On The Hill
House Votes To Broaden Cyber-Security Research
     To the applause of industry, the House passed a bill to profoundly expand long-term research programs in cyber security. The vote was 400-12. The bill, H.R. 3394, would authorize $880 million over five years for the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology to provide competitive assistance to university students and other researchers in computer security. Bill sponsor and House Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y., said the measure aims to address "anemic" levels of research. Speaking at a briefing after the vote, Rep. Brian Baird, D-Wash., praised the bill as a pre-emptive measure. If not prevented, he said, cyber attacks could cost hundreds of millions of dollars in a few hours. Baird noted that 100 million people and businesses are connected to the Internet. The NIST portion of the bill was based on a bill, H.R. 3316, originally introduced by Baird.

Cyber Security
Industry Takes Computer-Security Message To The Masses
     High-tech companies and government agencies jointly launched a national campaign aimed at heightening computer security awareness among individuals and small-business owners. The group is coordinating the campaign under the newly formed National Cyber Security Alliance and has launched a Web site, StaySafeOnline, specifically aimed at explaining how consumers can boost their computer security.

Security
Experts Urge Study Of Information-Sharing Practices
     A proposed national commission to study the events of Sept. 11 must examine whether better information sharing and coordination throughout the federal government might have helped prevent the attacks, several members of past terrorism-related commissions told the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee. "Because of the classification of information -- and, perhaps, some plain confusion -- we do not yet have a full and integrated picture of exactly what went wrong," Richard Betts, director of War and Peace Studies at Columbia University, said during a hearing on legislation, S. 1867, to establish the National Commission on Terrorists Attacks Upon the United States.

On The Hill
Democrats Pessimistic About Piecemeal Stimulus Plan
     It is "highly unlikely" that the Senate will reconsider individual components of the shelved economic stimulus package, a Democratic leadership staffer said. Jodi Sokul, staff director for the Democratic Steering and Coordination Committee, told a meeting of the National Conference of Lieutenant Governors that without Republican consent on some of the specific provisions of the plan offered by Senate Majority Leader Thomas Daschle, D-S.D., the chamber will move to other issues. Daschle wants to complete legislation on farm relief, energy issues and election reform by the end of next week.

Antitrust
Justice, Microsoft Urge Closed-Door Policy For Third Parties
     The Justice Department and Microsoft have urged federal Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly to deny third parties the opportunity to participate in a one-day hearing under the Tunney Act that they said should be held during the week of March 4. More than 30,000 comments were received in response to the proposed settlement, the Justice Department said in the joint status report ordered by Kollar-Kotelly in advance of a Friday hearing. Of the 22,500 who expressed an opinion on the settlement, 15,000 -- or two-thirds -- opposed it while 7,500 endorsed it, the Justice Department said.

Internet Access
FCC Cites 'Reasonable' Progress On 'Digital Divide'
     With the number of Americans subscribing to high-speed Internet services rising and the gap between access for the rich and poor closing, advanced and high-speed telecommunications services are being deployed to all Americans in a "reasonable and timely fashion," according to a new FCC report. There were 9.6 million subscribers to high-speed and advanced telecom as of June 30, 2001, according to the report, and of that number, nearly 7.8 million were residential or small-business customers. Broadband access via cable modem is the most popular, with a 45 percent growth rate, or 5.2 million new customers, compared with a 36 percent growth rate and 2.7 million more takers for access via digital subscriber lines.

On The Hill
Tauzin's Agenda: Security, Privacy, Broadband, Digital TV
     Security and privacy decisions, the transition from analog to digital television and the deployment of high-speed Internet infrastructure will dominate policy discussions at the House Energy and Commerce Committee in 2002, the panel's chairman said. Speaking during a Precursor Group forum, W.J. (Billy) Tauzin, R-La., said that for years lawmakers were reluctant to address data security and online privacy issues, but the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks changed that dynamic. Then the bankruptcy of the Enron energy firm shifted the discussion again, calling into question what company information should be publicly available and what should remain private, Tauzin said.

On The Hill
Lawmakers, Attorneys Spar Over Class-Action Reform
     House lawmakers heatedly sparred with trial and industry attorneys over whether proposed legislation to reform class-action lawsuits would favor big business and harm consumers. In a House Judiciary Committee hearing, lawmakers vetted concerns and pressed their cases for passing legislation, H.R. 2341, that would revise the rules regarding how class-action lawsuits are executed in the United States. "It is part of our civil justice system that has gone wild," said Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis. "Over the past 10 years, state court filings have increased 1,000 percent." The bill, sponsored by Virginia Reps. Rick Boucher, a Democrat, and Bob Goodlatte, a Republican, would revise standards for bringing large, interstate class-action suits to federal courts, including imposing limits on the ability for plaintiffs to find state courts most likely to support their cases.

Privacy
ID Plan Leaves Chip On Shoulder Of Some Advocates
     State motor-vehicle agencies would have to issue computer-chip-based drivers' licenses with biometric identification under a proposal of the Democratic Leadership Council's Progressive Policy Institute. Rep. James Moran, D-Va., endorsed the idea and will draft legislation reflecting the mandatory "smart card" proposal. He said he was spurred to action by the fact that four of the Sept. 11 terrorist hijackers obtained fraudulent drivers' licenses in northern Virginia. "I think it is time that we had a uniform ID," Moran said. "We will have to start small" by building on the existing state drivers' system before expanding into more secure Social Security cards.

Privacy
Bioterrorism Plan Sparks Outcry Over Privacy Infringement
     Health privacy groups from all political stripes are objecting to a draft law that would enhance governors' power to respond to bioterrorism, including the ability to quarantine victims and widely share otherwise-private medical records. At the request of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a Georgetown University law professor drafted the legislation, which is dubbed the Model State Emergency Health Power Act. Various versions of it have been introduced in 15 states. If enacted, the model legislation would allow governors to declare a state of emergency given an occurrence or imminent threat of bioterrorism. Such a declaration would trigger unfettered access to personal health information without patient consent.