Congress should reject the Kids Online Safety Act and pursue bills that will improve privacy, competition and algorithmic transparency, a coalition of more than 100 parents of “trans and gender expansive kids” wrote Tuesday (see 2309050089). The legislation would “grant extraordinary new power to right wing state attorneys general to dictate what content younger users can see on social media, cutting our kids off from lifesaving online resources and community,” they wrote. Changes made to the bill don’t “fix the deadly flaw with the bill, which is that it gives the government the power to dictate what speech younger users can see online, and would subject everyone to increased surveillance in order to access information and speak out online,” Fight for the Future Director Evan Greer said. Co-author of the legislation Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told us last week that sponsors have worked with the LGBTQ+ community to make changes that accommodate their “important” concerns. “We’re certainly satisfied with the high level of support that we’ve received,” said Blumenthal. “There is very powerful, bipartisan support in the Senate ... and I looked forward to its passage.”

The FCC’s Public Safety Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology are forwarding concerns House China Committee leaders raised about the extent to which Chinese equipment manufacturers like Fibocom and Quectel are spying via U.S. IoT-connected devices via connectivity modules “to each of the authorities enumerated in” the 2019 Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act to probe the status of those companies, commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in letters to panel leaders released Tuesday. House China Chairman Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and ranking member Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Calif., asked Rosenworcel in August about Fibocom and Quectel, citing concerns about the threat to U.S. IoT devices (see 2308080059). “The issues you raise with respect to connectivity modules merit continued attention,” she wrote the House China leaders. The commission “is examining additional steps it should take to protect U.S. networks. In addition to our efforts to prevent equipment on the Covered List from being approved through our equipment authorization process, the agency sought comment on the extent to which certain ‘component parts’ associated with equipment authorized by the agency, if produced by entities identified on the Covered List, should be precluded from authorization because they might also pose an unacceptable risk to national security.” The FCC “also sought comment on whether the Commission should revoke authorizations of specific Covered List equipment that was issued prior to the date any prohibition on authorization went into effect, what the process would be for doing so, and how this would work in the marketplace,” she said: “At present, the agency is examining the record in this proceeding and considering what steps will further protect communications networks and equipment supply chains.” Fibocom and Quectel “are among those that have obtained authorizations of modules,” Rosenworcel said. “The agency does not have information about whether authorized equipment may have been or is currently used in U.S. networks, and, if so, where precisely it is deployed,” but “we coordinate closely and regularly with our federal partners and executive branch bodies that have the responsibility for making determinations regarding equipment and services that pose an unacceptable risk and have written to them to ensure that this matter receives appropriate review.”

The House Communications Subcommittee plans a Sept. 13 hearing on changes in the U.S. video marketplace, the Commerce Committee said Wednesday. “Over the last decade, the video marketplace has undergone a transformative shift as more media content moves online,” including the “introduction of streaming services,” said Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and Communications Chairman Bob Latta, R-Ohio, in a statement. "While there is an unprecedented amount of [content] available, the rise of these services creates challenges for traditional media providers who continue to compete despite being saddled with regulations. We look forward to discussing the evolution of this market, the steps Congress can take to ensure outdated regulations do not hinder innovation and competition, as well as how to bring the traditional marketplace into the 21st century.” The hearing will begin at 2 p.m. in 2322 Rayburn.

The Senate Consumer Protection Subcommittee will host a hearing Tuesday on AI transparency, the Senate Commerce Committee announced Wednesday. Witnesses: BSA | The Software Alliance CEO Victoria Espinel, Witness Executive Director Sam Gregory and Carnegie Mellon University professor Ramayya Krishnan. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., will host tech leaders at a separate forum Sept. 13. Attendees for Schumer’s event include Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and IBM CEO Arvind Krishna. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Motion Picture Association CEO Charles Rivkin and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt are also on the list.

The office of Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., aggressively denied claims her kids’ safety legislation is intended to target speech from the transgender community. Fight for the Future and transgender activists shared video of Blackburn from earlier this year. Responding to a question about priorities this year, Blackburn said, “There are a couple of things. Protecting minor children from the transgender in this culture and that influence.” She said policymakers should be “watching what’s happening on social media,” citing her Kids Online Safety Act. Children are “being indoctrinated” on social media, Blackburn said, noting they hear about issues at school and on YouTube, Snapchat and Instagram. There are certain topics children are “emotionally not mature enough to handle,” she said. Blackburn’s office said Tuesday opponents of the bill are “seeking to misconstrue what was said for political gain,” and that it’s “completely untrue to allege” that Blackburn “stated” the Kids Online Safety Act will “target trans content.” Her office cited a tweet from Blackburn Legislative Director Jamie Susskind, who said the senator was addressing two separate issues in the video: “These are two separate issues being taken out of context. KOSA will not -- nor was it designed to -- target or censor any individual or community.” Fight for the Future Director Evan Greer said Blackburn’s staff is “absurdly” trying to “claim that she didn't say what she said.”

The National Governors Association urged Congress Tuesday to “continue its support for” the Agriculture Department’s connectivity initiatives, including “the Rural Broadband Program, the Community Connect Program, and the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program” as part of the 2023 farm bill. “These programs, in addition to” broadband funding in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and “the various Covid-relief packages, proved vital for rural communities” during the COVID-19 pandemic and “remain vital today,” NGA said. The House Agriculture Committee eyed codifying and making permanent USDA’s ReConnect program in June as part of the farm bill (see 2306210058).

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., confirmed Friday he plans a Sept. 13 AI forum, the first in a planned series of events to "convene the leading minds in AI, including AI developers, civil rights and worker advocates, researchers, and other key thinkers, to lay a foundation for action" on related issues (see 2308210065). The Sept. 13 forum will reportedly include OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Twitter and X Corp. CEO Elon Musk, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Google CEO Sundar Pichai and AFL-CIO President Elizabeth Shuler. "We know there is real bipartisan interest in developing a comprehensive AI framework to give Congress the opportunity to bolster and accelerate AI innovation in a safe and responsible way," Schumer said in a published letter to colleagues. "These forums will build on the longstanding work of our Committees by supercharging the Senate’s typical process so we can stay ahead of AI’s rapid development. This is not going to be easy, it will be one of the most difficult things we undertake, but in the twenty-first century we cannot behave like ostriches in the sand when it comes to AI. We must treat AI with the same level of seriousness as national security, job creation, and our civil liberties." Schumer didn't offer a clear timeline for Senate floor votes expected as soon as this week on FCC nominee Anna Gomez (see 2307280074), but he said the chamber will "continue confirming" President Joe Biden’s "well-qualified nominees." The Senate during the remainder of this year also has an "opportunity to advance legislation ... advancing kids and teens online safety and privacy" (see 2308220057), Schumer said.

Congress “should expedite passage” of the House Commerce Committee-cleared Spectrum Auction Reauthorization Act (HR-3565) and “support additional funding for” the FCC’s affordable connectivity program to make it permanent, NARUC officials said Friday in letters to top lawmakers. HR-3565 faced headwinds on Capitol Hill amid slow progress in negotiations on a spectrum legislative compromise (see 2308070001). The measure “not only extends the FCC’s auction authority, but it also funds two programs critical to your constituents and to national security,” said NARUC President Michael Caron and Telecommunications Committee Chair Tim Schram in a letter to House and Senate leaders and top lawmakers of both chambers’ Commerce panels. HR-3565 would allocate up to $14.8 billion in future auction proceeds for next-generation 911 tech upgrades and give the FCC an additional $3.08 billion to close the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program funding shortfall. The rip-and-replace program is “chronically underfunded” and “federal funding is needed to ensure that all parts of the country have access to advanced, secure, and reliable emergency response systems,” NARUC leaders said. ACP, meanwhile, “has helped more than 19 million households” in the U.S., including “at least 3 million low-income seniors, 400,000 veterans, and more than 3 million students remain online,” Caron and Schram said in a letter to House and Senate leaders and the heads of the chambers’ Commerce and Appropriations committees. “Currently, the program is expected to run out of funds no later than second quarter 2024 and very likely much earlier.” The NARUC leaders referenced a resolution the group passed during its July meeting in Austin backing ACP’s renewal (see 2307190028).

Free Press urged lawmakers to make the FCC’s affordable connectivity program permanent as part of any USF revamp legislation. Congress should “appropriate the funding” for ACP “needed to ensure that low-income households can afford broadband long after the initial appropriation from” the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act “is expended,” FP said in comments to Senate Communications Subcommittee Chairman Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., ranking member John Thune, R-S.D., and other USF revamp working group members released Monday. Some other commenters also urged Congress to make ACP permanent, in some cases suggesting it outright replace the Lifeline program (see 2308250064). FP also asked lawmakers and the FCC to “reject the cynical call from some of the nation’s largest businesses to massively lower their own USF contribution burdens by imposing a regressive tax on residential broadband services. These parties have for years falsely warned that the USF contributions system is in a death-spiral,” which “is simply not true. The fact is that the total USF contribution pool in real terms peaked in 2012, and has declined substantially since. While the overall contribution factor percentage has risen, the average residential consumer has seen their contribution burden decline slightly, as the burden borne by large businesses increased slightly.”

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., touted U.S.-based 5G equipment manufacturer JMA Wireless, during a Wednesday tour of its Syracuse, New York, campus as “critical” to countering Chinese efforts to lead in the technology’s development, while defending his votes against the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and 2022 Chips and Science Act. “I don’t want government controlling and picking the winners and losers” in telecom and other technology, McCarthy said during a news conference. "I actually like the private sector, exactly what JMA is doing. It’s their investment of $50 million that created something, and now government can be a partner.” McCarthy, who toured JMA before a Wednesday fundraiser for freshman Rep. Brandon Williams, R-N.Y., said the lawmaker is advising other GOP members on tech issues. Williams is a House Science Committee member. Williams, who won his first House election last year, wasn't in Congress for the IIJA and Chips measure votes. “You want a member that understands technology,” McCarthy said. “Look at what” Williams “was doing in technology and his business before he became a member of Congress. He knows what’s happening.”