[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1641 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1641

  To supersede the Modification of Final Judgment entered August 24, 
1982, in the antitrust action styled United States v. Western Electric, 
Civil Action No. 82-0192, United States District Court for the District 
                  of Columbia; and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 16, 1995

 Mr. Conyers introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To supersede the Modification of Final Judgment entered August 24, 
1982, in the antitrust action styled United States v. Western Electric, 
Civil Action No. 82-0192, United States District Court for the District 
                  of Columbia; and for other purposes.
    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Antitrust Reform Act of 1995''.

SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION FOR BELL OPERATING COMPANY TO ENTER COMPETITIVE 
              LINES OF BUSINESS.

    (a) Application.--
            (1) In general.--After the applicable date specified in 
        paragraph (2), a Bell operating company may apply to the 
        Attorney General for authorization, notwithstanding the 
        Modification of Final Judgment--
                    (A) to provide alarm monitoring services, or
                    (B) to provide interexchange telecommunications 
                services.
        The application shall describe with particularity the nature 
        and scope of the activity, and of each product market or 
        service market, and each geographic market, for which 
        authorization is sought.
            (2) Applicable dates.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the 
        applicable date after which a Bell operating company may apply 
        for authorization shall be--
                    (A) the date of the enactment of this Act, with 
                respect to providing interexchange telecommunications 
                services, and
                    (B) the date that occurs 66 months after the date 
                of the enactment of this Act, with respect to providing 
                alarm monitoring services.
            (3) Publication.--Not later than 10 days after receiving an 
        application made under paragraph (1), the Attorney General 
        shall publish the application in the Federal Register.
    (b) Determination by the Attorney General.--
            (1) Comment period.--Not later than 45 days after an 
        application is published under subsection (a)(3), interested 
        persons may submit written comments to the Attorney General 
        regarding the application. Submitted comments shall be 
        available to the public.
            (2) Determinations.--(A) After the time for comment under 
        paragraph (1) has expired, but not later than 180 days after 
        receiving an application made under subsection (a)(1), the 
        Attorney General shall issue a written determination with 
        respect to granting the authorization for which the Bell 
        operating company has applied.
            (B) Such determination shall be based on a preponderance of 
        the evidence.
            (C) Any person who would be threatened with loss or damage 
        as a result of the approval of the authorization requested 
        shall be permitted to participate as a party in the proceeding 
        on which the determination is based.
            (D) The Attorney General shall approve the granting of the 
        authorization requested in the application only to the extent 
        that the Attorney General finds that there is no substantial 
        possibility that such company or its affiliates could use 
        monopoly power to impede competition in the market such company 
        seeks to enter. The Attorney General shall deny the remainder 
        of the requested authorization.
            (E) A determination that approves the granting of any part 
        of a requested authorization shall describe with particularity 
        the nature and scope of the activity, and of each product 
        market or service market, and each geographic market, to which 
        approval applies.
            (3) Publication.--Not later than 10 days after issuing a 
        determination under paragraph (2), the Attorney General shall 
        publish in the Federal Register a brief description of the 
        determination.
            (4) Finality.--A determination made under paragraph (2) 
        shall be final unless a civil action with respect to such 
        determination is timely commenced under subsection (c)(1).
            (5) Authorization granted.--A requested authorization is 
        granted to the extent that--
                    (A)(i) the Attorney General approves under 
                paragraph (2) the granting of the authorization, and
                    (ii) the approval is not vacated or reversed as a 
                result of judicial review authorized by subsection (c), 
                or
                    (B) as a result of such judicial review of such 
                determination, the Attorney General approves the 
                granting of the requested authorization.
    (c) Judicial Review.--
            (1) Commencement of action.--Not later than 45 days after a 
        determination by the Attorney General is published under 
        subsection (b)(3), the Bell operating company that applied to 
        the Attorney General under subsection (a), or any person who 
        would be threatened with loss or damage as a result of the 
        determination regarding such company's engaging in the activity 
        described in such company's application, may commence an action 
        in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of 
        Columbia Circuit against the Attorney General for judicial 
        review of the determination regarding the application.
            (2) Certification of record.--As part of the answer to the 
        complaint, the Attorney General shall file in such court a 
        certified copy of the record upon which the determination is 
        based.
            (3) Consolidation of actions.--The court shall consolidate 
        for judicial review all actions commenced under this subsection 
        with respect to the application.
            (4) Judgment.--(A) The court shall enter a judgment after 
        reviewing the determination in accordance with section 706 of 
        title 5 of the United States Code.
            (B) A judgment--
                    (i) affirming any part of the determination that 
                approves granting all or part of the requested 
                authorization, or
                    (ii) reversing any part of the determination that 
                denies all or part of the requested authorization,
        shall describe with particularity the nature and scope of the 
        activity, and of each product market or service market, and 
        each geographic market, to which the affirmance or reversal 
        applies.
SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION AS PREREQUISITE.

    (a) Prerequisite.--Until a Bell operating company is so authorized 
in accordance with section 2, it shall be unlawful for such company, 
directly or through an affiliated enterprise, to engage in an activity 
described in section 2(a)(1).
    (b) General Exceptions.--Except with respect to providing alarm 
monitoring services, subsection (a) shall not prohibit a Bell operating 
company from engaging, at any time after the date of the enactment of 
this Act in any activity as authorized by an order entered by the 
United States District Court for the District of Columbia pursuant to 
section VII or VIII(C) of the Modification of Final Judgment, if--
            (1) such order was entered on or before the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, or
            (2) a request for such authorization was pending before 
        such court on the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (c) Exceptions for Incidental Services.--Subsection (a) shall not 
prohibit a Bell operating company, at any time after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, from providing interexchange telecommunications 
services for the purpose of--
            (1)(A) providing audio programming, video programming, or 
        other programming services to subscribers to such services of 
        such company,
            (B) providing the capability for interaction by such 
        subscribers to select or respond to such audio programming, 
        video programming, or other programming services, or
            (C) providing to distributors audio programming or video 
        programming that such company owns, controls, or is licensed by 
        the copyright owner of such programming, or by an assignee of 
        such owner, to distribute,
            (2) providing a telecommunications service, using the 
        transmission facilities of a cable system that is an affiliate 
        of such company, between exchange areas within a cable system 
        franchise area in which such company is not, on the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, a provider of wireline telephone 
        exchange service,
            (3) providing commercial mobile services in accordance with 
        existing law,
            (4) providing a service that permits a customer that is 
        located in one exchange area to retrieve stored information 
        from, or file information for storage in, information storage 
        facilities of such company that are located in another exchange 
        area,
            (5) providing signaling information used in connection with 
        the provision of exchange services to a local exchange carrier 
        that, together with any affiliated local exchange carriers, has 
        aggregate annual revenues of less than $100,000,000, or
            (6) providing network control signaling information to, and 
        receiving such signaling information from, interexchange 
        carriers at any location within the area in which such company 
        provides exchange services or exchange access.

SEC. 4. LIMITATIONS ON MANUFACTURING AND PROVIDING EQUIPMENT.

    (a) Absolute Limitation.--Until the expiration of the 1-year period 
beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, it shall be 
unlawful for a Bell operating company, directly or through an 
affiliated enterprise, to manufacture or provide telecommunications 
equipment, or to manufacture customer premises equipment.
    (b) Qualified Limitation.--
            (1) Required conditions.--After the expiration of the 1-
        year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, 
        it shall be lawful for a Bell operating company, directly or 
        through an affiliated enterprise, to manufacture or provide 
        telecommunications equipment, or to manufacture customer 
        premises equipment, to the extent described in a notification 
        to the Attorney General that meets the requirements of 
        paragraph (2) and only if--
                    (A) such company submits to the Attorney General, 
                at any time after the date of the enactment of this 
                Act, the notification described in paragraph (2) and 
                such additional material and information described in 
                such paragraph as the Attorney General may request, and 
                complies with the waiting period specified in paragraph 
                (3), and
                    (B)(i) the waiting period specified in paragraph 
                (3) expires without the commencement of a civil action 
                by the Attorney General in accordance with paragraph 
                (4) to enjoin such company from engaging in the 
                activity described in such notification, or
                    (ii) before the expiration of such waiting period, 
                the Attorney General notifies such company in writing 
                that the Attorney General does not intend to commence 
                such a civil action with respect to such activity.
            (2) Notification.--The notification required by paragraph 
        (1) shall be in such form and shall contain such documentary 
        material and information relevant to the proposed activity as 
        is necessary and appropriate for the Attorney General to 
        determine whether there is no substantial possibility that such 
        company or its affiliates could use monopoly power to impede 
        competition in the market such company seeks to enter for such 
        activity.
            (3) Waiting period.--The waiting period referred to in 
        paragraph (1) is the 1-year period beginning on the date the 
        notification required by such paragraph is received by the 
        Attorney General.
            (4) Civil action.--Not later than 1 year after receiving a 
        notification required by paragraph (1), the Attorney General 
        may commence a civil action in an appropriate district court of 
        the United States to enjoin the Bell operating company from 
        engaging in the activity described in such notification, if the 
        Attorney General determines that there is a substantial 
        possibility that such company or its affiliates could use 
        monopoly power to impede competition in the market it seeks to 
        enter with respect to such activity.
    (c) Exception for Previously Authorized Activities.--Subsections 
(a) and (b) shall not prohibit a Bell operating company from engaging, 
at any time after the date of the enactment of this Act, in any 
activity as authorized by an order entered by the United States 
District Court for the District of Columbia pursuant to section VII or 
VIII(C) of the Modification of Final Judgment, if--
            (1) such order was entered on or before the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, or
            (2) a request for such authorization was pending before 
        such court on the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. PROHIBITIONS.

    (a) Anticompetitive Discrimination.--A Bell operating company with 
monopoly power in any exchange service market that is engaged (directly 
or through an affiliated enterprise) in an activity described in 
section 2(a)(1) or 4(a) shall not discriminate, in any relevant market, 
between itself or an affiliated enterprise and any other person, or 
between any 2 such other persons, with respect to any product or 
service related to the provision or use of a telecommunications service 
if the effect of such discrimination may be to substantially lessen 
competition, or to tend to create a monopoly, in any line of commerce.
    (b) Anticompetitive Cross-Subsidies.--A Bell operating company with 
monopoly power in any exchange service market shall not use (directly 
or indirectly) proceeds obtained from providing exchange service in 
such market to subsidize, in any relevant market, an activity described 
in section 2(a)(1) or 4(a) if the effect of such subsidization may be 
to substantially lessen competition, or to tend to create a monopoly, 
in any line of commerce.

SEC. 6. ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) Equitable Powers of United States Attorneys.--It shall be the 
duty of the several United States attorneys, under the direction of the 
Attorney General, to institute proceedings in equity in their 
respective districts to prevent and restrain violations of this Act.
    (b) Criminal Liability.--Whoever knowingly engages or knowingly 
attempts to engage in an activity that is prohibited by section 3, 4, 
or 5 shall be guilty of a felony, and on conviction thereof, shall be 
punished to the same extent as a person is punished upon conviction of 
a violation of section 1 of the Sherman Act (15 U.S.C. 1).
    (c) Private Right of Action.--Any person who is injured in its 
business or property by reason of a violation of this Act--
            (1) may bring a civil action in any district court of the 
        United States in the district in which the defendant resides or 
        is found or has an agent, without respect to the amount in 
        controversy, and
            (2) shall recover threefold the damages sustained, and the 
        cost of suit (including a reasonable attorney's fee).
The court may award under this section, pursuant to a motion by such 
person promptly made, simple interest on actual damages for the period 
beginning on the date of service of such person's pleading setting 
forth a claim under this Act and ending on the date of judgment, or for 
any shorter period therein, if the court finds that the award of such 
interest for such period is just in the circumstance.
    (d) Private Injunctive Relief.--Any person shall be entitled to sue 
for and have injunctive relief, in any court of the United States 
having jurisdiction over the parties, against threatened loss or damage 
by a violation of this Act, when and under the same conditions and 
principles as injunctive relief is available under section 16 of the 
Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 26). In any action under this subsection in 
which the plaintiff substantially prevails, the court shall award the 
cost of suit, including a reasonable attorney's fee, to such plaintiff.
    (e) Jurisdiction.--(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the courts of the 
United States shall have exclusive jurisdiction to make determinations 
with respect to a duty, claim, or right arising under this Act, other 
than determinations authorized to be made by the Attorney General under 
section 2(b)(2).
    (2) The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia 
shall have exclusive jurisdiction to review determinations made under 
section 2(b)(2).
    (3) No action commenced to assert or enforce a duty, claim, or 
right arising under this Act shall be stayed pending any such 
determination by the Attorney General.
    (f) Subpoenas.--In an action commenced under this Act, a subpoena 
requiring the attendance of a witness at a hearing or a trial may be 
served at any place within the United States.
    (g) Applicability of Other Laws to Enforcement of This Act.--
            (1) Section 5 of the clayton act.--Section 5 of the Clayton 
        Act (15 U.S.C. 16) shall apply with respect to actions under 
        this section brought by or on behalf of the United States.
            (2) Antitrust civil process act.--Section 2(a) of the 
        Antitrust Civil Process Act (15 U.S.C. 1311(a)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1) by striking ``and'' at the 
                end,
                    (B) in paragraph (2) by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``and'', and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(3) title I of the Antitrust Reform Act of 
                1995.''.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Affiliate.--The term ``affiliate'' means a person that 
        (directly or indirectly) owns or controls, is owned or 
        controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with, 
        another person. For purposes of this paragraph, to own refers 
        to owning an equity interest (or the equivalent thereof) of 
        more than 50 percent.
            (2) Affiliated enterprise.--The term ``affiliated 
        enterprise'' has the meaning given it in the Modification of 
        Final Judgment.
            (3) Alarm monitoring service.--The term ``alarm monitoring 
        service'' means a service that uses a device located at a 
        residence, place of business, or other fixed premises--
                    (A) to receive signals from other devices located 
                at or about such premises regarding a possible threat 
                at such premises to life, safety, or property, from 
                burglary, fire, vandalism, bodily injury, or other 
                emergency, and
                    (B) to transmit a signal regarding such threat by 
                means of transmission facilities of a Bell operating 
                company or one of its affiliates to a remote monitoring 
                center to alert a person at such center of the need to 
                inform the customer or another person or police, fire, 
                rescue, security, or public safety personnel of such 
                threat,
        but does not include a service that uses a medical monitoring 
        device attached to an individual for the automatic surveillance 
        of an ongoing medical condition.
            (4) Antitrust laws.--The term ``antitrust laws'' has the 
        meaning given it in subsection (a) of the first section of the 
        Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)), except that such term includes 
        the Act of June 19, 1936 (49 Stat. 1526; 15 U.S.C. 13 et seq.), 
        commonly known as the Robinson Patman Act, and section 5 of the 
        Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent that 
        such section 5 applies to unfair methods of competition.
            (5) Audio programming.--The term ``audio programming'' 
        means programming provided by, or generally considered 
        comparable to programming provided by, a radio broadcast 
        station.
            (6) Bell operating company.--The term ``Bell operating 
        company'' means--
                    (A) Bell Telephone Company of Nevada, Illinois Bell 
                Telephone Company, Indiana Bell Telephone Company, 
                Incorporated, Michigan Bell Telephone Company, New 
                England Telephone and Telegraph Company, New Jersey 
                Bell Telephone Company, New York Telephone Company, U S 
                West Communications Company, South Central Bell 
                Telephone Company, Southern Bell Telephone and 
                Telegraph Company, Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, 
                The Bell Telephone Company of Pennsylvania, The 
                Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company, The 
                Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company of Maryland, 
                The Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company of 
                Virginia, The Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company 
                of West Virginia, The Diamond State Telephone Company, 
                The Ohio Bell Telephone Company, The Pacific Telephone 
                and Telegraph Company, or Wisconsin Telephone Company,
                    (B) any successor or assign of any such company, or
                    (C) any affiliate of any person described in 
                subparagraph (A) or (B).
            (7) Cable system.--The term ``cable system'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 602(7) of the Communications 
        Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 522(7)).
            (8) Carrier.--The term ``carrier'' has the meaning given 
        such term in section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
        U.S.C. 153).
            (9) Commercial mobile services.--The term ``commercial 
        mobile services'' has the meaning given such term in section 
        332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 332(d)).
            (10) Customer premises equipment.--The term ``customer 
        premises equipment'' means equipment employed on the premises 
        of a person (other than a carrier) to originate, route, or 
        terminate telecommunications, and includes software integral to 
        such equipment.
            (11) Exchange access.--The term ``exchange access'' means 
        exchange services provided for the purpose of originating or 
        terminating interexchange telecommunications.
            (12) Exchange area.--The term ``exchange area'' means a 
        contiguous geographic area established by a Bell operating 
        company such that no exchange area includes points within more 
        than 1 metropolitan statistical area, consolidated metropolitan 
        statistical area, or State, except as expressly permitted under 
        the Modification of Final Judgment before the date of the 
        enactment of this Act.
            (13) Exchange service.--The term ``exchange service'' means 
        a telecommunications service provided within an exchange area.
            (14) Information.--Except as provided in paragraph (18), 
        the term ``information'' means knowledge or intelligence 
        represented by any form of writing, signs, signals, pictures, 
        sounds, or other symbols.
            (15) Interexchange telecommunications.--The term 
        ``interexchange telecommunications'' means telecommunications 
        between a point located in an exchange area and a point located 
        outside such exchange area.
            (16) Manufacture.--The term ``manufacture'' has the meaning 
        given such term under the Modification of Final Judgment.
            (17) Modification of final judgment.--The term 
        ``Modification of Final Judgment'' means the order entered 
        August 24, 1982, in the antitrust action styled United States 
        v. Western Electric, Civil Action No. 82-0192, in the United 
        States District Court for the District of Columbia, and 
        includes any judgment or order with respect to such action 
        entered on or after August 24, 1982.
            (18) Other programming services.--The term ``other 
        programming services'' means information (other than audio 
        programming or video programming) that the person who offers a 
        video programming service makes available to all subscribers 
        generally. For purposes of the preceding sentence, the terms 
        ``information'' and ``makes available to all subscribers 
        generally'' have the same meaning such terms have under section 
        602(13) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 522(13)).
            (19) Person.--The term ``person'' has the meaning given 
        such term in subsection (a) of the first section of the Clayton 
        Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)).
            (20) State.--The term ``State'' means any of the several 
        States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
        Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the 
        Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall 
        Islands, Palau, or any territory or possession of the United 
        States.
            (21) Telecommunications.--The term ``telecommunications'' 
        means the transmission of information between points by 
        electromagnetic means.
            (22) Telecommunications equipment.--The term 
        ``telecommunications equipment'' means equipment, other than 
        customer premises equipment, used by a carrier to provide a 
        telecommunications service, and includes software integral to 
        such equipment.
            (23) Telecommunications service.--The term 
        ``telecommunications service'' means the offering for hire of 
        transmission facilities or of telecommunications by means of 
        such facilities.
            (24) Transmission facilities.--The term ``transmission 
        facilities'' means equipment (including wire, cable, microwave, 
        satellite, and fiber-optics) that transmits information by 
        electromagnetic means or that directly supports such 
        transmission, but does not include customer premises equipment.
            (25) Video programming.--The term ``video programming'' has 
        the meaning given such term in section 602(19) of the 
        Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 522(19)).

SEC. 8. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.

    (a) Modification of Final Judgment.--This Act shall supersede the 
Modification of Final Judgment, except that this Act shall not affect--
            (1) section I of the Modification of Final Judgment, 
        relating to AT&T reorganization,
            (2) section II(A) (including appendix B) and II(B) of the 
        Modification of Final Judgment, relating to equal access and 
        nondiscrimination,
            (3) section IV(F) and IV(I) of the Modification of Final 
        Judgment, with respect to the requirements included in the 
        definitions of ``exchange access'' and ``information access'',
            (4) section VIII(B) of the Modification of Final Judgment, 
        relating to printed advertising directories,
            (5) section VIII(E) of the Modification of Final Judgment, 
        relating to notice to customers of AT&T,
            (6) section VIII(F) of the Modification of Final Judgment, 
        relating to less than equal exchange access,
            (7) section VIII(G) of the Modification of Final Judgment, 
        relating to transfer of AT&T assets, including all exceptions 
        granted thereunder before the date of the enactment of this 
        Act, and
            (8) with respect to the parts of the Modification of Final 
        Judgment described in paragraphs (1) through (7)--
                    (A) section III of the Modification of Final 
                Judgment, relating to applicability and effect,
                    (B) section IV of the Modification of Final 
                Judgment, relating to definitions,
                    (C) section V of the Modification of Final 
                Judgment, relating to compliance,
                    (D) section VI of the Modification of Final 
                Judgment, relating to visitorial provisions,
                    (E) section VII of the Modification of Final 
                Judgment, relating to retention of jurisdiction, and
                    (F) section VIII(I) of the Modification of Final 
                Judgment, relating to the court's sua sponte authority.
    (b) Antitrust Laws.--Except as provided in section 6(g), nothing in 
this Act shall be construed to modify, impair, or supersede the 
applicability of any of the antitrust laws.
    (c) Federal, State, and Local Law.--(1) Except as provided in 
paragraph (2), this Act shall not be construed to modify, impair, or 
supersede Federal, State, or local law unless expressly so provided in 
this Act.
    (2) This Act shall supersede State and local law to the extent that 
such law would impair or prevent the operation of this Act.
    (d) Cumulative Penalty.--Any penalty imposed, or relief granted, 
under this Act shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, any penalty 
or relief authorized by any other law to be imposed with respect to 
conduct described in this Act.
                                 <all>
HR 1641 IH----2