[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2653 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        S.2653

                       One Hundred Ninth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
             the third day of January, two thousand and six


                                 An Act



   To direct the Federal Communications Commission to make efforts to 
  reduce telephone rates for Armed Forces personnel deployed overseas.

    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 ``Call Home Act of 2006''.

SEC. 2. TELEPHONE RATES FOR MEMBERS OF ARMED FORCES DEPLOYED ABROAD.

    (a) In General.--The Federal Communications Commission shall take 
such action as may be necessary to reduce the cost of calling home for 
Armed Forces personnel who are stationed outside the United States 
under official military orders or deployed outside the United States in 
support of military operations, training exercises, or other purposes 
as approved by the Secretary of Defense, including the reduction of 
such costs through the waiver of government fees, assessments, or other 
charges for such calls. The Commission may not regulate rates in order 
to carry out this section.
    (b) Factors To Consider.--In taking the action described in 
subsection (a), the Commission, in coordination with the Department of 
Defense and the Department of State, shall--
        (1) evaluate and analyze the costs to Armed Forces personnel of 
    such telephone calls to and from American military bases abroad;
        (2) evaluate methods of reducing the rates imposed on such 
    calls, including deployment of new technology such as voice over 
    Internet protocol or other Internet protocol technology;
        (3) encourage telecommunications carriers (as defined in 
    section 3(44) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
    153(44))) to adopt flexible billing procedures and policies for 
    Armed Forces personnel and their dependents for telephone calls to 
    and from such Armed Forces personnel; and
        (4) seek agreements with foreign governments to reduce 
    international surcharges on such telephone calls.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
        (1) Armed forces.--The term ``Armed Forces'' has the meaning 
    given that term by section 2101(2) of title 5, United States Code.
        (2) Military base.--The term ``military base'' includes 
    official duty stations to include vessels, whether such vessels are 
    in port or underway outside of the United States.

SEC. 3. REPEAL OF EXISTING AUTHORIZATION.

    Section 213 of the Telecommunications Authorization Act of 1992 (47 
U.S.C. 201 note) is repealed.

SEC. 4. PUBLIC SAFETY INTEROPERABLE COMMUNICATIONS GRANTS.

    Pursuant to section 3006 of Public Law 109-171 (47 U.S.C. 309 
note), the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information of 
the Department of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of the 
Department of Homeland Security, shall award no less than 
$1,000,000,000 for public safety interoperable communications grants no 
later than September 30, 2007 subject to the receipt of qualified 
applications as determined by the Assistant Secretary.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.