FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 31, 2007

TIA Applauds Congress on Week of Successful Internet Legislation

Four Bills Will Improve Consumer Choice, Public Safety, Broadband Deployment.

Arlington, Va. - The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) thanked Congress this week for its action on a number of bipartisan legislative efforts important to the tech and telecom sector. TIA advocates for legislation that increases consumer choice, promotes innovation and facilitates broadband deployment. Those principles were maintained with the advancement of H.R. 3919, the Broadband Census of America Act of 2007; H.R. 3403, the 911 Modernization and Public Safety Act of 2007; S. 1853, the Community Broadband Act of 2007; and H.R. 3678, the Internet Tax Freedom Act of 2007.

TIA President Grant Seiffert wrote a letter to the leadership of the House Energy and Commerce Committee thanking it for its action in reporting out H.R. 3919, the Broadband Census of America Act of 2007. H.R. 3919 is a bipartisan bill that will not only allow the collection and dissemination of information about our nation's broadband infrastructure but allow consumers to be better aware of their choices. TIA commends Committee Chairman John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Ranking Member Joe Barton (R-Tex.) as well as Telecom and Internet Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Ranking Member Fred Upton (R-Mich.), for working together on a substitute amendment that resulted in the unanimous support of the Committee.

TIA also applauded action by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which reported out S 1853, the Community Broadband Act of 2007, another victory for consumer choice. The bill, sponsored by Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), prevents any state or local government from passing laws that would stop a public provider from providing advanced telecommunications capability and keeps the door open for community deployment and local choice. TIA will continue to work to see the Community Broadband Act of 2007 passed on the Senate floor.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee also reported out H.R. 3403, the 911 Modernization and Public Safety Act of 2007, sponsored by Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.). This bill will help facilitate the rapid deployment of IP-enabled 911 and E-911 services, thereby improving public safety nationwide. This legislation will also help facilitate the transition to a national IP-based first-responder and emergency services network, no matter the type of telecommunications technology a consumer uses.

These legislative victories build on the success attained with H.R. 3678, the Internet Tax Freedom Act of 2007, which the House moved rapidly to pass this week, with amendments passed by the Senate last week, by a vote of 402-0. The bill would extend the soon-to-expire moratorium on Internet access taxes and multiple or discriminatory taxes on online transactions through November 2014.

"TIA commends Congress's sustained, bipartisan efforts on this crucial legislation, and looks forward to working further with both houses to see these bills get passed," Seiffert said. "Consumer choice, safety and access are the cornerstones of any good policy."

For more information about TIA's legislative advocacy, please contact Ian Martinez at 703.907.7723 or imartinez@tiaonline.org.

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About TIA
For almost three decades, TIA has leveraged its global resources to create the best possible business environment within which our 500+ members can research, develop, manufacture, market and sell their products and services worldwide. The association accomplishes this through its expertise in standards, advocacy, business development, market intelligence, environmental compliance and information security. TIA is committed to expanding market opportunities while protecting and enhancing the reputation of the global communications industry with all its stakeholders. For more information, go to www.tiaonline.org.