Congressman Michael G. Oxley
Fourth Ohio District

Oxley Statement on the
Commerce-Justice-State Appropriations
Conference Report
 
October 26, 2000
 First, I want to commend Chairman Young, Chairman Rogers, and Chairman Istook for the yeoman's work done on this appropriations measure.  The spending levels included herein reflect numerous difficult trade-offs and tough decisions.  On balance, however, I find the measure to be a very good compromise between the need for fiscal restraint and the need to meet our responsibilities to fund government agencies and programs.
 
In terms of legislative provisions, the Appropriations Committee is again to be commended for its restraint.  The bill is perhaps most notable for what hasn't been included.  I'm pleased to note that the measure does not contain a Senate provision that, under the guise of a spending restriction, would have changed governing law and abrogated U.S. commitments to open worldwide telecommunications markets.
 
Some members sought to impose a restrictive view of Section 310 of the Communications Act, which governs international investments in radio licenses.  Under current law, Section 310(b)(4) permits indirect foreign ownership of greater than 25 percent, including government investment, so long as the Federal Communications Commission finds such ownership to be in the public interest.
 
Preserving the FCC's authority to analyze indirect foreign investment on a case-by-case basis is the right way to go.  I'm pleased Congress has chosen to preserve current law and open competitive markets.
 
I would also note, as chairman of the Subcommittee on Finance and Hazardous Materials, the absence of any legislative riders pertaining to the nation's securities laws.  There are issues to be addressed pertaining to transactions fees charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission, but these will have to wait for the next legislative session.
 
There are two significant matters pertaining to telecommunications included in the bill, both of which had been considered under regular order and passed the Commerce Committee and the House by overwhelming margins.
 
The first, the LOCAL TV Act, will promote video competition and carriage of local television service in rural America by providing guarantees for up to 80 percent of private loans.  The measure also includes a provision I advocated with the Majority Leader requiring an independent test of interference caused by terrestrial video services sharing the DBS band.
 
The purpose of the provision is to ensure that the more than 14 million American households that currently enjoy DBS service, as well as millions of future subscribers, will not face harmful interference from wireless terrestrial systems that propose to share the DBS spectrum.
 
To protect against this, the provision requires that the Commission appoint an engineering firm independent of all the parties to conduct a test to determine the level of interference that would be caused if sharing is permitted.  This test must be conducted within 60 days of the date of enactment, followed by a 30-day public notice and comment period.
 
Participation in this independent test is not intended to be a predicate to selection by the Commission as a licensee.  If the Commission determines that the interference would not be harmful, the test results may help guide the adoption of service and operating rules that would apply uniformly to all potential terrestrial service providers.
 
In any event, the Commission must follow its ordinary procedures in awarding licenses, including auctions where appropriate, after it establishes service and operating rules and opens a filing window.  Clearly, it is not the intent of Congress to require the FCC to deviate from its ordinary procedure in allocating spectrum and licensing applicants.
 
The Commission should not grant a license to any terrestrial user in the DBS band unless it has 1) determined that the band can be shared without harmful interference, 2) made an allocation, 3) established service and operating rules, 4) made a public announcement that it is opening a filing window, 5) and held an auction if appropriate.
 
I strongly encourage the Commission to take serious note of Congress's concern about this signal interference question.  The purpose of adopting the independent study provision is to ensure that, in attempting to better serve consumers, the Commission does not inadvertently allow for the deployment of terrestrial systems that interfere with DBS television service.
 
Finally, the bill includes the provisions of my measure, H.R. 3439, the Radio Broadcasting Preservation Act.  The legislation is a response to the FCC's proposal to establish a low power FM radio service.  The FCC's rule significantly relaxes existing radio interference protections to make way for low power stations, meaning increased interference with existing radio services.
 
H.R. 3439 codifies longstanding interference protections, allowing LPFM to go forward only in areas where it will not cause harmful interference.  It also calls for a pilot program to study the effects of low power radio.
 
In April, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved H.R. 3439, on a bipartisan vote of 274 to 110.  I want to commend the gentlelady from New Mexico, Mrs. Wilson, and the gentleman from Michigan, Mr. Dingell, for their assistance in developing the compromise amendment adopted in the Committee on Commerce.  And I want to thank Chairman Rogers for his help in including my legislation in the measure before us.
 
I urge all members to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
 
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