[House Report 107-361]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



107th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     107-361

======================================================================



 
    PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 1542, INTERNET FREEDOM AND 
                    BROADBAND DEPLOYMENT ACT OF 2001
                                _______
                                

 February  26, 2002.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be 
                                printed

                                _______
                                

    Mr. Linder, from the Committee on Rules, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                       [To accompany H. Res. 350]

    The Committee on Rules, having had under consideration 
House Resolution 350, by a nonrecord vote, report the same to 
the House with the recommendation that the resolution be 
adopted.

                summary of provisions of the resolution

    The resolution provides for consideration of H.R. 1542, to 
deregulate the Internet and high speed data services, and for 
other purposes. The rule provides 1 hour and 20 minutes of 
general debate, with one hour equally divided and controlled by 
the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce and 20 minutes equally divided and 
controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the 
Committee on the Judiciary.
    The rule waives all points of order against consideration 
of the bill. The rule provides that the amendment in the nature 
of a substitute printed in Part A of this report shall be 
considered as adopted in the House and in the Committee of the 
Whole. The rule provides that the bill, as amended, shall be 
considered as the original bill for the purpose of further 
amendment and shall be considered as read.
    The rule provides that no further amendment to the bill, as 
amended, shall be in order except those printed in Part B of 
this report. Further, the amendments printed in Part B of this 
report may be offered only in the order printed in this report, 
may be offered only by a Member designated in this report, 
shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time 
specified in this report equally divided and controlled by the 
proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment 
except as specified in this report, and shall not be subject to 
a demand for division of the question in the House or in the 
Committee of the Whole.
    The rule waives all points of order against amendments 
printed in Part B of this report. Finally, the rule provides 
one motion to recommit with or without instructions.

                amendments made in order under the rule

    (Summaries derived from information provided by sponsors.)

Part A--Summary of Amendment To Be Considered as Adopted

    Consists of the text of H.R. 1542 as reported by the Energy 
and Commerce Committee modified by the amendment offered by Mr. 
Tauzin and Mr. Sensenbrenner which clarifies that the antitrust 
laws are not repealed by, not precluded by, not diminished by 
and not incompatible with the Communications Act of 1934 or the 
Telecommunications Act of 1996. Requires a Bell Operating 
Company to notify the Department of Justice thirty days prior 
to offering an interLATA high speed data or Internet backbone 
service originating in any in-region State in which the company 
has not received the authority from the FCC to provide 
interLATA services.

Part B--Summary of Amendments Made in Order

    Upton/Green (TX): Increases the FCC's forfeiture penalties 
for phone companies which violate the telecommunications law by 
elevating the current cap from $1.2 million to $10 million and 
increasing the current $120,000 fine per violation or each day 
of a continuing violation to $1 million. For repeat offenders, 
the amendment doubles these increased forfeiture penalties to 
$2 million per violation or each day of a continuing violation, 
capped at $20 million. The amendment doubles from 1 year to 2 
years the statute of limitations for the FCC to bring 
enforcement actions against phone companies, gives the FCC 
clear, statutory ``cease and desist'' authority to use against 
phone companies which violate any of the telecommunications 
laws and directs the FCC to study the impact of the enhanced 
penalties under the bill and report back to Congress within one 
year after enactment. (40 minutes)
    Cannon/Conyers: Line by line change to H.R. 1542: protects 
competitive investments by preserving the existing rules for 
telecommunications services that the competitive local exchange 
carriers relied upon when making investments and preserves 
State authority and consumer safeguards from the broad 
preemption of such authority granted under H.R. 1542. Preserves 
State authority and consumer safeguards from the preemption of 
such authority granted under H.R. 1542. (60 minutes)
    Buyer/Towns Substitute Amendment for the Amendment offered 
by Cannon/Conyers:


        PART B--TEXT OF AMENDMENTS MADE IN ORDER UNDER THE RULE

1. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Upton of Michigan, or a 
                   Designee, Debatable for 40 Minutes

    At the end of the bill, add the following new section:

SEC. 9. COMMON CARRIER ENFORCEMENT.

  (a) Cease and Desist Authority.--Section 501 of the 
Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 501) is amended--
          (1) by striking ``Any person'' and inserting ``(a) 
        Fines and Imprisonment.--Any person'';
          (2) by adding at the end the following new 
        subsection:
  ``(b) Cease and Desist Orders.--If, after a hearing, the 
Commission determines that any common carrier is engaged in an 
act, matter, or thing prohibited by this Act, or is failing to 
perform any act, matter, or thing required by this Act, the 
Commission may order such common carrier to cease or desist 
from such action or inaction.''.
  (b) Forfeiture Penalties.--Section 503(b) of the 
Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 503(b)) is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (2)(B)--
                  (A) by striking ``exceed $100,000'' and 
                inserting ``exceed $1,000,000''; and
                  (B) by striking ``of $1,000,000'' and 
                inserting ``of $10,000,000'';
          (2) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking ``subparagraph 
        (A) or (B)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (A), (B), or 
        (C)'';
          (3) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) and (D) of 
        paragraph (2) as subparagraphs (D) and (E), 
        respectively;
          (4) by inserting after subparagraph (B) of paragraph 
        (2) the following new subparagraph:
  ``(C) If a common carrier has violated a cease and desist 
order or has previously been assessed a forfeiture penalty for 
a violation of a provision of this Act or of any rule, 
regulation, or order issued by the Commission, and if the 
Commission or an administrative law judge determines that such 
common carrier has willfully violated the same provision, rule, 
regulation, that this repeated violation has caused harm to 
competition, and that such common carrier has been assessed a 
forfeiture penalty under this subsection for such previous 
violation, the Commission may assess a forfeiture penalty not 
to exceed $2,000,000 for each violation or each day of 
continuing violation; except that the amount of such forfeiture 
penalty shall not exceed $20,000,000.''; and
          (5) in paragraph (6)(B), by striking ``1 year'' and 
        inserting ``2 years''.
  (c) Evaluation of Impact.--
          (1) Evaluation required.--Within one year after the 
        date of enactment of this Act, the Federal 
        Communications Commission shall conduct an evaluation 
        of the impact of the increased remedies available under 
        the amendments made by this section on improving 
        compliance with the requirements of the Communications 
        Act of 1934, and with the rules, regulations, and 
        orders of the Commission thereunder. Such evaluation 
        shall include--
                  (A) an assessment of the number of 
                enforcement proceedings commenced before and 
                after such date of enactment;
                  (B) an analysis of any changes in the number, 
                type, seriousness, or repetition of violations; 
                and
                  (C) an analysis of such other factors as the 
                Commission considers appropriate to evaluate 
                such impact.
          (2) Report.--Within one year after such date of 
        enactment, the Commission shall submit a report on the 
        evaluation to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of 
        the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
        Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.
                              ----------                              


 2. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Cannon of Utah, or a 
                   Designee, Debatable for 60 Minutes

  Page 6, beginning on line 5, strike ``neither the Commission, 
nor any State, shall have'' and insert ``the Commission shall 
have no''.
  Page 6, beginning on line 15, strike ``State to regulate 
circuit-switched telephone exchange services,'' and insert 
``State,''.
  Page 6, line 13, strike ``(b) Savings Provision.--'' and 
insert the following:
  ``(b) Savings Provisions.--
          ``(1) State authority.--''.
  Page 6, after line 18, insert the following new paragraphs:
          ``(2) Existing rules and competition preserved.--
        Notwithstanding the limitations on Commission and State 
        authority contained in the Internet Freedom and 
        Broadband Deployment Act of 2001 (including the 
        amendments made by such Act), in order to preserve and 
        promote fair competition, innovation, economic 
        investment, and consumer choice, no provision of such 
        Act or amendments shall restrict or affect in any way 
        the application and enforcement of the Federal and 
        State rules in effect on the date of enactment of such 
        Act relating to the rates, charges, terms, and 
        conditions for the purchasing or leasing of 
        telecommunications services and network elements by 
        competitive telecommunications carriers.
          ``(3) Additional commission authority preserved.--
        Notwithstanding the limitations on Commission authority 
        contained in the Internet Freedom and Broadband 
        Deployment Act of 2001 (including the amendments made 
        by such Act), such Act and amendments shall not 
        restrict or affect in any way--
                  ``(A) the authority of the Commission to 
                adopt regulations to prohibit unsolicited 
                commercial e-mail messages;
                  ``(B) the authority of the Commission to 
                regulate changes in subscriber carrier 
                selections or the imposition of charges on 
                telephone bills for unauthorized services; or
                  ``(C) the authority of the Commission--
                          ``(i) with respect to customer 
                        proprietary network information, as 
                        provided in section 222;
                          ``(ii) with respect to rules and 
                        procedures adopted pursuant to section 
                        223 to restrict the provision of 
                        pornography to minors and unconsenting 
                        adults; or
                          ``(iii) with respect to access by 
                        persons with disabilities, as provided 
                        in section 255.
  Page 7, beginning on line 11, strike ``neither the Commission 
nor any State shall require'' and insert ``the Commission shall 
not require''.
  Page 12, beginning on line 23, strike ``Internet access'' and 
insert ``such''.
                              ----------                              


3. An Amendment To Be Offered by Representative Buyer of Indiana, or a 
 Designee, as a Substitute for the Amendment Numbered 2, To Be Offered 
   by Representative Cannon of Utah, or a Designee, Debatable for 60 
                                Minutes

  Page 6, beginning on line 9, strike ``, or to regulate any 
network element to the extent it is used in the provision of 
any such service''.
  Page 7, strike line 7 and all that follows through line 2 on 
page 9 and insert the following:
  ``(j) Guaranteed Access to Consumers for CLECs.--
          ``(1) Access rules.--
                  ``(A) Preservation of rules guaranteeing clec 
                access to incumbent carrier facilities.--Except 
                as provided in subparagraph (E), the Commission 
                is not required to repeal or modify the 
                regulations in effect on May 24, 2001, that 
                enable a requesting carrier to use the 
                facilities of an incumbent local exchange 
                carrier to provide high speed data services.
                  ``(B) Transport services available to 
                clecs.--
                          ``(i) Offering required.--If an 
                        incumbent local exchange carrier 
                        provides high-speed data services over 
                        a fiber local loop or fiber feeder 
                        subloop, that carrier shall offer, over 
                        such loop or subloop for delivery at 
                        the incumbent local exchange carrier's 
                        serving central office, a high speed 
                        data service that is provided by such 
                        carrier utilizing an industry-standard 
                        protocol.
                          ``(ii) Transmission options.--Such 
                        service shall enable a requesting 
                        carrier to transmit information over an 
                        incumbent local exchange carrier's 
                        facilities between that incumbent local 
                        exchange carrier's serving central 
                        office and (I) a customer's premises 
                        served by that serving central office; 
                        (II) a remote terminal supplied by the 
                        requesting carrier; or (III) a high 
                        frequency portion of the copper subloop 
                        obtained by such requesting carrier 
                        pursuant to the provisions of 
                        subsection (c)(3).
                          ``(iii) Rates, terms, and 
                        conditions.--Such high speed data 
                        service shall be offered on rates, 
                        terms, and conditions that are just and 
                        reasonable in accordance with section 
                        201(b). For such purposes, such high 
                        speed data service shall be deemed a 
                        nondominant service.
                          ``(iv) Serving central office 
                        definition.--For the purpose of this 
                        subparagraph, the term `serving central 
                        office' means the centralized location 
                        where the incumbent local exchange 
                        carrier has elected to provide access 
                        to the high speed data service required 
                        by this subparagraph.
                  ``(C) Space adjacent to an incumbent's remote 
                terminal.--Subparagraph (E)(iii) does not 
                relieve an incumbent carrier of any obligation 
                under regulations in effect on May 24, 2001, to 
                provide space adjacent to its remote terminal 
                to a requesting carrier so that the requesting 
                carrier may construct its own remote terminal.
                  ``(D) Clec access to incumbent carrier 
                rights-of-way.--Any incumbent local exchange 
                carrier has the duty to afford access to its 
                poles, conduits, and rights-of-way in 
                accordance with subsection (b)(4) for provision 
                of high speed data service.
                  ``(E) Scope.--Notwithstanding any provision 
                of law, neither the Commission nor any State 
                shall--
                          ``(i) require an incumbent local 
                        exchange carrier to provide unbundled 
                        access in accordance with subsection 
                        (c)(3) to any packet switching network 
                        element;
                          ``(ii) require an incumbent local 
                        exchange carrier to provide, for the 
                        provision of high speed data service, 
                        access on an unbundled basis in 
                        accordance with subsection (c)(3) to 
                        any fiber local loop or fiber feeder 
                        subloop; or
                          ``(iii) require an incumbent local 
                        exchange carrier to provide for 
                        collocation in accordance with 
                        subsection (c)(6) in a remote terminal, 
                        or to construct or make available space 
                        in a remote terminal.
                  ``(F) Reinterpretation.--Consistent with 
                subparagraph (E), neither the Commission nor 
                any State shall construe, interpret, or apply 
                this section in such a manner as to expand an 
                incumbent local exchange carrier's obligation, 
                as in effect on May 24, 2001, to provide access 
                in accordance with subsection (c)(3) to any 
                network element for the provision of high speed 
                data service, or to provide collocation in 
                accordance with subsection (c)(6) for the 
                provision of high speed data service.
  Page 9, lines 3 and 15, redesignate subparagraphs (E) and (F) 
as subparagraphs (G) and (H), respectively.
  Page 10, beginning on line 11, strike paragraph (3) through 
page 11, line 3, and insert the following:
          ``(3) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection--
                  ``(A) the term `fiber feeder subloop' means 
                the entirely fiber optic cable portion of the 
                local loop between the feeder/distribution 
                interface (or its equivalent) and a 
                distribution frame (or its equivalent) in an 
                incumbent local exchange carrier central 
                office, including all features, functions, and 
                capabilities of such portion of the local loop;
                  ``(B) the term `fiber local loop' means an 
                entirely fiber optic cable transmission 
                facility, including all features, functions, 
                and capabilities of such transmission facility, 
                between a distribution frame (or its 
                equivalent) in an incumbent local exchange 
                carrier central office and the loop demarcation 
                point at an end-user customer premise;
                  ``(C) the term `packet switching network 
                element'--
                          ``(i) means a network element that 
                        performs, or offers the capability to 
                        perform--
                                  ``(I) the basic packet 
                                switching function of routing 
                                or forwarding packets, frames, 
                                cells, or other data units 
                                based on address or other 
                                routing information contained 
                                in the packets, frames, cells, 
                                or other data units, including 
                                the functions that are 
                                performed by digital subscriber 
                                line access multiplexers; or
                                  ``(II) any successor to the 
                                functions described in clause 
                                (i);
                          ``(ii) includes such element on a 
                        stand-alone basis, or as a part of a 
                        combination with one or more other 
                        network elements; and
                          ``(iii) does not include elements of 
                        the signaling system 7 network 
                        transmitting signaling information 
                        between switching points;
                  ``(D) the term `remote terminal' means a 
                controlled environment hut, controlled 
                environment vault, cabinet, or other structure 
                at a remote location between the central office 
                and a customer's premises; and
                  ``(E) the term `signaling system 7 network' 
                means the network that uses signaling links to 
                transmit routing messages between switches and 
                between switches and call related data 
                bases.''.
  Page 7, line 3, strike the close quotation marks and the 
following period, and after such line insert the following:
  ``(d) Additional Commission Authority Preserved.--
Notwithstanding subsection (a), such subsection shall not 
restrict or affect in any way the authority of the Commission--
          ``(1) to adopt regulations to prohibit unsolicited 
        commercial e-mail messages;
          ``(2) to regulate changes in subscriber carrier 
        selections or the imposition of charges on telephone 
        bills for unauthorized services; or
          ``(3) with respect to--
                  ``(A) customer proprietary network 
                information, as provided in section 222;
                  ``(B) with respect to rules and procedures 
                adopted pursuant to section 223 to restrict the 
                provision of pornography to minors and 
                unconsenting adults; or
                  ``(C) with respect to access by persons with 
                disabilities, as provided in section 255.''.
  Page 6, line 12, insert before the period the following: 
``that is not imposed or required on the date of enactment of 
this section''.

                                  
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