roundtable: FINS SPECIAL REPORT

roundtable: FINS SPECIAL REPORT

FINS SPECIAL REPORT

Vigdor Schreibman - FINS (fins@access.digex.net)
Wed, 16 Mar 1994 12:28:44 -0500 (EST) 

Date: Wed, 16 Mar 1994 12:28:44 -0500 (EST)
From: Vigdor Schreibman - FINS <fins@access.digex.net>
Subject: FINS SPECIAL REPORT
To: Vigdor Schreibman - FINS <fins@access.digex.net>
Message-Id: <Pine.3.89.9403161132.A24807-0100000@access2.digex.net>

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FINS SPECIAL REPORT                                        MARCH 16, 1994
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COMPETITIVENESS ACT PASSES THE SENATE
Industry Sought Strict NREN Restrictions Rejected

Washington, DC   The U.S. Senate passed today by a vote of 59 to 40, the 
National Competitiveness Act of 1994, including provisions contained in 
title VI of the bill, the "Information Technology Applications Research 
Program."  The bill will go to conference designated as H.R. 820, the 
counterpart passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.  Included in the 
bill is an amendment to sec. 102 of the High-Performance Computing Act of 
1991, the National Research and Education Program (Network Program).  

As passed by the Senate, under the leadership of Sen. Ernest F. Hollings,
worked out with the agreement of libraries and White House staff Mike
Nelson, the Network Program will authorize funding for (among other
matters), test bed networks for "connections and associated network
services."  Sen.  Hollings told FINS at a news conference at the Capitol
11:00 a.m., this morning, Mar 16, that key provisions of the substitute
amendment approved by the Senate would assure that "there would be no
change in the NREN program that is now working so well."  What was worked
out with the administration and library groups, Sen Hollings added, was to
set up "a fire wall" to make sure that the NREN "is not used to compete
with private industry."  In short, the strict two-level network system
including (1) "experimental networks" and (2) "production networks" that
industry has been advocating since last fall, *has not prevailed.* Under
the agreed measure the experimental test bed networks offered under sec.
102 of the HPC Act will continue to offer commercial services, provided
that such services are for the purposes approved by the act. 

The measure also includes new provisions sought behind the scenes by the
leadership of the Joint Committee on Printing with respect to information
services (sec. 102(e)).  This would assure that the director of the White
House Science Office, in coordinating the activities of appropriate
agencies "shall consult with the Superintendent of Documents in order to
facilitate compatibility of information systems and eliminate unnecessary
redundancy." 

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