Communications, Technology and Interstate Commerce Committee Fall 2003 Agenda

NCSL Communications, Technology and Interstate Commerce Committee
2003 Fall Forum - December 9-12, 2003
Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill
Washington, D.C.

Webcasts, Handouts & Links

Congress, the States and Interstate Taxation

(Joint with the Budgets and Revenue Committee)
The federal moratorium on state and local taxation of Internet access has expired, at least for the next few months. While the House did approve HR 49 a permanent extension of the moratorium, a stalemate in the Senate over the inclusion of certain telecommunications services (DSL and web access) in the definition of Internet access prevented further action. Congress will likely address the issue next year. This session will provide an overview of the issues involved in the extension of the moratorium as well as an update on the federal legislation to give states remote sales tax collection authority.

Moderator:

Senator Mac McCracken, South Dakota, Committee Chair

Speakers: (Moratorium)

Harley Duncan, Executive Director, Federation of Tax Administrators, Washington, D.C.
Ellen Marshall, Multistate Tax Commission, Washington, D.C.
Mark Beshears, Assistant Vice President, State & Local Tax, Sprint Corporation, Kansas
Scott Mackey, Kimbell Sherman Ellis, Vermont

Speakers: (Sales Tax)

Maureen Riehl, Vice President, State Government Relations, National Retail Federation, Washington, D.C.
Neal Osten, National Conference of State Legislatures, Washington, D.C.

E-911: Federal Requirements and State Deployment

State legislatures, government agencies, public safety organizations and the telecommunications industry are working together to create a national system that will allow emergency victims to use their wireless telephone in order to receive help quickly. This session will offer an overview of the new system.

Moderator:

Dan Schmidt, Analyst, Legislative Council, Wisconsin, Committee Staff Chair

Speakers:

Genie Barton, Acting Associate Division Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, D.C.
John Crabill, Vice President, Eastern Region, National Emergency Number Association (NENA) Virginia
Brian Fontes, Vice President, Federal Relations, Cingular Wireless, Washington, D.C.

Handouts/Links:

Update on Telemarketing and the Status of Do Not Call

Enforcement of the recently created national do-not-call registry, with over 55 million names on it, has been put into limbo by recent court rulings. This session will provide insights on current state telemarketing laws and the impact of the rulings on the ability of consumers to avoid certain telemarketing calls.

Moderator:

Senator Mac McCracken, South Dakota, Committee Chair

Speakers:

Margaret Egler, Deputy Chief, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, D.C.
Joseph Sanscrainte, Directory of Regulatory Affairs and General Counsel, Call Compliance, Inc., New York
Jeff Kramer, Senior Legislative Representative, AARP, Washington, D.C.

Handouts/Links:

Local Competition

This past August, the Federal Communications Commission released its Report and Order with regard to the triennial review of the implementation of the local competition provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The Order impacts state regulatory authority of local competition and provides additional responsibilities to state public utility commissions. The Order also address advanced telecommunications capability. The Committee’s previous session speculated about the wording of the Order, now that the Order has been released, we can have a discussion as to its actual impact on the future of federal and state regulation and local phone competition.

Moderator:

Senator Ron Amstutz, Ohio, Committee Vice Chair

Speakers:

Tom Navin, Deputy Division Chief, Competition Policy Division , Wireline Competition Bureau, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, D.C.
Roy Lathrop, Director, State Telecommunications Policy, National Cable & Telecommunications Association, Washington, D.C.

Stopping Spam: Strategies for Effective Enforcement

Stopping unwanted and fraudulent e-mail advertising may seem like an impossible task. But tools are available to fight spam. Internet service providers and technology companies provide ways to help consumers fight spam, and are joining them in combating this shared problem. Regulatory agencies and law enforcement also have successfully prosecuted online consumer fraud. This session presents case studies illustrating how these tools work.

Moderator:

Representative Wayne Harper, Utah, Committee Vice Chair

Speakers:

Senator Steve Kelley, Minnesota
Michael Goodman, Attorney, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, D.C.
Russell E. McGuire, Assistant Attorney General/Prosecutor, Office of the Attorney General, Virginia
Frank Torres, Director, Consumer Affairs, Microsoft Corp, Washington, D.C.

Handouts/Links:

Speaker Biographies
Stopping Spam: Strategies for Effective Enforcement - Russell McGuire's presentation
Federal Trade Commission's Spam Web Site
Microsoft's Spam Web Site

Organizing IT to Streamline & Save Dollars

Information technology has become an integral part of state government operations --behind the scenes and as a tool to deliver services. Having 24 X 7 access to government -- paying taxes and parking tickets, applying for licenses and financial aid, registering for campsites -- is fast becoming an expectation. And, as states look for ways to trim budgets, they are finding that on-line applications may provide cost, time and labor savings. This session will highlight best practices in organizing government information technology operations to provide efficient, easily accessible services for a growing tech-savvy society.

Speakers:

Delegate Joe T. May, Virginia, Committee Vice Chair
Thomas Jarrett, Chief Information Officer and, Secretary of the Department of Technology, Delaware
G. Curtis Clark, e-Business Solutions Executive, Public Sector, The Americas, IBM, North Carolina

Handouts/Links:

Speaker Biographies
What's Up with E-Government? - March 2003 State Legislatures Magazine article

Special Briefing: Identity Security: How Do We Know It's You?

Government has responsibility for issuing 'life' documents that are the gateway to obtaining a legally recognized identity in our country. These life documents are the weak link in a broken identity security system that actually enables theft, fraud and invasion of privacy instead of limiting them. This program will explore what's required to improve security and strengthen laws and policies governing ID systems.

Moderator:

Senator Steve Kelley, Minnesota
Delegate Joe T. May

Speakers:

Katherine M. Hollis, Director Security and Privacy Professional Services, Electronic Data Systems, Virginia
Richard J. Varn, President, RJV Consulting, Iowa
Senator Debra Bowen, California
Dan Combs, Global ID Solutions, New York

Handouts/Links:

Speaker Biographies
Identity Management - Katherine. Hollis' presentation
ID Security - NCSL's web site
ID Security - NCSL LegisBrief
Driver's Licenses and Identification Cards- Catherine A. Chan and Reed F. Morris, NCSL, October 2003
Creating a Trusted Network for Homeland Security - Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age, December 2003