In March 2014, Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) released “Telecom Unplugged: Unleashing a New Digital Era,” which highlighted topical telecommunications issues. Now that summer is in full swing, politicians and bureaucrats are feverously pitching to finish their work on telecommunications legislation and regulations before the glorious August recess, when only the tourists trudge their way down the scorching hot Mall.
City Residents Tell Investment Group No
According to a June 18, 2014 article by Deseret News, residents of Lindon, Utah rejected a proposed partnership with the Australian-based Macquarie Group that would have given Macquarie control of the Lindon fiber optic network for 30 years. Lindon is the first member of the Utah Telecommunications Open Infrastructure Agency (UTOPIA) to decline the Macquarie […]
Wheeler’s UTOPIA: This Emperor Has No Case
In his April 30 remarks at the National Cable & Telecommunications Association’s conference in Los Angeles, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler imperiously decreed: “I believe the FCC has the power – and I intend to exercise that power – to preempt state laws that ban competition from community broadband.”
FCC Chairman Takes another Stab at Controlling the Internet
In December 2013, House Committee on Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.), and Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) announced that they would begin a review of the Communications Act of 1934 and its subsequent amendments, including the Cable Act of 1992 and the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The committee has issued three white papers on various topics that Congress plans to address in the modernization of the Communications Act, and it is expected that future publications will include the role that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will play in Internet governance, among other items.
GAO Report Shows Duplicative Spending on Software Licenses
Federal agencies are missing opportunities to save money in their software license purchases, according to a May 2014 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has been following this issue for some time, including a May 10, 2013 briefing on Capitol Hill highlighting the problems with software asset management in the federal government.
Too Big To Bail Out: The Trouble with Johnson-Crapo
There is a theory about the naming of legislation. Some titles are straight out of George Orwell’s “double-speak” dictionary. In other words (literally), whatever word is in the title usually means exactly the opposite of what the bill will do. Remember the “Affordable Care Act” (ACA)? Despite the promises of President Obama and his administration that this milestone legislation would reduce the cost of healthcare for most Americans, the ACA is on track to explode those costs for all but the poorest Americans.
IRS Should Not Create Software That Already Exists
While very little gets done in Washington during an election year, deadlines must be acknowledged and addressed, such as the expiration of the Internet tax moratorium on November 1, 2014. Two days prior to that critical date, a lesser-known but nonetheless important matter is scheduled to come to an end. On October 30, 2014, the Free File Alliance’s partnership with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is up for renewal. The Free File Alliance is a consortium of tax software companies which makes free tax preparation software and free e-file available to certain taxpayers.
The Clock is ticking on Internet Taxation
Less than six months from now, citizens across the country could face new taxes. That is when the moratorium banning taxes on Internet access and discriminatory duplicate taxes on Internet services expires. While legislation to make the moratorium permanent has been introduced with bi-partisan support, the clock is ticking leading up to the November 1, […]
IRS Should Not Create Software That Already Exists
While very little gets done in Washington during an election year, deadlines must be acknowledged and addressed, such as the expiration of the Internet tax moratorium on November 1, 2014. Two days prior to that critical date, a lesser-known but nonetheless important matter is scheduled to come to an end. On October 30, 2014, the […]
World Intellectual Property Day Is April 26
World Intellectual Property Day is April 26, 2014. Set aside by the international community in 2000, as a day to increase and promote a general understanding of intellectual property (IP), this event is recognized worldwide at numerous events. Among those events this year was the 2014 IP Champions Conference, held on April 23, 2014 by the […]