Boxing Bill Has Congressional Telecom Work in Clinch
As House and Senate staff closed offices for Thanksgiving, the prospects of several telecom bills seemed extremely bleak due to struggles over Senate Commerce Committee Chmn. McCain’s (R-Ariz.) boxing bill. House, Senate and industry sources indicate there don’t appear to be negotiations on the issue. House Commerce Committee Chmn. Barton (R-Tex.) objects to moving the boxing legislation, and sources said McCain will let nothing else pass unless the boxing bill is passed.
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House sources point out that the House has already passed a package of several sought-after telecom bills: Spectrum relocation trust fund, enhanced 911 (E-911) and the universal service fund anti-deficiency act modification. HR-5419, passed by unanimous consent Sat. by the House, included the measures. Republican and Democratic House sources said the House has done the necessary work to move the bills and any responsibility for the bills’ failure should be placed on McCain’s shoulders. Sources on all sides said that as staff left for Thanksgiving, there appeared to be no negotiations on how to resolve the stalemate. The House and Senate are scheduled to resume the session on Dec. 7, mainly to consider enactment of intelligence legislation and revisions to the Omnibus Appropriations bill. Sources said while there were no negotiations scheduled, the window of opportunity remained open.
Industry and Senate sources supportive of McCain said he was adamant about the boxing bill and willing to draw “a line in the sand.” House sources said the boxing bill is filled with regulation and noted that the House hasn’t had time to properly review the bill. Plus, House Commerce Consumer Protection Subcommittee Chmn. Stearns (R-Fla.) also has a boxing bill (HR-5272).
Sources supportive of McCain said the boxing bill wasn’t controversial and is designed to give boxers more protection and lessen the influence of promoters. Congressional and industry sources said the battle is over issues like jurisdiction and procedure, rather than the substance of the bill. Also, some sources speculate that House objections to the bill could be tied to McCain’s vote against energy legislation that was sought by Barton and House leadership.
TV Provisions in Boxing Bill
One House source did raise questions about specifics in the boxing bill that relate to broadcasting and cable. The bill would require certain disclosures by video distributors (either over-the-air broadcasters, cable or DBS) to the federal boxing commission after the airing of a fight. Disclosures include payments to or from a promoter, income received from the match and other payments or contracts associated with the match. The bill also would require the federal boxing commission to conduct hearings on the definition of “promoter” in which broadcasters, cable and DBS are expected to participate.
McCain’s boxing amendment is also attached to intellectual property legislation that passed the Senate (S-3021). The bill includes provisions that would ban video recording in movie theaters and allow technology to filter objectionable language and scenes from DVDs.
Sources supportive of either McCain and Barton used harsh rhetorical language to pin blame on the other. Each source said the opposing politician’s stubbornness would lead to schools losing E-rate funding, safety lapses due to no E-911 funding and a dearth of spectrum for wireless services.
Boxing legislation could tie up other communications legislation. Efforts to move junk fax legislation are also stalled in the Senate because McCain tacked boxing onto the bill. House sources said efforts to move the bill in the Senate over the “hotline” failed when McCain added the boxing bill. The junk fax bill would loosen FCC junk fax rules to remove requirements that fax senders solicit and keep on file signed permission from customers to receive faxes. Groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and American Society of Assn. Executives (ASAE) have said the regulations are onerous and should be repealed. House Telecom Subcommittee Chmn. Upton (R- Mich.) and Sen. Smith (R-Ore.) have introduced legislation to change the fax regulations (HR-4600, S-2603). Upton’s bill passed the House and Smith’s bill was approved by the Commerce Committee.