Jimm Phillips

House Communications Subcommittee member Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Texas, put the onus on congressional Republicans Wednesday to come “to the table and sit down with us” to reach a compromise on an infrastructure spending package, as talks continued after the collapse of negotiations between the White House and a Senate GOP group led by Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia (see 2106080060). Veasey told a USTelecom virtual event that he expects the House Commerce Committee to mark up its part of infrastructure legislation soon so it can “get onto the floor for a vote,” after which it will be up to “my colleagues … in the other chamber to make sure this important legislation moves to” President Joe Biden’s desk. Veasey touted his backing of panel Democrats’ Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s America Act infrastructure bill. HR-1848 includes $80 billion for broadband and $15 billion for next-generation 911 (see 2103110060). Whether that measure or another infrastructure bill passes depends on whether lawmakers are “willing … to come together and pass legislation that will help everyone be connected,” Veasey said. “Rural constituents will be very much … helped by this, as well as the lower income, largely urban residents that I represent.” Veasey touted his Enhanced Emergency Broadband Act, which would provide additional emergency broadband benefit program money (see 2103040049). “Create a path forward,” he said, “to make this program both permanent and sustainable.”

President Joe Biden revoked former President Donald Trump’s bans on U.S. transactions with major Chinese apps. Biden replaced them Wednesday with an executive order directing the Commerce Department to evaluate “transactions involving” apps “that may pose an undue risk of sabotage or subversion of” U.S. information and communications technology. Last month, Biden revoked Trump’s social media order that sought an FCC rulemaking to clarify interpretation of Communications Decency Act Section 230 (see 2105140074).

Senate Antitrust Subcommittee Chairwoman Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., cited the power major tech companies have over the U.S. economy Wednesday as a reason to enact her Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Reform Act to “update our antitrust laws.” S-225 would in part create an FTC division to do market studies and merger retrospectives. Competition law violations would be subject to DOJ and FTC fines of up to 15% of a company’s annual revenue, instead of capped at $100 million (see 2102040053). Facebook, Google and other major tech companies have long “said ‘just trust us,’” but “experience has shown that we can't rely on these companies to protect our personal data, or prevent the spread of toxic disinformation, or even to compete fairly in the marketplace,” Klobuchar told a virtual FCBA event. “The only thing we can trust is that” these companies “will act in their own interest. A few giant companies in the tech area act as gatekeepers and dominate markets, exclude their rivals and gobble up other companies. This is not by chance or coincidence, this is a strategy.” If the sector were “more competitive, we would have companies competing to offer consumers new bells and whistles to protect privacy, to increase transparency or to prevent the spread of toxic disinformation,” she said. Big Tech’s “grip on the market suppresses” potential “would-be competitors.” Lawmakers need to address the situation by “rebooting the antitrust movement in the,” Klobuchar said. “We don't get rid of the companies, but we shed” the monopoly “that surrounds them. And that may mean divesting assets, that may mean putting conditions that are actually enforceable." The Internet Association didn't comment right away.

The White House and Senate Republicans confirmed Tuesday they have ended talks on infrastructure legislation following a call between President Joe Biden and Senate Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia (see 2106070063). Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York told reporters Democrats are now more actively “pursuing” using the budget reconciliation process to enact infrastructure legislation (see 2103160001) even as he continues to hope for a bipartisan deal. Biden told Capito "the latest offer from her group did not, in his view, meet the essential needs of our country," said White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki in a statement. "He offered his gratitude to her for her efforts and good faith conversations, but expressed his disappointment that, while he was willing to reduce his plan by more than $1 trillion, the Republican group had increased their proposed new investments by only $150 billion." The White House agreed with the GOP on $65 billion for broadband (see 2105270072). Biden "is committed to moving his economic legislation through Congress this summer, and is pursuing multiple paths to get this done," including a pending offer from Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and four other senators. The Sinema-Portman proposal was expected to total around $900 billion and to include broadband money, aides said. "While I appreciate President Biden’s willingness to devote so much time and effort to these negotiations, he ultimately chose not to accept the very robust and targeted infrastructure package, and instead, end our discussions," Capito said in a statement. "I am disappointed by his decision," but "this does not mean bipartisanship isn’t feasible." Capito and other Republicans “seem to be running into a brick wall,” but the bipartisan proposal “might be closer to what the president needs,” Schumer said. “That’s good, but that’s not going to be the only answer. We all know as a caucus we will not be able to do all the things that the country needs in a bipartisan way. And so, at the same time, we are pursuing the pursuit of reconciliation, and that is going on at the same time.” Some parts of the infrastructure package could move in a bipartisan deal while others move via reconciliation, he said.

The Senate achieved the necessary "yes" votes to pass the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act Tuesday, as expected (see 2106040063). The vote was 68-31, with voting continuing, at approximately 6:25 p.m. EDT. S-1260, previously known as the Endless Frontier Act, includes $52 billion for U.S. chipmaking and $1.5 billion to implement the Utilizing Strategic Allied Telecom Act. The semiconductor money includes $49.5 billion to implement the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America Act (see 2105210056).

Public safety communications leaders haven’t reached agreement with the House Commerce Committee on changes to next-generation 911 language in panel Democrats’ Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s (Lift) America Act infrastructure bill (HR-1848), the advocates said. Infrastructure discussions between President Joe Biden and Senate Republicans were to extend into Monday. Friday's conversation between Biden and Senate Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia didn’t yield a deal.

President Joe Biden proposed to set a minimum 15% corporate tax rate to help pay for an infrastructure spending package as an informal counteroffer to Senate Republicans, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday. Biden made the counterproposal during a Wednesday meeting (see 2106020078) with Senate Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, who's leading GOP negotiators. Biden also asked Republicans to back $1 trillion in new spending. Republicans propose $65 billion for broadband (see 2105270072), a figure the White House is offering to back. Capito’s office confirmed she plans to meet with Biden again Friday. Capito “is encouraged that negotiations have continued,” a spokesperson emailed. Vice President Kamala Harris said Thursday she and Biden “are determined to get to 100%” broadband coverage via an infrastructure package. She helped announce NTIA’s plan to make nearly $1 billion available for tribal broadband (see 2106030065). Lawmakers “worked together” to fund broadband programs via the FY 2021 appropriations and COVID-19 aid packages (see 2012210055) and now “Congress must work together again to bring high-speed Internet to every American,” she said. Other officials emphasized they want talks with Republicans on infrastructure to be completed by when the Senate returns Monday (see 2106010068).

The White House is considering House Communications Subcommittee FCC detailee Parul Desai as a candidate for a third Democratic FCC seat, officials and lobbyists told us. Desai has been Communications’ FCC detailee since September 2019. She was previously FCC Enforcement Bureau Telecom Consumers Division deputy director, a Media Bureau Audio Division attorney adviser and the commission’s open internet ombudsperson right after its rescinded 2015 net neutrality rules took effect (see 1506150057). Desai was also a lawyer for Consumers Union and the Media Access Project. Her role as the ombudsperson is seen as a reason she’s in contention now. President Joe Biden’s eventual nominee for the third FCC Democratic slot is considered crucial to any effort to update net neutrality rules (see 2101060055). Biden also wants people of color in tech policy leadership roles, lobbyists said. Officials weren’t sure whether Desai has a better chance of getting the nod than others including DLA Piper’s Smitty Smith (see 2104280057). Biden faces pressure from Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell of Washington and other Democrats to announce nominees for FCC, FTC and NTIA vacancies. Desai and the White House didn’t comment Wednesday.

Experts said Wednesday final details of broadband language in an infrastructure spending package will be crucial in determining whether it improves connectivity access and affordability. President Joe Biden plans to continue talks Friday with Senate Public Works Committee ranking member Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia amid what’s widely seen as the final week for talks with Senate Republicans aimed at reaching a deal (see 2106010068). Republicans continue to propose $65 billion for broadband as part of their counteroffer (see 2105270072), a figure the White House offers to back.

President Joe Biden proposed substantial budget increases Friday for the FCC, FTC and most tech-focused agencies within the Commerce and Justice departments for FY 2022, in documents released Friday. The administration proposed a smaller increase for the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and would keep CPB's funding at $475 million.