed 
        under section 5(c)(2), and among any bureaus, divisions, or 
        offices established under section 5(d);
            (5) shall administer the use and expenditure of funds 
        available to the Office;
            (6) shall coordinate and organize the work of the Office in 
        order to promote prompt and efficient disposition of all 
        matters within the jurisdiction of the Office; and
            (7) shall assure appropriate consumer representation in 
        connection with the development of policy by the Office.

                           advisory committee

    Sec. 7. (a) The Director shall establish an advisory committee to 
be known as the Advisory Committee on Telecommunications Policy.
    (b) The Committee shall consist of members appointed by the 
Director from the general public, including representatives of--
            (1) various segments of the telecommunications industry,
            (2) labor organizations involved in such industry, and
            (3) public interest and consumer organizations.
    (c) The Committee shall provide advice and recommendations to the 
Director on matters referred to it by Director and on such other 
matters relating to the functions of the Director as it considers 
appropriate. Consistent with otherwise applicable law, the Committee 
may make public any advice or recommendations it has provided to the 
Director under this subsection.

                      annual reports; fcc reports

    Sec. 8. (a) The Director shall, not later than the 15th day of 
February following the end of each fiscal year, commencing with the 
first complete fiscal year following the effective date provided for in 
section 9, make a report to the President for submission to the 
Congress relating to the activities of the Office during the preceding 
fiscal year.
    (b) Each report made by the Director under subsection (a) shall--
            (1) describe actions taken by the Office in connection with 
        the preparation of national telecommunications policies in 
        accordance with section 4(1);
            (2) identify and analyze emerging trends in 
        telecommunications; and
            (3) include such other information as the Director 
        considers appropriate.
    (c) In any case in which the Office submits views to the Federal 
Communications Commission under section 4(a)(4) and the Commission 
takes any final action after such submittal which is inconsistent with 
such views, the Commission shall, within twenty days of such final 
action is taken, submit a report to the President and to the Congress 
setting forth the reasons therefor.

                             effective date

    Sec. 9. The provisions of this Act shall take effect ninety days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

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