roundtable: NTIA Update

roundtable: NTIA Update

NTIA Update

DGARDNER@ntia.doc.gov
Tue, 06 Jun 1995 18:41:53 -0400 

Message-Id: <sfd4a20b.001@ntia.doc.gov>
Date: Tue, 06 Jun 1995 18:41:53 -0400
From: DGARDNER@ntia.doc.gov
To: roundtable@cni.org
Subject:  NTIA Update


TPR,

I have attached the NTIA Update, a fairly regular update on NTIA and
National Information Infrastructure Happenings.  Although this issue 
does not talk about telecom reform legislation, I would more than 
happy to forward our white papers on both the Senate and the House 
legislation noting that we haven't updated the papers to reflect 
changes in the new versions of the legislation.  If you have any 
questions, feel free to contact me at dgardner@ntia.doc.gov or 
202.482.1835.

Thanks,

David Gardner
NTIA/ Office of the Assistant Secretary
<dgardner@ntia.doc.gov>


NTIA Update

Room 4892, HCH Building, Washington, DC  20230; Voice 202.482.1835,
Fax 202.482.0979, E-mail: dgardner@ntia.doc.gov

Tuesday, June 6              A summary of NTIA and NII events and news

NTIA Speaks...

Michele Farquhar     June 5
Spoke at Wireless
Communications Summit
(Washington, DC)

Larry Irving     June 9
Speaks at Wash. Post High-Tech
Policy Forum Lunch
(Washington, DC)

Michele Farquhar     June 9
Panelist on the GII at Natl.
Council of the Churches of Christ
(Washington, DC)

Larry Irving     June 12
Delivers keynote address to
Smart Valley PAN rollout
(Palo Alto, CA)

Event Schedule

Joint Press Briefing on Release of
Distance Learning Report
at Council of Chief State School
Officers, Washington, DC at 11
AM, June 13.  Call  Bob Sestili at
202/482-5802 for info.

NII Advisory Council Meeting at
Library of Congress, 9 AM-4:30
PM, June 14.  Call Tiffani Burke
at 202/482-1835 for info. 

Quotable...
 
"If the automobile had followed
the same development cycle as
the computer, a Rolls-Royce
would today cost $100, get a
million miles per gallon, and
explode once a year, killing
everyone inside."

Robert X. Cringely
Infoworld

NTIA On-Line

NTIA's on-line resources include:
dial-up access: 202. 482.1199 at
speeds up to 14,400 baud. 
Internet access points:
ftp. ntia.doc.gov, gopher.ntia.doc.
gov, and http://www.ntia.doc.gov.

APEC Adopts Administration Principles; Reaches
Agreement on Regional Information Infrastructure

In a major step toward the creation of a global information infrastructure,
the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) ministers in Seoul, Korea
agreed last week to create a global information infrastructure based on
the core principles outlined by the Clinton Administration.  Leading the
U.S. delegation which included NTIA, State Dept., and FCC
representatives, Deputy Commerce Secretary David Barram urged
the APEC ministers to "break out of our old policy paradigms.  It is time to
embrace new ideas, new methods of integration, and cooperation."  The
ministers agreed upon a plan which adopts the five principles set forth
by Vice President Gore in the "Global Information Infrastructure (GII):
Agenda for Cooperation," released earlier this year.  These principles
include 1) encouraging private investment, 2) promoting competition, 3)
providing open access, 4) creating a flexible regulatory environment,
and 5) ensuring universal service.  The APEC ministers also adopted
additional principles on intellectual property rights protections, privacy,
and data security.  For more information about APEC, contact Joanne
Kumekawa at 202.482.1551.

Irving Issues "Consumer Bill of Rights" To CFA 

In a speech delivered to a Consumer Federation of America conference
last week, Assistant Commerce Secretary Larry Irving issued a strong
warning to consumers about proposed telecom reform legislation that is
currently being considered in the House and Senate.  In his speech Irving
released details of a "consumer bill of rights" aimed at protecting
consumers.  "The Clinton Administration strongly supports telecom
reform legislation, but we are seeking legislation that promotes real
competition and allows both consumers and businesses to reap the
benefits of a competitive telecom industry," said Irving. Irving noted that
the Administration is concerned that the current proposal to deregulate
cable television rates would result in higher rates for consumers.  For
more information on this speech or for a copy of "A Consumer's Guide to
Telecommunications Reform," please contact David Gardner
at 202.482.1835 or dgardner@ntia.doc.gov.   


Sec. Brown Chairs First Public IITF Meeting

Responding to the Administration's call to make Federal government work
better and cost less, Secretary of Commerce Ronald H. Brown opened
the first public meeting of the Clinton Administration's Information
Infrastructure Task Force by highlighting the Federal government's use of
 information technology to better serve the American people. 
"Throughout the Executive Branch, we are successfully using
information technology to improve customer access to government
information, improve the delivery of government services, make
government more efficient, save the taxpayer money, and increase
Americans' input into policy making," Brown said.  He also
invited the audience to visit the Dept. of Commerce Hall to see the
twenty-seven exhibits of Federal agencies' use information technologies
to better serve the public.
 
Deputy Secretary of Commerce David Barram detailed the
Administration's efforts to promote advanced telecommunications
technologies in our nation's schools, libraries, and health clinics through
such efforts as NTIA's TIIAP program.  As an example of these
technologies, Barram engaged in a live video educational session with
high school students in North Carolina and Chicago, and Monterey Bay
Aquarium scientists in an underwater submarine beneath the Pacific
Ocean.   For more information on the IITF, please contact Yvette Barrett
at 202.482.1835 or ybarrett@ntia.doc.gov. 


Budget Committees Vote to Eliminate Department of Commerce
Rep. Chrysler Introduces "Dept. Of Commerce Dismantling Act"

Last month both the House and Senate passed budget resolutions which
call for the elimination of the Department of Commerce.   Although budget
resolutions tend to indicate the legislative plan for Congress, budget
resolutions serve as guidelines and do not carry the force of law.  The
actual decision regarding Commerce Dept. funding will be made
through the appropriating and authorizing committees in both the House
and Senate.  In addition, legislation would still need to pass through
conference committees and be signed by the President.  House and
Senate committees are expected to begin consideration of authorization
legislation later this month.

"By the 21st century, telecommunications and information-related
industries will account for approximately 20 percent of the U.S.
economy...In order for the U.S. to continue to lead in this area, the nation
needs the expertise of NTIA, the only executive branch agency with
jurisdiction over international and domestic telecommunications matters. 
NTIA's efforts will continue to spur innovation, encourage competition,
help create more jobs, and provide consumers with more choices and
better quality products at lower prices," said Assistant Secretary Larry
Irving in a recent speech to the Consumer Federation of America.

On a related note, two weeks ago Rep. Dick Chrysler (R-MI) introduced
the Department of Commerce Dismantling Act, legislation that would
dissolve the Dept. of Commerce within three years.  This proposal would
terminate NTIA and its NII grant program, TIIAP.  NTIA's management of
federal spectrum would be transferred to OMB.  In a general response to
Commerce Department critics, Secretary of Commerce Ronald H. Brown
stated that "with the smallest budget of any Cabinet-level Department,
we have led the way in making United States commercial engagement
strategy a winning force in the global economy."  For more information on
these legislative proposals, contact David Gardner at 202.482.1835 or
dgardner@ntia.doc.gov.


Brown Hails Electronic Open Meeting On Information Age Govt.

Last month, Federal agencies working together concluded the largest
public meeting ever held solely on electronic networks on "People and
Their Governments in the Information Age."  The Meeting consisted of
public discussion on how government can improve delivery of services
and benefits, and availability of information; and increase citizen
participation in the democratic process.  Secretary of Commerce Ronald
H. Brown called the Open Meeting an important step toward making
government work better, cost less, and be more responsive to the
American people.  The comments posted during the Meeting will be
incorporated into an official process to increase government and
citizen interaction over electronic networks. The Meeting drew over
10,000 active participants from across America who contributed to the
Meeting over electronic networks, such as the World Wide Web (WWW),
Internet e-mail, modem dial-up access and on-line services such as
America Online and Prodigy.   For those without access to
computers, nearly 400 libraries, government offices, schools, Kinko's
Copy Centers and institutions volunteered as public access sites in 49
states and offered on-line access to the Meeting free of charge.

The Meeting was sponsored by the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB), NTIA, and the National Technical Information Service, and the
National Performance Review with the assistance of the Government
Printing Office and other agencies.  Last year, NTIA's virtual conference
on universal service was the Federal government's first conference
conducted entirely on electronic networks. Later this year OMB will
release a report detailing the substantive comments and evaluating the
success of the Meeting in terms of the level of public participation, the
technological lessons learned from the Meeting, and the possibility of
holding similar meetings in the future.  For more information on the
National Electronic Open Meeting, please contact David Gardner at
202.482.1835 or dgardner@ntia.doc.gov.

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