[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 72 (Wednesday, June 5, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5045-S5048]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LIEBERMAN:
  S. 2582. A bill to require a report to Congress on a national 
strategy for the deployment of high speed broadband Internet 
telecommunications services, and for other purposes; to the Committee 
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, in 1943, the chairman of a famous 
American electronics company said, ``I think there is a world market 
for maybe five computers.'' Good guess. Industry has repeatedly 
exceeded expectations like that one, and helped the American economy as 
a whole exceed expectations
  New questions are now reverberating from Silicon Valley to 
Pennsylvania Avenue. How do we catch the next great wave of innovation 
and ingenuity to unleash the next great boom of productivity and 
opportunity? How do we find new ways to translate our enormous 
technological prowess into real economic progress for the American 
people?
  I rise today to introduce what I believe will be a roadmap to 
revitalization. It's premised on the extraordinary promise of high-
speed Internet to help us return to high-intensity growth; by 
revolutionizing the way we communicate and live our lives. Its goal is 
to highlight the challenges we face in tapping the transformative 
potential of broadband technology, to spur agreement on a national 
strategy for accelerating its development and deployment, and 
ultimately to help bring on what we all hope will be the broadband 
boom.
  Our country's last big boom was fueled by the most reliable, 
resilient, and renewable source of energy around: America's creative 
genius. Government paved the road, first with R&D funding, then in the 
1990s with sound budget policies, but it was our innovation industries 
that made it happen. In fact, the information technology sector, which 
made up only 4 percent of GDP, was responsible for a remarkable 30 
percent of all economic growth between 1995 and 2000.
  Today, America's high-tech industries, which have survived the big 
bust that followed the big bang of the 1990s, haven't lost their edge. 
Information technology and the innovation economy, for example, are 
still among our greatest national resources. But as we've emerged from 
recession, many businesses across the country have been increasingly 
concerned about our recovery. How strong will it be? How long will it 
last?
  Many in Washington have recognized that broadband can and must be a 
big part of the solution. But most policymakers have been focusing on 
short-term obstacles to the next small jump in speed. I think we need a 
larger and longer vision here. We need to look over the horizon and ask 
what it will take to usher in advanced broadband that will make speeds 
of 10 to 100 megabits per second available all across the country, so 
that we can truly unleash the tremendous economic potential of this 
technology.
  The science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke once said, ``Any 
sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.'' 
Well, the next generation Internet passes that test. It has the ability 
to levitate productivity, make millions of jobs appear, and transport 
our economy into the future. And there won't be any sleight of hand 
involved. Sometimes, there won't even be wires attached.
  In education, for example, universities, school districts, and 
private companies have already started rolling out impressive 
applications of advanced broadband. We're not just talking about 
streaming video with questions sent through instant messenger. 
Broadband can transform the very nature of instruction, right at the 
time when schools need more flexible and more powerful learning tools 
to meet higher standards.
  In healthcare, the possibilities are equally exciting: hospitals 
without walls, instantaneous remote monitoring of patient vitals, 
comprehensive informatics databases that are available to professionals 
everywhere. We even saw the first remote surgery pioneered last fall, 
when two surgeons in New York operated on a patient in Strasbourg, 
France.
  Indeed, advanced broadband's ability to both increase economic 
opportunities and improve society in so many fields, from law to 
finance, from entertainment to agriculture, and from homeland defense 
to international defense, are just astounding.
  These days, computing power is expanding at an incredible rate. But 
networking speed is way behind computing speed. Industry can't make the 
best use of the computing potential that's available without the pipes 
that bring it home to consumers and businesses--including and 
especially small businesses. While we have some good arteries, we don't 
have the capillaries to carry data all the way.
  I stand here today to say that we in government can't let this 
potentially fertile field of technology lie fallow. We need to make the 
most of this moment, in which the high-speed Internet is on the cusp of 
catalyzing a quantum leap in our economy. Which is to say, we need to 
lead, and seed.
  Unfortunately, the case for making broadband deployment a priority of 
a

[[Page S5046]]

national economic strategy has yet to be understood adequately by 
government. The broadband buck is still stuck on the government's desk, 
and with it, thousands of new opportunities and millions of new jobs. 
Decisions are piling up: on spectrum, competition, rights management, 
spam, privacy, child protection, and more. These are important issues 
that need to be resolved, and they need to be resolved comprehensively, 
with an overarching vision.
  Last week I released a white paper entitled Broadband: A 21st Century 
Technology and Productivity Strategy and today I introduce the National 
Broadband Strategy Act of 2002. The white paper analyzes the 
challenges. The legislation will compel us to meet them, requiring the 
Administration to develop a national broadband strategy within six 
months of passage.
  Taken together, and working in conjunction with insightful leaders 
and groups in the tech community, I am confident these measures can 
spark the development and implementation of a coherent, cross-agency 
strategy to eliminate obstacles, create incentives, and encourage 
industry innovation.
  In the upcoming months, I'll follow up this report and legislation 
with proposals on how to reach truly advanced broadband, the speed I 
mentioned before, upwards of 10 megabits per second. There is no focus 
on this need now, and that's where government particularly needs to 
lead and seed.
  The follow-up legislation I'll propose in the coming months will call 
on the FCC to develop a regulatory framework to meet the challenges of 
the next generation Net: propose tax credits for the deployment of 
advanced broadband, encourage research and development on advanced 
broadband infrastructure that will enable this technology to reach into 
all the corners and crevices of the country, and present a program to 
incentivize research and development on major applications in areas 
where government plays a central role, including education, healthcare, 
and e-government.
  The public sector cannot and should not manage this effort. Our 
future will fortunately be in the hands of thousands of individual 
innovators. Nor should the government be choosing winners and losers. 
To benefit consumers, government must be pro-broadband, but technology 
neutral about how business gets there, by encouraging innovation and 
maximizing competition. Government must clear the path so that business 
innovators can march forward.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this important piece of 
legislation. I request unanimous consent that the introductory 
materials to my whitepaper and the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record. I note to my colleagues that the full text of the whitepaper is 
available on my web site, http://lieberman.senate.gov.
 There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2582

       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 ``National Broadband Strategy 
     Act of 2002''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The United States needs to develop a long-term 
     investment and growth strategy that will restore the 
     unprecedented gains in structural economic productivity with 
     high employment growth experienced by the United States in 
     the late 1990s.
       (2) The gains in structural productivity with high 
     employment growth in the late 1990s resulted from 
     unprecedented investments in information and communication 
     technology.
       (3) It was the precipitous decline in these investments 
     that took the United States economy into recession before 
     September 11, 2001.
       (4) The United States needs to focus on stimulating 
     resurgence in these investments to regain vibrant growth in 
     structural productivity and high employment growth.
       (5) If productivity increases at the rate of 1.5 percent 
     per year, the standard of living will double about every 46 
     years, or about every two generations. On the other hand, if 
     productivity increases at the rate of 3 percent per year, the 
     standard of living will double about every 23 years, or about 
     every generation. This difference results from the so-called 
     miracle of compounding. To take advantage of compounding, a 
     long-term economic strategy for the United States must focus 
     on structural productivity growth.
       (6) Productivity growth has enabled American workers to 
     produce 30 times as much in goods and services in 1999 as 
     they produced in 1899, with only 5 times as many workers. 
     This growth in productivity has increased the standard of 
     living in the United States from $4,200 in 1899 to $33,740 in 
     1999 (expressed in 1999 dollars). Growth in structural 
     productivity will bring about growth in wages and salaries, 
     profits, and government tax receipts.
       (7) The productivity gains of the United States in the late 
     1990s broke a 25-year trend. From the early 1970s to the mid-
     1990s, United States productivity grew sluggishly, at an 
     annual rate of about 1.5 percent. During the final 5 years of 
     the 20th Century, it grew at nearly double that rate.
       (8) The high cyclical productivity growth the United States 
     has experienced in 2001 and 2002 results for the most part 
     from a reduction in employment and increased utilization of 
     existing capacity.
       (9) The United States needs a strategy to generate 
     structural productivity growth arising from the development 
     and deployment of new technology that enhances both 
     efficiency and employment.
       (10) The United States needs to prepare now for the 
     retirement of the Baby Boom generation. If the United States 
     does nothing regarding Social Security, it is estimated that 
     by 2030 the annual shortfall between amounts in the Social 
     Security Trust Fund and the amount required to meet 
     obligations of the Fund will reach $814,000,000,000 (in 1999 
     dollars). The United States has approximately 
     $7,4000,000,000,000 in obligations coming due, and it 
     advisable to have our fiscal house in order, hopefully with 
     no national debt, when these obligations must be paid. 
     Restoring structural productivity and high employment growth 
     is essential to ensure that the United States can honor these 
     obligations.
       (11) Making affordable, high speed broadband Internet 
     connections of 10 Mbps-100 Mbps available to all American 
     homes and small businesses has the potential to restore 
     structural productivity and employment growth.
       (12) High speed broadband Internet applications for voice, 
     data, graphics, and video will revolutionize many aspects of 
     life at home, school, and work. High speed broadband Internet 
     will transform health care, commerce, government, and 
     education. The benefits of a successful high speed broadband 
     Internet deployment strategy to the quality of life and 
     economy of the United States will be immeasurable.
       (13) Traditionally, the United States is considered the 
     world leader in the development and commercialization of new 
     innovations and technologies. However, the United States lags 
     far behind other countries in broadband deployment, including 
     South Korea, Canada, and Sweden. By 2005, the United States 
     is projected to fall to ninth place in broadband deployment, 
     surpassed by Asian markets in Hong Kong and Singapore, the 
     Scandinavian countries Denmark and Norway, and the 
     Netherlands.
       (14) The United States will need high speed broadband 
     Internet for public health, education, and economic welfare, 
     just as the United States now needs universal telephone 
     service. High speed broadband Internet applications are 
     capable of revitalizing the economy and solving countless 
     problems for average Americans. The applications fall into 
     the areas of e-education, e-health, e-commerce, e-government, 
     and e-entertainment.
       (15) The benefits that will arise from development and 
     implementation of a national high speed broadband Internet 
     strategy amply justify a priority for such a strategy. The 
     Federal Government will act one way or another on many of the 
     key policy issues affecting broadband deployment. The only 
     question is whether it acts in accordance with a strategy, or 
     piecemeal.
       (15) Adopting a national strategy for broadband deployment 
     is consistent with the strategies the United States has 
     adopted to speed deployment of other essential 
     infrastructure, including railroads, electric power, 
     telephone service, and radio and television. Each of those 
     technologies has been the focus of a national economic 
     strategy. There is a consensus that the Northwest Ordinance, 
     Morrill Land-Grant Act, and GI bill, and laws for 
     transcontinental railroads, rural electrification, and the 
     interstate highway system, embodied useful and successful 
     strategies for the future of the United States.
       (16) In facilitating high speed broadband Internet 
     deployment, the United States should rely on markets and 
     entrepreneurs and minimize the intrusion of government. 
     Americans need to be creative and innovative when government 
     acts to make sure that it provides value added.
       (17) In crafting a comprehensive strategy to advance 
     deployment of high speed broadband Internet, a broad range of 
     policy options should be addressed, and the Administration 
     needs to provide leadership in developing these options and 
     establishing a priority among them.

     SEC. 3. NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR HIGH SPEED BROADBAND INTERNET 
                   DEPLOYMENT.

       (a) Strategy for Increasing Structural Productivity and 
     Employment Growth.--Not later than six months after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to 
     Congress a report setting

[[Page S5047]]

     forth a strategy for the nation-wide deployment of high speed 
     broadband Internet telecommunications services.
       (b) Elements.--The report under subsection (a) shall 
     include the following:
       (1) A goal for the deployment of broadband 
     telecommunications services nationwide, including a goal 
     regarding the speeds necessary to facilitate applications 
     needed to stimulate structural productivity and employment 
     growth.
       (2) A proposal for policies to foster and maintain 
     competition among firms offering broadband telecommunications 
     service, including competition to deploy high speed broadband 
     Internet of 10 Mbps-100 Mbps.
       (3) A proposal for incentives to enhance demand for high 
     speed broadband Internet telecommunications service, 
     including demand for purposes of serving Federal mission 
     areas such as homeland security, distance learning, health, 
     scientific collaboration, and electronic commerce.
       (4) A proposal for incentives to facilitate and enhance the 
     supply of high speed broadband Internet telecommunications 
     service.
       (5) A proposal to enhance global electronic commerce.
       (6) A proposal for the optimal allocation of Federal 
     Government resources on research and development regarding 
     high speed broadband Internet telecommunications service, 
     including recommendations for the allocation and 
     prioritization of Federal funds.
       (7) A proposal for the optimal allocation of spectrum in 
     furtherance of the deployment of high speed broadband 
     Internet telecommunications service.
       (8) An assessment of various limitations to the deployment 
     of high speed broadband Internet telecommunications service, 
     including matters relating to taxation, privacy, security, 
     spamming, content, intellectual property, and rights-of-way, 
     and proposals for eliminating or alleviating such 
     limitations.
       (9) An assessment of the impact of the proposals under this 
     subsection on structural productivity and employment growth 
     in the United States and on the international economic 
     competitiveness of the United States.
       (10) Any other proposals or matters on the deployment of 
     high speed broadband Internet telecommunications services 
     that the President considers appropriate.
       (c) Form.--The report under subsection (a) shall include a 
     draft proposal of any legislation required to implement the 
     goal described in paragraph (1) of subsection (b), and of any 
     of the proposals set forth under paragraphs (2) through (8) 
     and (10) of that subsection (b).
                                  ____


     Broadband: A 21st Century Technology and Productivity Strategy

       (From the Office of Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, May 2002)

       Over one hundred and fifty years ago, a new technology 
     emerged that grabbed the imaginations of the public and the 
     purse strings of investors. It was a technology that promised 
     to bring people closer together and to greatly stimulate the 
     economy of that time. In order to succeed, that new 
     technology required that the land be crisscrossed with a 
     network upon which news could be carried and goods could be 
     traded.
       Bankers funded hundreds of startup companies that were 
     built to take advantage of the new network. Investors 
     clamored to purchase shares at rapidly rising prices. And 
     then, after little more than a decade of overbuilding the 
     infrastructure, it all fell apart as shares plunged 85% and 
     hundreds of businesses and banks went under.
       The technology was steam-driven railroad and this is the 
     story told in the May 13th issue of Business Week. The 
     analogies to the Information Technology boom of the 1990s are 
     unmistakable and the lessons are invaluable. But the most 
     important part of the story is what happened after the 
     railroad bubble burst.
       Within two decades, railroads were carrying four times as 
     many people as they had at the height of the boom. The tracks 
     were cleared, leaving the most solid companies and the best 
     of the rail technologies to survive. According to W. Brian 
     Arthur, an economist at the Santa Fe Institute, the survivors 
     then developed new strategies that resulted in the industry's 
     greatest growth and had the greatest impact on business and 
     society of that time.
       We now find ourselves in the same situation that the 
     railroads were in as they developed their new strategies, 
     except the technology is now broadband. It is clear that 
     broadband will revolutionize business and society in our 
     time, just as the railroads did in theirs. But it is also a 
     confusing time, as many different interests emerge with many 
     different agendas. The issues to be faced are many and they 
     are complex. For some, there will be no easy answers. But it 
     is time for us to have a national strategy that addresses 
     these issues in a coherent and comprehensive manner.
       My staff has assembled this report over the past ten months 
     with extensive input from industry, academia, and government. 
     It was no small undertaking and I particularly thank Skip 
     Watts and Chuck Ludlam of my office. While there have been 
     numerous bills offered in Congress dealing with isolated 
     components of broadband policy, this report is the first to 
     identify the full range of issues that must be considered as 
     part of a national broadband strategy designed to stimulate 
     economic expansion.
       As the first in a series of legislative initiatives, I will 
     introduce the National Broadband Strategy Act of 2002 next 
     week. This bill highlights the need for a carefully planned 
     national strategy to provide universal availability of 
     broadband and to motivate research and advances in broadband 
     applications and content. It calls upon the Administration to 
     recommend a coherent, cross-agency national broadband 
     strategy in a series of key government policy areas, to 
     Congress.
       I want to emphasize that while there is an ongoing 
     competitive scramble to reach the lower broadband speeds, we 
     need to also pay real attention to advanced broadband and to 
     attaining those much higher speeds. The report's Executive 
     Summary identifies four key elements that will be integral to 
     advanced broadband deployment. The elements include an FCC 
     regulatory plan, tax incentives, research on advanced 
     infrastructure technology, and deployment of applications.
       As with the railroads of the mid-1800s, broadband is now 
     poised to whistle in a new period of economic growth. We must 
     do all that we can to nurture this emerging technology and to 
     stimulate the development of new killer applications in the 
     fields of education, medicine, government, and science. 
     Commerce and entertainment will not trail far behind. The 
     tracks of rail are now the ``pipes'' of broadband.


                           Executive Summary

       Broadband deployment must become a national priority. Major 
     economic growth and productivity gains can be realized by 
     making affordable high-speed broadband Internet connections--
     which are already enjoyed by many universities and large 
     businesses--widely available to American homes, schools, and 
     small businesses.
       In a soft economic climate with limited prospects for near-
     term recovery, broadband deployment is a necessary condition 
     for the restoration of capital spending in the information 
     technology sector. Such investments were the critical drivers 
     of the non-inflationary growth that characterized the late 
     1990s. Broadband, which can play a pivotal role in 
     encouraging investments in information technology, has the 
     potential to transform education, health care, government, 
     entertainment, and commerce.
       Of course, embracing broadband as a vehicle for economic 
     growth raises the question, ``How fast is fast enough for 
     truly advanced emerging applications?'' The telecom, cable, 
     and satellite industries are now providing Internet access at 
     speeds typically less than 1.5 megabits per second (Mbps). A 
     review of existing and likely technologies, however, suggests 
     that we have only achieved the first level of broadband 
     speeds. On the foreseeable horizon are technologies that 
     offer advanced broadband speeds of 10 Mbps in the near-term, 
     and 100 Mbps in the medium-term. A national strategy needs to 
     focus on this advanced broadband opportunity. Arguably, it 
     will be at these advanced speed ranges that the greatest 
     benefits from broadband will come.
       A successful strategy to accelerate the deployment of 
     broadband will lead to immeasurable benefits to the quality 
     of life and economy of the American people. But a successful 
     strategy must encompass various issues in a comprehensive and 
     coherent manner, and the debate must not become mired in any 
     one debate. What we need is a sensible, intelligent approach 
     that addresses the full range of issues within the context of 
     an interrelated framework, not the piecemeal process that has 
     brought us to the present confusion and controversies.
       This strategy must recognize a truth that sometimes becomes 
     lost in the multiplicity of debates over such issues as the 
     regulation of telephone and cable companies. What is 
     overlooked--and must be recognized--is that demand will drive 
     the next phase of broadband expansion. Strong demand from 
     consumers, smaller businesses, and even big businesses that 
     currently have high-speed Internet connectivity, will produce 
     a cycle of innovation and growth. But demand, in turn, 
     requires that applications of real value be developed. It 
     requires, in other words, ``killer applications'' that 
     justify, in the minds of consumers, the price of 
     progressively faster broadband connections.
       The private sector will need to invest hundreds of billions 
     of dollars before widespread broadband access becomes a 
     reality. Government nevertheless has an important role to 
     play as broadband suppliers face novel challenges in the 
     areas of Internet privacy, security, spam, copyright 
     protection, spectrum allocation, and rights-of-way. It is 
     vital that, in these and other areas, government remain 
     ``technology-neutral'' and that competition between the 
     delivery technologies exist alongside competition within 
     the technologies. This will allow the best and most cost-
     effective delivery systems to emerge, meeting the varied 
     needs of different people and different regions across 
     this diverse country.
       There are, however, many ways that government, through a 
     national strategy, can accelerate the life cycle of 
     development and competition for emerging broadband 
     technologies. It can do so by stimulating both the demand and 
     supply side of broadband deployment. On the demand side, 
     government should lead the way in generating demand by 
     expanding e-government services to the public and to 
     businesses, and by supporting the development of broadband 
     tools for e-education and e-healthcare. E-entertainment

[[Page S5048]]

     and e-commerce will be quick to take advantage of the 
     expanded services, and renewed economic growth will surely 
     follow. On the supply side, government can consider such 
     tools as tax credits, loans, and grants for a wide variety of 
     research, deployment, and broadband utilization activities.
       As the first in a series of legislative initiatives, 
     Senator Lieberman will introduce the National Broadband 
     Strategy Act of 2002. This bill highlights the need for a 
     coherent and comprehensive national strategy for providing 
     widespread availability of broadband and for motivating 
     research and advances in broadband applications and content. 
     Because broadband implementation has been piecemeal, and 
     stalled in significant part because numerous government 
     agencies have failed to act quickly in deciding a wide range 
     of broadband issues now pending before them, the bill calls 
     upon the Administration to recommend a coherent, cross-agency 
     national broadband strategy in a series of key government 
     policy areas.
       Parallel to that, and focusing on how we will get to truly 
     advanced broadband speeds (in the range of 10 Mbps and 100 
     Mbps), Senator Lieberman will introduce over the next few 
     months a series of substantive pieces of legislation 
     addressing four key elements integral to a national strategy 
     for advanced broadband deployment. The key elements are:
       (1) FCC Regulatory Framework: Direct the FCC to explore all 
     of the broadband deployment and delivery technology options 
     to enable us to reach advanced broadband speeds. Retaining 
     technological neutrality, the FCC will be asked to develop 
     the regulatory framework to enable and implement a plan to 
     deploy this advanced Internet capability.
       (2) Tax Credits: Establish tax credits and incentives for a 
     range of advanced broadband deployment and broadband 
     utilization efforts. These could include credits for 
     infrastructure deployment, equipment implementation, employee 
     utilization, installation in atypical settings, and 
     innovative applications.
       (3) Advanced Infrastructure R&D: Ensure that fundamental 
     R&D issues are tackled in a coordinated manner to overcome 
     the scientific and technological barriers to advanced 
     widespread broadband deployment. The U.S. has already 
     established successful interagency and interdisciplinary 
     initiatives under the National Information Technology 
     Research & Development Program to advance critical IT 
     technologies. We must leverage our existing expertise in 
     these programs to resolve fundamental obstacles to effective 
     broadband deployment and hasten the next generation of 
     technologies. A cooperative R&D program, including 
     government, industry and universities, will be critical to 
     advanced broadband.
       (4) Application R&D and Deployment: Require federal 
     agencies to undertake R&D and promote the development and 
     availability of major applications in areas where government 
     plays a central role, including e-education, e-medicine, e-
     government, e-science and homeland security. This could 
     stimulate demand for broadband and promote bridging of the 
     digital divide consistent with the missions of government 
     agencies. And the government should lead by example in moving 
     to expand opportunities for broadband-based e-commerce in 
     federal procurement, bidding, and contracting.
       While time and technology will not stop, and our nation's 
     eventual transformation into a broadband society will occur 
     regardless of what steps are taken today, it is ours to 
     choose whether we will be dragged into the next digital age 
     resisting change, or whether we lead others into a new era of 
     economic promise. If we are to take control of our future, we 
     must begin by harnessing the power of broadband as a 
     necessary tool for navigating a world increasingly defined by 
     the speed with which information changes and grows.
                                 ______