Telecom
Is a Call A Call When It's On The Net?
     House telecommunications policymakers grappled with how to handle the current access charge structure on telephone services and how it would apply when those same services are offered via the Internet, in a hearing on Internet tax legislation. The House Commerce Telecommunications, Trade and Consumer Protection Subcommittee debated the ramifications of H.R. 1291, sponsored by Rep. Fred Upton, R-MI, and H.R. 4202, offered by Rep. Robert Ehrlich, R-MD. Both pieces of legislation would prohibit the FCC from imposing access charges used to support the universal service fund on Internet service providers. Ehrlich's bill also would extend the current three-year Internet tax moratorium for an additional five years.

Privacy
Dems Tout Clinton Privacy Policy
     In a move certain to raise the profile of data privacy in the 2000 election campaign, House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-MO, and a phalanx of Democratic legislators joined top Clinton administration officials to trumpet their financial privacy bill and chide Republicans for their failure to support it. "This is a real show of Democratic unity," he said as he called for congressional action this year. He acknowledged that it was highly unlikely that Republican leaders would make such a move. Markey acknowledged that Sen. Richard Shelby, R-AL, and Rep. Joe Barton, R-TX — who has supported privacy rules stricter than those proposed by Clinton — were not invited to the partisan event.

Privacy
HHS To Release Privacy Rule By Summer's End
     The final version of controversial regulations to ensure the confidentiality of electronic medical records will not be published until "the end of the summer," Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala said.

Labor
Battle Of The Amendments Over H-1B
     Senate Republicans and Democrats are squabbling over how to bring up legislation that would raise the cap on temporary visas, a top priority of the high-tech industry. Senate GOP supporters of the bill, S. 2045, sponsored by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-UT, have been trying to spread the message among industry and others that Democrats are not living up to their claims to be supportive of the high-tech agenda. Republicans want to bring up the bill under a unanimous consent agreement limiting the amendments that can be offered. Their most recent proposal to Democrats would allow both sides to offer up to five amendments to the bill. The GOP has been urging industry supporters to pressure the Democrats to acquiesce.

Crime
Virus Highlights Need For Tough Laws, Lawmakers Say
     The "I Love You" computer virus that spread this week across Asian, European and American computer systems demonstrates the need for tougher laws to combat computer crime, said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-UT, and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY. Schumer, who said that he had made crime-fighting his signature issue when he served in the House of Representatives, said that the "that the new locus of crime is fast becoming the Internet, and it's time that we got serious about fighting online crime."

Business
FASB Officials Say It Adds Up
     Financial Accounting Standards Board Chairman Edward Jenkins this week defended the independent entity's proposal to change certain accounting rules that the high-tech industry says could curb its ability to grow. At a House Commerce Finance and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee hearing General Motors chief accountant Peter Bible was the lone witness standing up for FASB's proposal to eliminate the "pooling-of-interests" method of accounting, one of two methods used in accounting for mergers and a measure that many in the high-tech industry have used. But the problem with leaving only the purchase method is determining a fair net value for a high-tech company, which defies traditional valuations. Often the value of a tech company is based on the people, the stock market value or a firm's patent, argued high-tech executives.

Labor
Bill To Clarify Stock Options Passes
     The House cleared legislation that would make it easier for employers to provide hourly workers with a stake in their companies by exempting stock option profits from federal overtime requirements. By a 421-0 vote, lawmakers cleared the bill, S. 2323, for action by President Clinton, who is expected to sign the measure. Wanting to move quickly on the legislation, House leaders opted to take up S. 2323, which the Senate passed last month, instead of moving on an identical House bill, H.R. 4182 — because the Senate measure would not require further action by Congress after the House passed it.

Antitrust
Justice Briefs Congress On Microsoft Case
     David Boies, the Justice Department’s antitrust litigator in the Microsoft suit, went to Capitol Hill early this week — accompanied by other DOJ antitrust staff — to outline to Senate Judiciary Committee staff the government’s proposal to break-up Microsoft, according to several staff members who attended the meeting. Those who attended included staff from the offices of Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-UT, ranking member Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-VT, and Sens. Spencer Abraham, R-MI, and Edward Kennedy, D-MA.

Trade
High-Tech Supporters Rally For PNTR
     High-tech industry supporters of granting China permanent normal trade relations attempted to rally support for the measure on Capitol Hill, stressing the trade deal's benefit to the industry's growth and to democracy by helping to expand access to the Internet and other technology. "This industry is very very critical to expanding our Western values and spreading them throughout China," said House Rules Committee Chairman David Dreier, R-CA.

Fundraising
RNC To Hold Fundraiser With Cisco
     The Republican National Committee is planning to hold its first soft money fundraiser in Silicon Valley in mid-June at the home of Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers. The RNC expects to beat the $2.6 million in soft money raised by the Democrat National Committee in the Valley last month, according to several people working on the fundraiser.
- by Sharon McLoone