[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 78 (Friday, June 16, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1172]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   COMMUNICATIONS OPPORTUNITY, PROMOTION, AND ENHANCEMENT ACT OF 2006

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                               speech of

                        HON. SUE WILKINS MYRICK

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 8, 2006

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 5252) to 
     promote the deployment of broadband. networks and services:

  Mrs. MYRICK. Mr. Chairman, last week, the House passed by a very 
large margin H.R. 5252, the Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and 
Enhancement Act of 2006. As a strong supporter of this legislation, I 
want to congratulate Chairmen Barton and Upton for authoring a bill 
that will accelerate the development of next-generation video and 
broadband competition to all Americans.
  I also wish to elaborate on one aspect of this bill dealing with the 
definition of cable systems and its effect on private cable operations. 
The Committee Report ``emphasizes that none of the changes to the cable 
definitions made under Section 102 are intended to affect the 
application of any of the definitions, including Section 602(7)(B) of 
the Communications Act (47 U.S.C. 522(7)(B)), which exempts from the 
`cable system' definition facilities that serve subscribers without 
using public rights-of-way.''
  This means that an entity that constructs facilities for the 
distribution of video programming entirely on private rights-of-way is 
not a cable operator, even if the video programming signal is delivered 
over a telecommunications provider's facility that does use public 
rights-of-way, if the entity using private rights-of-way neither owns 
nor controls the facility that transmits its programming over the 
public rights-of-way. That is the case because Section 602(5) (47 
U.S.C. 522(5)) defines a cable operator as a person who provides cable 
service over a cable system they own or control, and a facility that 
does not use public rights-of-way is not a cable system under section 
602(7)(B).

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