    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 52 (Monday, December 27, 2004)]
    [Page 3013]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    Statement on Signing Communications Legislation

    December 23, 2004

        Today, I have signed into law H.R. 5419, a bill consisting of three
    titles. Title I is the ``ENHANCE 911 Act of 2004,'' which strengthens
    the ability of Americans to use the 911 telephone number to seek
    emergency assistance. Title II is the ``Commercial Spectrum Enhancement
    Act,'' which facilitates the spectrum relocation of Federal entities so
    that certain spectrum can be reallocated to commercial users. Title III
    is the ``Universal Service Antideficiency Temporary Suspension Act,''
    which makes the Antideficiency Act temporarily inapplicable to certain
    collections, receipts, expenditures and obligations relating to
    universal communications service.
        Section 104 amends section 158(a)(2) of the National
    Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to
    call for executive branch officials to submit to congressional
    committees funding profiles for a specified 5-year program. The
    executive branch shall construe the provision in a manner consistent
    with the constitutional authority of the President to recommend for the
    consideration of the Congress such measures, including proposals for
    appropriations, as he judges necessary and expedient.
        Sections 202 and 204 enact sections 113(g)(5) and 118(d) of the
    National Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization
    Act, which purport to condition the execution of a law upon notification
    to congressional committees coupled with either approval by the
    committees or the absence of disapproval by the committees within a
    specified time. The executive branch shall construe the provisions to
    legally require only notification to the committees, as any other
    construction would be inconsistent with the principles enunciated by the
    Supreme Court of the United States in INS v. Chadha. The Secretary of
    Commerce will continue as a matter of comity to work with the committees
    on matters addressed by these provisions.
        As is consistent with the principle of statutory construction of
    giving effect to each of two statutes addressing the same subject
    whenever they can co-exist, the executive branch shall construe section
    302 of the Act in a manner consistent with section 254 of the
    Communications Act of 1934, which provides the Federal Communications
    Commission with the authority to maintain funding caps for Universal
    Service Fund programs.
                                                    George W. Bush
     The White House,
     December 23, 2004.

    Note: At the time of publication, H.R. 5419, approved December 23,
    including Title I, the ENHANCE 911 Act of 2004, Title II, the Commercial
    Spectrum Enhancement Act, and Title III, the Universal Service
    Antideficiency Temporary Suspension Act, had not been received by the
    Office of the Federal Register for assignment of a Public Law number. An
    original was not available for verification of the content of this
    statement.