[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 6 (Tuesday, January 10, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H268-H270]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                SMALL BUSINESS BROADBAND DEPLOYMENT ACT

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 288) to ensure that small business providers of broadband 
Internet access service can devote resources to broadband deployment 
rather than compliance with cumbersome regulatory requirements.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 288

       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 ``Small Business Broadband 
     Deployment Act''.

     SEC. 2. EXCEPTION TO ENHANCEMENT TO TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS 
                   FOR SMALL BUSINESSES.

       (a) In General.--The enhancements to the transparency rule 
     of the Federal Communications Commission under section 8.3 of 
     title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, as described in 
     paragraphs 162 through 184 of the Report and Order on Remand, 
     Declaratory Ruling, and Order of the Federal Communications 
     Commission with regard to protecting and promoting the open 
     Internet (adopted February 26, 2015) (FCC 15-24), shall not 
     apply to any small business.
       (b) Sunset.--Subsection (a) shall not have any force or 
     effect after the date that is 5 years after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.
       (c) Report by FCC.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications 
     Commission shall submit to the Committee on Energy and 
     Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
     Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 
     that contains the recommendations of the Commission (and data 
     supporting such recommendations) regarding--
       (1) whether the exception provided by subsection (a) should 
     be made permanent; and
       (2) whether the definition of the term ``small business'' 
     for purposes of such exception should be modified from the 
     definition in subsection (d)(2).
       (d) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Broadband internet access service.--The term 
     ``broadband Internet access service'' has the meaning given 
     such term in section 8.2 of title 47, Code of Federal 
     Regulations.
       (2) Small business.--The term ``small business'' means any 
     provider of broadband Internet access service that has not 
     more than 250,000 subscribers.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn) and the gentleman from California (Mr. 
McNerney) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Tennessee.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and insert extraneous materials in the Record on this bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Tennessee?
  There was no objection.

                              {time}  1530

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 288, the Small Business 
Broadband Deployment Act. I am glad that the House is taking swift 
action on this bill, which would protect small Internet service 
providers from the enhanced disclosure requirements laid out in the 
2015 Open Internet Order.
  After adopting the Open Internet Order, the FCC recognized the 
importance of exempting small ISPs from these enhanced transparency 
rules and subsequently granted a temporary exemption to broadband 
providers with fewer than 100,000 subscribers. However, the Commission 
failed to reach an agreement to grant another exemption before the 
deadline last December and, as a result, has left hundreds of our 
Nation's small providers vulnerable to cumbersome rules.
  FCC Commissioners Pai and O'Rielly have taken action, since the 
exemption expired, to reassure our small broadband providers that the 
rules will not be enforced until the situation has been addressed by 
the Commission, but Congress should go a step further and provide 
certainty to our Nation's small businesses and pass this bill.
  Rather than a 1-year exemption to the enhanced disclosure 
requirements, this bill would exempt for 5 years broadband providers 
with fewer than 250,000 subscribers from the enhanced reporting 
obligations, providing them with the regulatory certainty to invest in 
their business.
  At our hearing last January, we heard from multiple witnesses just 
how cumbersome and burdensome these rules are. One witness described 
the difference to be as significant as the need to hire regulatory 
counsel versus the ability to build another tower to provide service. 
For a small business in a capital-intensive industry, that could be the 
difference between getting more people connected to the Internet and 
going out of business.
  We cannot let our small businesses and hardworking taxpayers be 
saddled

[[Page H269]]

with more onerous rules and the costs that they bring. In addition to 
regulatory relief for small ISPs, the bill adds certainty for our 
Nation's small ISPs by extending the exemption for 5 years.
  It was disappointing to see the Commission fail to reach an agreement 
at the end of last year to extend the exemption, and it is why we are 
here today. Despite overwhelming bipartisan support from Congress and 
President Obama's Small Business Administration, negotiations fell 
short, and our Nation's smallest and most competitive Internet service 
providers were left to bear the burden.
  In today's 21st century economy, we need to do more to encourage 
connectivity, and this bill embodies that spirit. Congress is poised to 
provide the regulatory certainty small businesses are seeking in order 
to invest in stronger networks and foster a better consumer experience.
  I want to thank Chairman Walden and Mr. Loebsack for acting quickly 
to reintroduce this legislation, and I urge all of my colleagues to 
support the commonsense measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  First of all, I want to congratulate the gentleman from Oregon on his 
new chairmanship. I look forward to working across the aisle on most of 
the issues. It is a good bipartisan subcommittee. I think we have a lot 
to accomplish.
  The Small Business Broadband Deployment Act, H.R. 288, unanimously 
passed the House last Congress on a bipartisan vote, unanimous. H.R. 
288 provides a 5-year exemption from the FCC's enhanced transparency 
rules for small Internet service providers that serve 250,000 or fewer 
subscribers.
  This exemption comes with the understanding that there is a 5-year 
sunset on the exemption and that the FCC report to Congress with 
sufficient information to help us better understand the impacts on the 
consumers of a permanent exemption, of a possible permanent exemption. 
This data will also better inform us whether a longer term exemption is 
necessary and whether we got the definition of what a small business is 
right in this case.
  It is also worth noting that H.R. 288 would leave intact the FCC's 
2010 transparency rules that consumers have come to rely on, such as 
what they are paying for, Internet speeds they rely on, data quality, 
and so on. At the same time, these modifications provide certainty for 
small ISPs while the FCC collects and reports relevant information to 
Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Walden), the chairman of the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce and the author of this legislation.
  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the new subcommittee 
chairman of the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology. I know 
our country is in good hands and our committee is as well with Mrs. 
Blackburn chairing that important subcommittee. I want to thank my 
colleague from California for his kind comments and his work over the 
years on these issues. I concur with him that we have a wonderful 
opportunity to continue our bipartisan work as the committee has been 
known for, for a long time. Clearly, from time to time, we will have 
our differences, and we know that as well. It is part of democracy. 
There is so much of this work, like this bill, that is so very 
important.
  As we begin the 115th Congress, I am pleased to be here to support 
this bipartisan bill because I think it reflects the best of what 
government can do for those who sent us here. Small Business Broadband 
Deployment Act seeks to alleviate, as you have heard, Mr. Speaker, 
these unnecessary regulatory burdens on small Internet service 
providers--these are the small ones, oftentimes in our rural 
communities but not always--while still ensuring that consumers are 
protected. We found the right balance here.
  By extending an exemption to the Federal Communications Commission's 
enhanced reporting rules, this bill allows these small businesses to 
focus on their core mission, and that is to provide broadband Internet 
access to customers throughout America. Over the past year, we spent a 
great deal of time focused on this issue. We first raised concerns with 
the Federal Communications Commission in a letter, Mr. Speaker, from 
the committee, as well as from the Committee on Small Business. We 
urged the chairman, Tom Wheeler, to not only make the exemption 
permanent but also to raise the threshold by defining a small business 
to bring it in line with the definitions previously blessed by the 
Obama administration's Small Business Administration. We were trying to 
find some consistency, some workability, and some common sense here.
  Well, unfortunately, the FCC only extended the exemption for 1 year, 
despite the overwhelming support to do this permanent extension. It was 
clear Congress needed to act. That is what we are doing here. I 
introduced a discussion draft last year that would have permanently 
extended the exemption and increased the threshold by defining a small 
business.
  At our January 2016 legislative hearing on the bill, we heard from a 
small Internet service provider who shared the dilemma that many small 
ISPs face in these circumstances: Should they put up new equipment, or 
should they hire a lawyer to help with compliance? Should they improve 
service for customers, or should they devote those financial resources 
to sifting through regulatory language and drafting extensive reports 
on packet loss?
  So often these small ISPs provide service to areas of the country 
that are rural, like in my district throughout eastern Oregon or 
Representative Loebsack's district in Iowa--we heard from him--or may 
not be as easy to serve and, in some cases, provide a vital competitive 
edge to larger Internet service providers. We should be making all 
efforts to promote the viability of these businesses, not saddle them 
with additional requirements that make it more difficult to do what 
they are in business to do.
  Representative Loebsack and I were able to come to a compromise 
through extensive negotiation. In the bill we have before us today, we 
extend this exemption for 5 years. Now, it gives greater regulatory 
certainty to these small Internet service providers looking for 
predictability when making investment decisions. In addition, we 
increased the threshold for defining a small business and required the 
FCC to report back to Congress on the exemption along with data around 
small ISPs that is currently lacking.
  In the end, this bill presents a good compromise that will relieve 
burdens for small businesses while leaving in place protections for 
consumers. So it is important to note this bill doesn't affect the 
transparency rules, as my colleagues have mentioned, adopted in the 
FCC's 2010 rules. Consumers will continue to have access to those 
disclosures they have come to expect, with the information needed to 
make informed decisions about their Internet service.
  Again, this bill passed the House unanimously last year, 411-0. 
Unfortunately, while it made it through the Senate Commerce Committee, 
it never quite came up for a vote in the Senate. In addition, the 
exemption granted by the FCC expired on December 15, 2016, and has not 
yet been renewed. Now, that leaves these many small businesses exposed 
to the serious reporting burden that we have heard about throughout 
this process, as well as a great deal of uncertainty around what the 
future may hold for them. It is now more important than ever that we 
act to quickly fill this gap and protect these businesses and the 
consumers they serve.
  I would like to thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, 
especially Representative Loebsack, for working with us on this bill. 
This bipartisan process has resulted in a strong piece of legislation 
that I am confident will protect many and promote continued network 
investment and build-out by small businesses. This legislation 
represents a commonsense approach to a problem that directly impacts so 
many of our constituents. This solution will enable our country to 
continue its leadership in broadband deployment. I urge my colleagues 
to support this legislation.
  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, again, I want to thank the chairman for 
his work on this and for his willingness to

[[Page H270]]

compromise. As he pointed out, it was a process. It took both sides. I 
think he wanted permanent exemption, we wanted a less exemption, and it 
worked out. I think it is the right compromise. Five years gives 
businesses the predictability they need. It is a good place to be. In 5 
years, we will see the report and whether it makes sense to continue 
the exemption or not.
  I also want to take this opportunity to congratulate my colleague 
from Tennessee on assuming the chairmanship of the subcommittee. I look 
forward to our working together.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Carter), a new member of our committee, the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce.
  Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my 
support of H.R. 288, the Small Business Broadband Deployment Act. In 
2015, the FCC adopted burdensome transparency requirements for Internet 
service providers. The FCC immediately recognized that these new 
transparency requirements would be particularly burdensome for small 
Internet service providers, so they provided a temporary exemption for 
providers with 100,000 or fewer subscribers. Despite overwhelming 
support to make the exemption permanent, the Commission extended the 
current exemption for just an additional year.
  The bill eases the burdens created by the FCC rule by extending the 
exemption to Internet service providers who have 250,000 subscribers or 
less and extends the exemption for 5 years.
  This is commonsense legislation. This bill provides relief and 
certainty to Internet service providers so they can continue to build 
networks, deploy broadband, improve connectivity for rural consumers, 
and create jobs.

  I commend Chairman Walden for championing this legislation so that we 
can continue to grow our infrastructure and improve connectivity for 
rural Americans.
  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Chabot).
  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 288, the 
Small Business Broadband Deployment Act. This commonsense, bipartisan 
legislation does two important things. First, it extends the temporary 
exemption granted to small businesses by the Federal Communications 
Commission, the FCC, from the burdensome disclosure requirements for 
Internet service providers and the FCC's own Open Internet Order by 5 
years. Second, it increases the number of small businesses that can 
utilize the exemption by raising the threshold from 100,000 subscribers 
to the much more realistic 250,000 subscribers.
  Small businesses frequently feel that the Federal Government 
exercises its most creativity in looking for new ways to get in their 
way. Oftentimes, small Internet providers are the only ones willing to 
take the risk and deploy broadband to particularly hard-to-reach areas 
of rural America. The last thing they have time for is the FCC imposing 
a greater regulatory burden on them, diverting precious resources to 
make Washington bureaucrats busy instead of doing what they do best, 
providing high quality broadband services to millions of Americans in 
every corner of our country.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and 
help reduce a portion of the tedious regulatory burden on small 
businesses.

                              {time}  1545

  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I just want to say that the 
bill passed unanimously in the last Congress. It is bipartisan. It 
gives small ISP providers a certain amount of time and it allows the 
FCC to decide if it is overburdensome or not, to require them to 
disclose information to their customers. This allows us to give 
customers the amount of protection that is due them as well.
  So it is a good compromise. I urge all of my colleagues to support 
it.
  I thank my colleagues for their hard work.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, I will just encourage my colleagues to 
join us in passing H.R. 288.
  As my colleague from California said, this is one of those 
commonsense measures. When you talk about removing the burden of 
regulatory overreach from our Nation's small business, and in this 
case, our small Internet service providers, this is something that will 
help get that job done. It is also something that will help extend 
Internet service to more Americans, and that is a goal that we all 
share.
  So at this time, in closing, I encourage passage of H.R. 288.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 288.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________