[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4757 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4757

     To promote deployment of and investment in advanced Internet 
                        communications services.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 6, 2004

  Mr. Stearns (for himself and Mr. Boucher) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To promote deployment of and investment in advanced Internet 
                        communications services.

    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 ``Advanced Internet Communications 
Services Act of 2004''.

SEC. 2. REGULATORY TREATMENT.

    (a) Consideration as Interstate Service.--An advanced Internet 
communications service shall be considered an interstate service.
    (b) Regulatory Treatment.--An advanced Internet communications 
service shall be considered neither a telecommunications service nor an 
information service for purposes of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 
U.S.C. 151 et seq.).
    (c) Limitation.--Subject to section 3, but notwithstanding this 
section or any other provision of law, neither the Federal 
Communications Commission nor any State may regulate the rates, 
charges, terms, or conditions for, or entry into, or exit from, the 
provision of, any advanced Internet communications service.

SEC. 3. COMMISSION EXCLUSIVE AUTHORITY REGARDING ADVANCED INTERNET 
              COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES.

    (a) Determination Regarding Requirements and Obligations.--
            (1) In general.--The Commission shall have exclusive 
        authority regarding advanced Internet communications services, 
        and shall, by regulation, impose requirements or obligations on 
        providers of advanced Internet communications voice service to 
        carry out the following purposes:
                    (A) Ensure that appropriate E-911 services are 
                available to users of advanced Internet communications 
                voice services.
                    (B) Provide access to such service by persons with 
                disabilities.
                    (C) Contribute directly to the universal service 
                fund.
                    (D) Provide for just and reasonable compensation 
                for use of the public switched telephone network.
            (2) Standard.--The Commission may establish regulations 
        imposing requirements or obligations referred to in paragraph 
        (1) only to the extent that the Commission determines such 
        regulations are technically feasible and economically 
        reasonable.
            (3) Parity among providers.--The Commission shall ensure 
        that the requirements or obligations referred to in paragraph 
        (1) apply equally to all providers of advanced Internet 
        communications voice services, and neither the Commission nor 
        any State may regulate the underlying Internet Protocol 
        transmission networks, facilities, or equipment that support or 
        transmit any advanced Internet communications voice service in 
        a manner that results in the unequal application of regulation 
        to any Internet Protocol network, facilities, or equipment as 
        compared to any other such network, facilities, or equipment.
    (b) Rulemaking Proceeding.--Within 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Commission shall initiate and complete a 
proceeding to make the determinations required under subsection (a).
    (c) Regulations.--Not later than 60 days after the completion of 
the proceeding pursuant to subsection (b), the Commission shall issue 
any regulations pursuant to such proceeding.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Advanced internet communications service.--The term 
        ``advanced Internet communications service'' means an IP 
        network and the associated capabilities and functionalities, 
        services, and applications provided over an Internet protocol 
        platform or for which an Internet protocol capability is an 
        integral component, and services and applications that enable 
        an end user to send or receive a communication in Internet 
        protocol format, regardless of whether the communication is 
        voice, data, video, or any other form.
            (2) Advanced internet communications voice service.--The 
        term ``advanced Internet communications voice service'' means 
        an advanced Internet communications service that is offered to 
        the public for a fee, and that provides real-time voice 
        communications, and in which that voice component is the 
        primary function of the service.
            (3) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
        Communications Commission.
            (4) IP network.--The term ``IP network'' means the 
        facilities used to transmit and to encode, digitize, packetize, 
        or route advanced Internet communications services in an 
        Internet Protocol format, including routers, softswitches, 
        gateways, packet switches, and transmission facilities.
            (5) Internet protocol.--The term ``Internet protocol'' 
        means the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, or 
        any predecessor or successor protocols to such protocol.
            (6) Public switched telephone network.--The term ``public 
        switched telephone network'' means the collection of 
        interconnected circuit switched telecommunications.
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