[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 16]
[Senate]
[Page 21537]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             TELECOM REFORM

  Mr. VITTER. Mr. President, I rise today to highlight the critical 
need we have in this country for broadband deployment. We are currently 
ranked 12th in the world in broadband deployment, and we must improve 
on this meager standing to be competitive in the world market.
  The telecom reform legislation that has been reported by the Senate 
Commerce Committee is the right step in encouraging more broadband. I 
applaud Chairman Stevens and the rest of the committee for reporting 
this important bill. We need to end bureaucratic regulation on the 
video and broadband markets so that more competition will come to the 
marketplace. Americans deserve to have choices in who provides their 
telephone service, their cable service, and their broadband internet 
service. We have the opportunity to get this done for our constituents, 
and I urge the Senate to pass H.R. 5252, The Advanced 
Telecommunications and Opportunity Reform Act of 2006, expeditiously.
  Telecom reform has hit the national stage, and I was proud to support 
the Advanced Telecommunications and Opportunity Reform Act of 2006 when 
the Commerce Committee carefully considered the legislation. Our 
committee voted on this bill over 10 weeks ago, so it's time for the 
Senate to act. This is our chance to get it right on telecom reform and 
save cable consumers money on their bills. Despite the hard work of the 
Commerce Committee, some of our colleagues are holding up this 
important bill. I believe it is past time to bring this bill to the 
floor for a debate and a vote.
  This legislation will usher video competition into communities across 
the U.S., and it will catapult rural areas into the 21st century 
digital era. By setting national franchise standards, negotiations 
between video service providers and local authorities will change from 
a years-long struggle to a maximum of 90 days. Accelerating the 
entrance of new companies into our communities will increase television 
choices, which ultimately lead providers to lower their rates and 
improve their service.
  By doing away with the unnecessarily long local franchise process, 
current and new companies can quickly reach rural communities, where we 
need it most. Small companies that can't possibly break through the 
existing red tape will be able to quickly roll out quality service to 
cable- and high-speed-deprived areas. At the same time, larger 
companies will have opportunities to increase their investment and 
build better services to reach even more customers. This is a win-win 
situation for my State and the country.
  Also, this bill has numerous other critical components--one of which 
being the assistance it provides to our Nation's first responders. The 
First Responder Coalition, a group consisting of tens of thousands of 
concerned citizens and first responders, strongly supports this 
legislation as it delivers key assistance for interoperability. 
``Interoperability'' is a term that refers to local, State, and Federal 
agencies being able to communicate effectively during the time of a 
crisis. This legislation will allocate up to $1 billion in much-needed 
funds to first responders specifically for interoperable 
communications, and my amendment adopted in committee will speed up the 
delivery of that important funding. As we witnessed in last year's 
devastating hurricane season, local governments need dedicated and 
easily accessible technology so they can communicate with each other, 
as well as State and Federal authorities in the event of similar 
circumstances that require critical early responses. In Louisiana, 
nothing could be more important for us.
  I am asking us today to heed the call for the entire country 
deserving for the great benefits of this bill. We have an opportunity 
to get the job done right--once and for all--for America's consumers. 
We need choices in television providers, more broadband deployment, 
vital interoperability funding, and more technology to rural areas. The 
Advanced Telecommunications Opportunity Reform Act of 2006 is the right 
next step for us.

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