[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 94 (Wednesday, July 15, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H5504]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1130
                            TRUTH IN BILLING

  (Mr. BLUMENAUER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, the authors of the Education Rate are 
distressed by the current controversy, since the discount was supposed 
to be paid for through the hefty savings the telephone companies 
received as a result of deregulation, almost $3 billion as of July 
1998.
  That is why I have introduced H.R. 4018 to give consumers ``truth in 
billing.'' It would require a GAO report on how much money has actually 
been saved as a result of deregulation and how much of that savings has 
been passed back to consumers. In addition, it would require that those 
companies seeking to put additional line items on their bills reflect 
the full and accurate picture of both costs and savings that have 
resulted from the Federal regulatory action.
  There is no reason for confusion. At a time when the majority of 
classrooms in America do not have Internet access, and when the numbers 
for the poor and the rural areas are even worse, it is important for 
Congress to cut through the confusion, keep our commitment to our 
schools and libraries, and most important, to America's children.

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