January 13, 1999

For More Information Contact:
Bob Cohen
(703) 284-5333
bcohen@itaa.org

Tinabeth Burton
(703) 284-5305
http://www.itaa.org/isec/archive/tburton@itaa.org

Arlington, VA -- The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) today came to the defense of the Federal Communications Commission in response to criticism by a key lawmaker. Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Communications, issued a sharply worded criticism, dated January 11, of the FCC's interpretation of the Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Burns charged in his letter that the FCC has failed to accept the authority granted to the agency under the Act to encourage investment in deployment of advanced telecommunications capabilities. ITAA took exception to Burns' critique, noting that Section 706 should not be used as a lever to upend other provisions of the Act.

While noting that Sen. Burns has established a laudable record on behalf of the Internet and has demonstrated an enlightened attitude on most high tech issues, ITAA President Harris Miller said that regrettably this particular question reflects a disagreement among friends. "ITAA is disappointed in the Burns' letter because we believe it runs counter to the general pro-consumer intent of the 1996 Telecommunications Act. Section 706 should not be used as a Trojan horse to gut the pro-competitive requirements of the Act. We support the Federal Communications Commission efforts that encourage broadband deployment to consumers by encouraging competition among multiple providers. If the FCC were to grant the so-called 'regulatory relief' sought by entrenched telecommunications providers under Sec. 706, consumers would be the losers."

ITAA has participated in the FCC's Section 706 proceedings; copies of ITAA's Section 706 proceedings on September 25, September 14 and April 6, 1998 are available at http://www.itaa.org/isec/pubs/archive.htm.

ITAA consists of 11,000 direct and affiliate members throughout the U.S. which produce products and services in the IT industry. The Association plays a leading role in public policy issues of concern to the IT industry, including taxes, intellectual property, telecommunications law, encryption, securities litigation reform, and human resources policy. ITAA members range from the smallest IT start ups to industry leaders in the software, services, systems integration, telecommunications, Internet, and computer consulting fields. Learn more about ITAA and its positions on the issues by connecting to its web site at http://www.itaa.org/.