[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book I)]
[February 1, 1996]
[Pages 127-128]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Statement on Congressional Action on Telecommunications Reform 
Legislation
February 1, 1996

    I wish to congratulate the Congress for passing the 
Telecommunications Reform Act of 1995. As I stated in my State of the 
Union Address, America needs this legislation and this kind of 
bipartisanship to build our economy for the 21st century, to bring 
educational technology into every classroom, and to help families 
exercise control over how the media influences their children.
    For the past 3 years, my administration has promoted the enactment 
of a telecommunications reform bill to stimulate investment, promote 
competition, provide open access for all citizens to the information 
superhighway,

[[Page 128]]

strengthen and improve universal service, and provide families with 
technologies to help them control what kind of programs come into their 
homes over television. As a result of this action today, consumers will 
receive the benefits of lower prices, better quality, and greater 
choices in their telephone and cable services, and they will continue to 
benefit from a diversity of voices and viewpoints in radio, television, 
and the print media.
    I want to thank the bipartisan leadership of the conference that 
produced this landmark legislation--Senators Pressler and Hollings and 
Representatives Bliley, Dingell, Fields, and Markey. I also want to 
thank all those in my administration from the Justice Department, the 
Commerce Department, and the Education Department for their hard work on 
this bill over the past 3 years. And I want to give a special thanks to 
Vice President Gore who began talking about the information superhighway 
nearly 20 years ago and who I know is very proud to see this legislation 
enacted today.
    With this legislation today we are building the information 
superhighway that will lead all Americans into a more prosperous future.