Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va. plans to re-introduce...

Member Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, with a bill introduction coming in the next week or a month or so, said Brian Hendricks, committee general counsel. The incentive auction proposal has received a great deal of attention, said Hendricks: “In our view, probably too much attention.” Hutchison thinks there’s “great promise” in releasing more spectrum but there’s been “too much fixation on broadcasters’ spectrum,” he said. There are plenty of other opportunities like freeing up government spectrum and unleashing unlicensed spectrum, he said. The good news is spectrum is a very bipartisan issue, he said: “You're going to see a number of bill introductions very soon.” New spectrum legislation could take a lot of time, said Roger Sherman, chief counsel for the House Communications Subcommittee. Meanwhile, the D-Block auction remains Rockefeller’s priority, said Branscome. Online privacy concerns aren’t going away, said Neil Fried, House Commerce Committee counsel. The issue appears to be “bipartisan non-consensus,” he said. Self-regulation has largely failed, said Branscome, citing recent reports from the FTC and NTIA. There’s great interest in looking at privacy legislation in the Senate, said Hendricks. On Universal Service Fund and access revamp, it’s a good thing that the FCC is looking at the low-hanging fruit, Hendricks said. Sherman said it’s important to look at whether some subsidies are still necessary and at duplicate subsidies.