Telecom
FCC's Martin Catches Flak From Senate Democrats
     For months, Democratic lawmakers have hinted that Republican FCC Chairman Kevin Martin would face a grilling before Congress, and this week they delivered. Martin was hit with a barrage of questions about his stance on the AT&T-BellSouth merger, his commitments to promoting an open Internet, and media diversity and whether he suppressed internal reports that differ from his deregulatory views on that subject. The hearing, the first on communications matters in the new Congress, signals closer scrutiny ahead for the agency. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, said he did not understand why Martin and fellow Republican Commissioner Deborah Tate wrote a joint statement seemingly indicating that the FCC would not stand by the AT&T deal. Martin clarified that they meant the agency would not apply some restrictions industry-wide. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., also reiterated her allegations that the FCC has suppressed media-ownership studies. Martin denies spiking any reports.

Broadband
Rep. Markey Laments State Of High-Speed Internet
     The United States lags behind other developed nations in high-speed Internet subscribers, affordability and speed, and the federal government still lacks a solid plan to change that, a key lawmaker told consumer advocates. The remarks by Massachusetts Democrat Edward Markey, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee, came a day after the FCC's twice-annual release of statistics on broadband access. "We are still at the stage that having any broadband plan at all would represent an improvement," he said. The speed of service offered via cable modems and the digital subscriber lines of telecommunications companies "wouldn't even qualify as broadband in many countries abroad unless they arrived to the home with a good gust of wind behind them," Markey said. In the next few years, he wants his subcommittee to "fashion together a policy blueprint" that includes broadband that is affordable and fast, with an open architecture that supports Internet freedom.

Budget
Restored Research Spending Prompts Industry Praise
     Scientists and technology companies cheered the restoration of some requested funding increases for basic research as the House passed a spending bill to cover the rest of fiscal 2007. The measure would boost the budget for the National Science Foundation by $335 million, the Energy Department's science office would get a $200 million increase, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology would receive an additional $50 million. The measure also would give the National Aeronautics and Space Administration an additional $166 million for aeronautics research. "Hopefully, this is just the first step toward a productive year on the innovation agenda," said Charlie Robinson of the Electronic Industries Alliance. The Information Technology Industry Council called the proposed funding a win for the entire economy.

On The Hill
Senate Finance Agenda Includes R&D Credit, Tax Ban
     The perennial push for a permanent research and development tax credit is back on the technology industry's agenda this year, and the Senate Finance Committee will be a chief battleground. The 109th Congress extended the credit, but that reprieve ends in December. Finance Committee ranking Republican Charles Grassley wants to review modifications made last year and make sure the credit "is a lean and efficient subsidy," one of his aides said. New Finance Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., already has filed comprehensive tax legislation that would make the R&D tax credit permanent. The chairman said the broad goal of the bill is to boost American competitiveness and encourage innovation. The measure also would create a tax credit to help small tech companies access capital. The R&D credit is on the House Ways and Means Committee's agenda, too. For more insights into the top tech issues and key players on the committees of the 110th Congress, check the reports in our special series.

Telecom
Rep. Boucher: Universal Service Is High On Agenda
     Overhauling the federal fund that aims to speed access to affordable communications across the country will be one of the early topics debated by the House Energy and Commerce Committee this year, Virginia Democrat Rick Boucher predicted. "Hopefully we can have this on the floor by spring of this year," Boucher, a senior member of the panel, said at the State of the Net conference. The legislation would impose charges on Internet-based telephone providers and all who offer network connections. Fees also would be tacked onto intrastate telephone traffic, in addition to long-distance and international traffic. The charges would "replenish the fund and enable it to be sustained for decades to come," Boucher said. The conference also addressed copyright law and Internet freedom.

E-Government
Lawmakers Want Online Addresses Of Sex Offenders
     House and Senate lawmakers unveiled two bills that would require sex offenders to register their e-mail and instant-messaging addresses so the Justice Department could share the data with commercial social-networking sites. The information would be added to the national sex-offender registry, where community-oriented sites like Facebook and MySpace could crosscheck user profiles with the roster of online predators. Adults who lie about their ages online to attract minors for sexual encounters would face up to 20 years behind bars. Internet identifiers could not be released to the public. Rep. Paul Gillmor, R-Ohio, noted that while social networks and instant messages are a chief means of communication for many children, they also have "opened the door for predators wishing to lure our kids."

Privacy
FTC Chief Talks Data Security, Consumer Protection
     FTC Chairwoman Deborah Platts Majoras is hopeful that a data-security bill will gain traction in the new Congress. Several committees and key congressional leaders "are quite committed to getting it back on the legislative agenda," she said. Various bills introduced last session died as a result of disputes between committees that shared jurisdiction. Majoras said she wants a bill with a "reasonable safeguard standard" across sectors that collect and store sensitive information, and she wants uniform rules for alerting the public of security breaches. Majoras also said that because consumer-protection efforts -- and high-tech scams -- have "gone global," her agency's international functions have been consolidated into a single office. What used to be three units is now one international affairs division that she said will "better take advantage of strong synergies, better maximize resources and better coordinate our work."

Politics
Effort To Destroy 'Google Bombs' Expected To Fail
     People who search the term "miserable failure" online no longer will necessarily think of President Bush first, thanks to a change in Google's system for connecting phrases and Internet pages. The company said it has updated its algorithm to make it more difficult for online activists to launch "Google bombs" against politicians like Bush. Google has been aware of the attempt to link Bush's White House biography page with the term "miserable failure" and about 100 other such episodes but until now has hesitated to intervene and alter the results by hand. A spokesman said the company acted now because of false perceptions that the company is sending the political messages. The masterminds of some Google bombs said the search expert's attempt to control its technology might fail. Chris Bowers of MyDD said his ongoing campaign to Google bomb Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., "does not end here."