Broadcasters are praising the House of Representatives for telling the FCC to "Keep off the grass"... advertising, that is.

The House Wednesday (July 20) passed the 2023 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill, which prevents the FCC from taking any actions against broadcasters who air cannabis advertising if it is not against the law in the state or jurisdiction in which the station is licensed.

"Broadcasters have been looking for such protections, arguing that without them they cannot air cannabis ads even where the product is legal, which is in most states.

Also: House Committee to Broadcasters: Roll Your Own Pot Spots

Cable and streaming services, with essentially no FCC licenses at risk, can and do air cannabis ads.

State broadcast associations have been pushing for the right to air ads for a legal product in their states. The New York State Broadcasters Association has pointed out that stations currently run the risk of losing their license -- a risk the bill is meant to remove -- for airing any cannabis ads since the substance remains illegal under federal law.

The National Association of Broadcasters has also pushed for a more level playing field with cable and online.

"For too long, local broadcasters have been stuck in a regulatory purgatory because of conflicting federal and state cannabis laws," said NAB spokesman Alex Siciliano. "Today’s passage marks an important step towards allowing broadcasters to receive equal treatment for cannabis advertising that many other forms of media have enjoyed for years. While we are pleased to see the House act, broadcasters will continue to work with policymakers for a permanent resolution to this competitive disparity to the benefit of consumers.” ■

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Subcommittee on Aviation heard mostly from concerned aviation witnesses about safety issues related to the rollout of 5G wireless services in the C-band in a marathon hearing Wednesday (February 2) titled “Finding the Right Frequency: 5G Deployment & Aviation Safety.”

Federal agencies came under withering fire for failure to communicate over the issue. One legislator, though, suggested that it was a case of two sets of engineers at two different agencies — the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Aviation Administration — not speaking the same language when they were speaking at all.

Legislators also pointed out that the C-band interference issue had been identified years earlier, but there was still a last-minute scramble and talk of catastrophic consequences.

The telecom industry and the FCC were hammered by committee leadership for putting the telcos’ bottom line before safety — and not just in regard to aviation, but also to automobiles and GPS reliability.

Also: Wireless Companies Agree to Modified C-Band 5G Rollout

Democratic and Republican senators set the contentious tone by saying there had been an extraordinary lack of communications and coordination among the FCC, the FAA and the National Telecommunications & Information Administration. The result, the lawmakers said, was ridiculous, embarrassing and inexcusable. AT&T and Verizon Communications delayed their 5G rollouts twice over fears towers close to some airports could cause interference to altimeters, and then had to agree not to light up 5G towers in proximity to airports with low visibility issues while the FCC and FAA attempted to resolve an issue legislators said they had years to hammer out.

Full committee chairman Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) put much of the blame on the wireless industry, saying it had kept key data on tower heights and positioning proprietary — refusing to share that data even though it was requested by the FAA — and then only late in the process releasing data on its “secret towers and powers.” Only then did it become clear that 5G and altimeters were going to be a big problem, DeFazio said.

He also blamed the FCC for auctioning the C-band spectrum, adding it had also sold off half of the vehicle-to-vehicle spectrum despite arguments from the transportation industry that it was needed for auto safety. He suggested it was much more important to the FCC that consumers could stream HD while walking down the street. DeFazio pointed out that the FCC’s V2V decision had been taken to court and he hoped it would lose. 

Adding in a third FCC decision — to allow Ligado to launch a satellite-delivered broadband system near GPS spectrum — DeFazio suggested the agency was ignoring any consequences beyond the telecom industry‘s bottom line. “That has to change,“ he said, then clearly angry, he argued the country does not even regulate telecom anymore, “which is why we have the crappiest cell phone service in the world.”

“Having a dropped call is way less serious than having a dropped airplane out of the sky,“ DeFazio said.

After AT&T and Verizon paid billions for C-band spectrum — and after the FCC engineers cleared their 5G services for takeoff adjacent to bandwidth used by aviation — the telcos agreed to delay and adjust their use of that spectrum. They were responding to airline industry and FAA concerns that 5G could cause “catastrophic” interference to avionics systems, specifically altimeters used to tell planes how close they are to the ground while taking off or landing in poor weather.

As a result, and under strong pressure from the Biden administration, the wireless broadband providers also agreed to some “exclusion zones” around those airports until the issue can be resolved, including via the adoption of new altimeter standards.

In his testimony, FAA administrator Steve Dickson said the telecom industry was cooperating and providing data, and that he was confident the issue could be resolved. He said the wireless industry and aviation were working on new flight test data that will help going forward, including retrofitting avionics to make sure they are C-band resistant.

That will likely include informal and formal methods as more 5G is rolled out and as the FCC frees up more spectrum for 5G.

Testifying for the wireless industry, among the eight airline industry witnesses, was CTIA president Meredith Attwell Baker. Baker is arguably uniquely qualified to weigh in, since she has seen the spectrum issues from the various vantages currently in the mix as former head of the National Telecommunications & Information Administration (NTIA).

Baker said the industry was committed to both safe flights and robust and reliable C-band 5G. But she also suggested that the rollout delays of AT&T and Verizon came despite “all available real-world evidence” that 5G and altimeters could coexist.

She also put some of the blame on the media, saying “the press tried to pit the future of wireless versus aviation,” which she said was “always a false choice.”

Baker said that millions of Americans are both getting 5G service and flying safely thanks to hard work in the past few years and weeks, with engineers working together.

Dickson had said that based on the new data from wireless companies, the FAA was now refining the exclusion zones. Baker pointed out that, as of January 28, the FCC had cleared 90% of the commercial fleet for low visibility landings in the vicinity of C-band 5G networks, proving “coexistence is attainable.” She said she was committed to being a good partner with aviation and to getting the other 10% of the fleet cleared for takeoff and landing.

But Baker's bottom line was that "[t]he wireless industry remains confident that 5G poses no risk to air traffic safety but has taken these steps to allow the FAA time to evaluate altimeter performance with C-Band 5G."

Also: Airline CEOs Say C-Band 5G Rollout Could Mean Chaos

As to providing data, she said that AT&T and Verizon last fall had provided “vast and unprecedented access to their 5G network deployment designs, radiofrequency planning, and equipment performance.”

Playing something of the peacemaker, Dickson suggested that the delay in getting the data was that there was a “lack of understanding” of what data the FAA needed because the telcos had never had to produce it for the government before.

All sides agreed that 5G would continue to roll out, that aviation needed to be protected, and that such protection would require better coordination and communication going forward. That“s something they said was happening but with still "a lot of work to do."

Asked about what lessons the industry had learned, Baker said that they had followed the FCC rules back in March 2020 and how the altimeter issue did not get resolved before the C-Band auction she did not understand. She pointed out that she had worked at NTIA and that the interagency coordination process had worked on some "hairy spectrum issues."

She said that perhaps now that the FCC and NTIA have permanent leadership — NTIA administrator Alan Davidson and FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel — they could “take a fresh look at what is working and what is not.” She said she hoped they would do that.

“NATE welcomes the leadership and testimony of Meredith Attwell Baker, President and CEO of CTIA before the House Subcommittee on Aviation," said Todd Schlekeway, president and CEO of NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association. "Ms. Baker’s testimony made clear that the wireless industry and the Federal Communications Commission followed the science and real world usage of 5G services and the impact on aviation. “NATE urges policy makers to continually work together to advance 5G services and maintain America’s global leadership in wireless telecommunications that have allowed for telework and telehealth services and many other technologies that have helped Americans cope with a global pandemic.” ■

A pair of House Energy & Commerce Committee Republicans on Tuesday (Nov. 3) unveiled a discussion draft of national privacy legislation, the Control Our Data Act, which would establish a “national privacy standard,” and they are drafting every GOP member of the Consumer Protection Subcommittee to work on it.

Also read: New Federal Data Privacy Bill Introduced

For the legislation to go anywhere, they will have to get buy-in from Democrats who control the committee and the House, though given how long it would take for a comprehensive bill to make it to a vote in either House or Senate, the Republicans may be hoping that by that time the 2022 midterms voters may have given them the upper hand and control of committees.

House E&C ranking member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Consumer Protection ranking member Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.), who teamed on the draft, said that, guided by four main principles, the bill will set clear rules for consumer privacy and data security, hot button issues in Washington as both sides of the aisle hammer Big Tech over its handling, or mishandling, of both.

The principles:

1.) “The internet does not stop at state lines, so why should one state set the standard for the rest of the country? Creating arbitrary barriers to the internet may result in different options, opportunities, and experiences online based on where you live.

2.) “A lack of transparency has led to where we are today and any federal bill must ensure people understand how their information is collected, used, and shared. We must also ensure that companies who misuse personal information must be held sufficiently accountable.

3.)”Any federal bill must ensure companies are implementing reasonable measures to protect people’s personal information.

4.) “We must also protect small businesses and innovation. We know that in Europe, investments in startups are down more than 40% since their data protection and privacy law — the General Data Protection Regulation — went into effect. We must guard against a similar situation here. We want small businesses hiring coders and engineers, not lawyers. 

The GOP member marching orders are as follows:

• Bilirakis will focus on creating a Bureau of Consumer Privacy and Data Security within the Federal Trade Commission;

• Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan will focus on how to define the legitimate purpose is defined for the use and retention of consumer data is handled so as not to become a cybersecurity target;

• Rep. Bob Latta of Ohio will focus on the need for a standard that avoids conflicting regulations and allows for proper third-party data sharing;

• Rep. Brett Guthrie of Kentucky will handle risk assessment and mitigation techniques like blockchain to protect consumer data;

• Rep. Larry Bucshon of Indiana will deal with privacy by design, that design being reasonable policies for collecting, using and sharing data;

• Rep. Neal Dunn of Florida will focus on data security;

• Rep. Debbie Lesko of Arizona will handle categories of sensitive information and anti-discrimination policies;

• Rep. Greg Pence of Indiana will work on the definition of small and midsized entities as well as the definition of personal information, which has been a huge sticking point between Republicans and Democrats;

• Rep. Kelly Armstrong of North Dakota will focus on the proper use of the FTC's enforcement authority, collaboration with state attorneys general, self regulatory guidelines and safe harbors.

“Today’s announcement from Reps. McMorris Rodgers and Bilirakis is the latest reminder that there is broad support to enact comprehensive data privacy legislation in Congress,” said Privacy for America, a coalition of advertising industry groups pushing for federal privacy legislation. “We note that there are significant areas of agreement in proposals advanced by members of both parties on the core principles to protect all Americans. We encourage members of Congress to come together to reach agreement on a framework that will lead to real privacy protections for consumers — no matter where they live — and establish clear rules of the road that allow for the responsible use of data.”

The House Communications and Consumer Protection Subcommittees have come up with a catchy title for the planned March 25 hearing with the "Biggest Tech" CEOs.

Also Read: Big Tech CEOs to Testify on Disinformation

The hearing, scheduled appropriately for (high) noon, is titled "Disinformation Nation: Social Media's Role in Promoting Extremism and Misinformation."

The hearing will be a remote one, conducted, appropriately, online via Cisco Webex video conferencing. 

Also Read: House GOP Says Big Tech is Destructive Force

The March 25 hearing with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichair and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is a joint hearing of the Communications and Consumer Protection Subcommittees.

The Democratically controlled House Wednesday passed H.R. 2, the Invest in America Act (part of the larger Moving Forward Act infrastructure bill), which would allocate billions to subsidize broadband competition--including from municipal providers--in "underserved" areas which according to the Dems could mean where service is already provided by private capitol at just short of gig speeds.  

The bill would allocate $60 billion to overbuild service the FCC now considers high-speed ("low-tier" service that can be overbuilt with that money includes anything under 100 Mbps). And if there is no service under 100 Mbps, a state could actually use it to overbuild service under 1 Gig.  

The definition of broadband service is at least 25 mbps downstream and 3 up--currently the FCC's working definition of high-speed--and at "a latency that is sufficiently low to allow real-time, interactive applications. Underserved varies widely, and can potentially be defined as amount of competition or price.   

“There is no better way to stimulate our economy and create millions of good paying jobs than to modernize our badly aging infrastructure, especially now that millions of Americans have lost their jobs due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic," said House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone. "I’m proud that the Moving Forward Act included key provisions from the Energy and Commerce Committee." 

The bill passed over the objections of House Republicans who called it a partisan package and missed opportunity for a compromise bill. 

"Today is another day Democrats in Congress could have put down their political swords and found common ground with Republicans who have offered proposals to make American energy infrastructure more resilient and safeguard it from cyberattacks," said House Energy & Commerce Committee ranking member Greg Walden (R-Ore.). "Republicans have proposed more than two dozen policies to help get high speed broadband to all Americans. Republicans have been working to bolster auto safety and put America in the driver’s seat of autonomous vehicle innovation and production," he said. 

 “Unfortunately, Democrats who rule the House continue to put politics over progress. Instead of working with Republicans to find bipartisan solutions that can actually become law and improve our nation’s infrastructure, Democrats have put forth yet another partisan messaging exercise without even consulting Republicans on the Energy and Commerce Committee. We continue to be at the table ready to work with Democrats, and hope they begin to show up to work for the American people." 

Republicans introduced their own framework for closing the digital divide with more than two dozen broadband bills, including ones speeding cable franchising decisions, zoning decisions, and making it easier to deploy infrastructure on federal lands.

“Today’s vote is a historic victory for the millions of people who are suffering through the COVID-19 crisis without access to the internet. H.R. 2 is the biggest and boldest broadband infrastructure bill that Congress has ever passed," said Joshua Stager, senior counsel for New America’s Open Technology Institute. "This legislation invests $100 billion to ensure that everyone in the United States can get online."

“The only thing that can keep us connected to our families, friends, and communities while staying safe during a pandemic is an internet connection,” said Communications Workers of America President Chris Shelton. “For working people, a reliable internet connection is not optional -- it’s an absolute necessity. Thanks to Whip Clyburn and the Rural Broadband Task Force, the Moving Forward Act includes provisions that would support providing broadband access to millions of families and would ensure that workers doing that build out are able to exercise their rights. The Senate has already stalled on the Heroes Act, which would help in the short-term in keeping working families connected during the pandemic. It’s past time for Mitch McConnell and the Senate to act on this key issue. If they don’t, we must hold them accountable--and make sure that the Moving Forward Act becomes the new baseline for expanding broadband access across the country.”

House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline (D-R.I.) and ranking member Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) have introduced a stand-alone bill that would make radio and TV stations that are part of larger broadcast groups eligible for forgivable small business loans.

There is a provision to that effect in the mammoth $3 trillion Democrat-backed HEROES Act COVID-019 aid bill, but even that acronym will not get that bill through the Republican-controlled Senate or the President, so stand-alone bills are broadcasters' best chance for some of that COVID-19 money.

A similar bill was introduced in the Senate earlier this week.

The National Association of Broadcasters has been pushing hard for the aid, no matter what the vehicle.

“NAB thanks Reps. Cicilline and Sensenbrenner for introducing bipartisan legislation that would help local media outlets weather unprecedented advertising losses," said NAB president Gordon Smith. "Today’s legislation builds on the letter these legislators led last month with bipartisan support of more than 120 of their House colleagues.

"Expanding eligibility for Payroll Protection Program loans for local radio and TV stations and newspapers would support lifeline journalism and fact-based reporting of the COVID-19 pandemic."

The House has passed the Secure 5G and Beyond Act of 2020 (S.893). 

The legislation passed on unanimous consent, which is a way to pass noncontroversial bills, but only if there are no "no" votes. 

The bill directs the President to develop a "Secure Next Generation Mobile Communications Strategy” in consultation with the heads of FCC, NTIA, and Department of Homeland Security, as well as the DNI and Secretary of Defense."   

The bill is the Senate version of an already-passed House version. 

“It is long past time that the Trump Administration prepare our networks for the 5G future – this bill will force the Administration to do exactly that and ensure federal agencies work together on a comprehensive plan to secure 5G," said House Energy and Commerce Committee chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.) and Communications and Technology Subcommittee chairman Mike Doyle (D-Pa.). "This bill is the latest in a series passed by the House that will help keep the American people safe and secure America’s wireless future. We urge the President to sign it quickly.” 

The House Energy & Commerce Committee's Communications Subcommittee will hold a legislative hearing to consider legislation geared to improve communications in times of emergency. 

The hearing, dubbed “Strengthening Communications Networks to Help Americans in Crisis,” will be held Feb. 27 at 10:30 a.m. It was announced by House E&C Chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Communications Subcommittee Mike Doyle (D-Pa.). 

Pallone on Thursday (Feb. 20) joined with committee member Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-Calif.) to introduce the RESILIENT Networks Act, which among other things would require the FCC to come up with network resiliency corrdination and cooperation best practices. 

“In times of emergency, it’s imperative that our communications networks are well equipped so Americans can call for help, contact loved ones and access critical emergency response information," said Pallone and Doyle in a joint statement. "We cannot allow our communications networks to fail when a disaster strikes. At this hearing, we will discuss several pieces of legislation that will strengthen network resiliency and bolster emergency response to ensure Americans are able to communicate in times of crisis when it matters most.” 

As expected, the House has  overwhelmingly passed the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement [CASE] Act of 2019 (410 to 6), which would create a small claims court for copyright infringement cases.  

The bill will still need to pass the Senate and be signed into law by the President before it can become the law of the land, but a staffer in the office of bill sponsor Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said that they expect it to pass the Senate and be signed by the President. They said that while the Google-backed Electronic Frontier Foundation and other computer companies oppose the legislation, they have bipartisan momentum on their side on the Hill and likely the support of Jared Kushner, senior advisor to his father-in-law, President Donald Trump, for the presidential sign-off. 

Related: ACLU Makes Case against CASE Act 

The CASE Act, which was introduced in the House last May by Jeffries, would establish the Copyright Claims Board in the U.S. Copyright Office.  

The idea is to give independent creators an easier and cheaper (than federal district court litigation) way to defend their intellectual property.   

Among the groups supporting the bill are the News Media Alliance, SAG-AFTRA, Authors Guild, RIAA, and the Copyright Alliance. Opponents, in addition to the ACLU and EFF, include fair use standard-bearer Public Knowledge, the Consumer Technology Association, whose members make the technology that allows for the distribution of intellectual property, fair use and foul, and the Computer & Communications Industry Association, whose edge provider members are often the targets of copyright infringement claims. 

“This small claims process would expose internet users to high penalties without effective due process," said CCIA COO Matt Schruers of the bill's House passage, "enabling trolls or other abusive litigants to circumvent the existing safeguards provided by the federal judicial system.” 

Bill cosponsors include Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee; Martha Roby (R-Ala.), ranking member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet; Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet; Ben Cline (R-Va.); Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.); Ted Lieu (D-Calif.); and Judy Chu (D-Calif.).  

The dueling broadband bill introductions from Democrats and Republicans this week continued Friday with more than a half-dozen offerings from both sides.

On the Democrats' side, Reps. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) and Susan Brooks (R-Ind.) introduced H.R. 4847, the Broadband Deployment Streamlining Act, which aims to speed deployment by "reforming and improving" the application process for building out broadband using public lands. President Donald Trump last week had signed two executive orders to do just that.

The Democratic bill:

 1) "Requires procedures to be established for tracking applications, monitoring the time between receipt and final decision, and reasons for denial;

 2) "Bases application fees that applicants pay to the designated federal agency on the actual costs of review and maintenance of that application;

3) "Requires that executive agencies act on siting requests with 270 days; and

 4) "Preserves agency obligations to follow applicable environmental laws."

The bill would also mandate a Government Accountability Office report on the National Broadband Map, a government effort to identify where broadband is accessible and where it isn't.

Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) and David McKinley (R-W. Va.) offered up their second broadband bill of the week, the Climb Once Act, which would, they said, ensure that no federal laws get in the way of local "climb once" policies that "allow for a list of pre-approved contractors that pole owners agree on to handle make-ready work, eliminating the need for multiple contractors to perform the work."

The pair introduced a "Dig Once" bill Jan. 17.

Not to be outdone, Republicans followed with more of their promised broadband bill blitz.

Communications Subcommittee chair Marsha Blackburn unveiled five bills Friday, the third tranche of its series of bills, dealing mostly with historic preservation and environmental reviews.

Related: Cable Ops Push for Codified Overlashing Rules

H.R. 4832, “Restoring Economic Strength and Telecommunications Operations by Releasing Expected Dollars (RESTORED) Act,”  would allow companies eligible for Universal Service Fund high-cost money to get up to a 7-month advance on the funds in disaster areas.

H.R. 4845, “Connecting Communities Post Disasters Act,” would give facilities in disaster areas a five-year exemption from environmental and historic reviews to allow them to replace/improve their facilities.

H.R. 4842, “The Streamlining Permitting to Enable Efficient Deployment of Broadband Infrastructure,” would exempt environmental and historic preservation reviews on federal property if another facility on the same property has already been granted one; would exempt other such reviews in some other circumstances.

Related: FCC Takes 'Historic' Pole Position

H.R. 4847, “Broadband Deployment Streamlining Act,” would "direct the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture to issue regulations within one year to streamline applications processes to locate or modify communications facilities on public lands."; "amend Section 6409 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act to institute a firm shot clock by which applications must be granted or denied (an application is deemed granted if the agency fails to grant or deny within the allotted time)" and "would require a GAO report evaluating accuracy and reliability of data collected for the National Broadband Map" (mirroring the Democratic bill).

H.Res. 701 would express "the sense of the House" that environmental and historic reviews for broadband buildouts "should be narrowly tailored and proportional to lands that are physically impacted by the deployment of such facilities."

It was a different kind of political theater on C-SPAN Thursday (July 7) as Democrats continued to try and get a vote on expanded background check legislation .

House Democrats were taking a new tack on their gun legislation protest, this time endlessly peppering the Speaker of the House with the same unanimous consent request to bring up HR 1217, the "bipartisan expanded background checks" legislation, which were as quickly denied.

The House remained in session, so C-SPAN got to cover it with cameras rather than the social network feeds it tapped into during the last sit-in protest, when House cameras were turned off after the House was adjourned.

Related: House Speaker Ryan Looking Into Sanctions Over House Sit-In

Each side was accusing the other of being obstructionists, the Democrats by continuing to make the request--each accompanied by the picture of a gun victim "who never received a moment of silence on the House floor"--the Republicans by refusing to bring up the bill for a vote.

The response from the speaker was always the same: "As previously announced, the unanimous consent request cannot be entertained."

At press time, the parade of UC requests had been going on for almost an hour, with no other business having been conducted except for the repetitive requests and denials, interspersed with requests to the speaker who initially controlled the time Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.), to accede to the request.

Byrne, who occasionally responded, did not directly respond, instead attempting to resume consideration of other legislation.

Related: Rep. Bera Seeks Declaration of House Camera Independence

Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) has introduced what he calls a "simple change" to House rules that would insure the next House sit-in does not have to rely on Periscope or Facebook video streams to get out.

Bera told C-SPAN in a radio interview with C-SPAN that some of his colleagues did not know that it was the Speaker of the House (in this case Paul Ryan of Wisconsin), not C-SPAN, who controlled the cameras in the House.

Bera said democracy was about transparency and that shutting off the cameras during the sit-in over gun legislation was a wakeup call. In addition to introducing a bill, he has sent a dear colleague letter to drum up support for the move.

He said that C-SPAN and other media should have the ability to cover members when they are speaking from the floor, as they did during the 24-plus hour sit in--currently the rules say the cameras shut off when the House recesses or adjourns.

C-SPAN kept covering, however, relying on social media video feeds from tech-savvy Democrats participating in the protest.

Bera said the change, a "simple rule fix," would make sure the public has full access.

C-SPAN has long sought to have its own cameras in the House chamber, but to no avail.

Bera said the public should be outraged that the cameras should be cut off. "The people deserve to see what's going on."

He told C-SPAN he figured most viewers assumed C-SPAN was part of the "public domain," adding: "We ought to give control of those cameras back over to the media and the public and have independent control."

C-SPAN is indeed a public service, but it is provided thanks to the financial support of the cable industry.

On the same day (June 30) that the National Association of Broadcasters filed a FOIA request with the FCC seeking the data the commission used to justify continued broadcast ownership regulations, the President signed a bill into law that should boost government responsiveness to such requests.

With House approval by voice vote June 13, both Houses of Congress passed the FOIA Improvement Act, requiring the government to presume openness when considering the release of information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

In addition to making openness the "default setting" for FOIA requests from journalists and the public, the bill: "places a 25-year sunset on the government’s ability to withhold certain documents that demonstrate how the government reaches decisions, which now can be withheld indefinitely from the public...requires agencies to make publicly available documents that have been requested and released three or more times under FOIA, and empowers the office of Government Information Services to better address FOIA issues through additional independence."

“From day one, my biggest priority in Congress has been to make government more open and responsive to the people it’s supposed to serve," said bill co-sponsor Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), who co-sponsored the bill ( Rep. Elijah Cummings [D-Md.] was the other principal co-sponsor). "I’m proud to finally see these bipartisan reforms, which I’ve been fighting to implement for years, become a reality.”

“This critical update to the Freedom of Information Act is a major milestone that enshrines into law the people’s right to know what their government is actually doing. It’s a significant step forward to the accountable government the people deserve.”

"The stroke of the President's pen could serve as a catalyst to the federal agencies who were slow do adopt, much less, apply open government standards," said The Sunlight Foundation. "As the United States prepares to transition into a new executive branch, it is vital that the current administration bring America's open government into the 21st century."

“Early in his tenure, President Obama boasted that his administration would be the most transparent in our nation’s history," said Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "Unfortunately, under his leadership, the government has fallen woefully short of this promise.  To make matters worse, when members of the press and other Americans try to compel the government to hand over public records, federal agencies often come up with any number of excuses not to comply.  Well, the public’s work ought to be public, and the government’s default should always be in favor of transparency unless it can demonstrate a sound reason, backed up by law, to withhold information.

“With only about 200 days left in office, the president today finally took an important step toward making good on his promise by signing the bipartisan FOIA Improvement Act. This bill, which was the first bill I moved out of the Judiciary Committee, requires the bureaucracy to adopt a presumption of openness when processing Freedom of Information Act requests,” Grassley said.

He also said he would be holding a hearing this month on "trends" in government compliance as the FOIA law turns 50.

The House Democrats are staging a sit-in to force a vote on gun legislation, which has also turned into something of a blackout.

In response to that action, Republicans in control of the House pulled the plug on the House-controlled cameras used by C-SPAN to provide its public service coverage of deliberations there.

At press time C-SPAN was airing a Periscope video, as well as at other times a Facebook feed, of the sit-in.

"C-SPAN doesn't control the House cameras," the network said in an online post, "which have been switched off. However, we are showing you a Periscope feed of Representative Scott Peters (D-Calif.) of what is currently happening inside the chamber. (http://www.c-span.org/blog/?4024)

Democrats were taking turns decrying inaction on gun control legislation in the wake of the Orlando shooting. One legislator said they can't control what is in people's hands and hearts, but they can control what is in their hands.

Democratic legislators were chanting, "no vote, no break" and "no bill, no break," saying Speaker Paul Ryan had pulled the plug on C-SPAN, but adding that pirated Web video was drawing quite a crowd anyway.

The House is technically in recess, so typically C-SPAN would be showing other programming. A C-SPAN exec pointed out that was still the case, with that "other programming" being the extraordinary programming of a Congressman's live Periscope feed of the House floor protest. He confirmed that the cameras are controlled by the House majority.

It was safe to say that that Periscope feed was a first for the cable public affairs net.

Minority leader Nancy Pelosi called on Ryan to turn the microphone on at the rostrum where the protest speeches were being made.

Rep. John Lewis, a veteran of civil rights marches and protests, was among the leaders of the protest and was shown sitting on the floor with some colleagues as part of what was being billed as a sit-down strike to stand up for gun control legislation. "I never dreamed that one day I'd have to come into Congress, I would have to sit in on the floor of the House, sit down, and occupy the well of the House," Lewis told MSNBC of the protest. "More than 50 years ago, I sat in, got arrested, and went to jail, and now I have to come to Congress and I have to sit in again?  Just trying to get someone to sit down with us, negotiate about passing aggressive legislation to deal with gun violence.  It is almost too much.”

Debbie Wasserman Schultz read a letter of support from former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who was severely injured in an assassination attempt/mass shooting. "Speaking is difficult for me, but I haven't been silenced," a teary Wasserman Schultz read.  

The key issues for the Democrats are Universal background checks before gun purchases and not being able to legally buy a gun if you are on the terrorist watch list.

"The House cannot operate without members following the rules of the institution, so the House has recessed subject to the call of the chair," tweeted AshLee Strong, press secretary to Speaker Ryan.

NBC News Producer Frank Thorp tweeted this further explanation from a senior house aide.  "Regarding the camera footage of the House floor. All members of the House voted on rules governing floor proceedings at the beginning of the Congress. Cameras are only on when the House is in session. This rule of the House is being enforced, as it has been since TV cameras were first installed in the House."

WASHINGTON — Republicans have taken back the Senate for the first time since George W. Bush was president, but not with the two-thirds majority that would allow them to block the FCC’s reimposition of network-neutrality rules.

Federal Communications Commission chairman Tom Wheeler, a Democrat, will continue to set the agency’s agenda, but there will almost certainly be more pushback from the Hill.

“The FCC is an independent agency and [Wheeler] is an aggressive guy, so he’ll do what he thinks is best,” said a top communications lawyer who asked not to be named.

The Republicans will be picking the chairmen on Senate committees overseeing communications, setting a more deregulatory agenda, scheduling hearings and able to launch investigations, issue subpoenas and otherwise make it tougher on policies and agencies they disagree with.

It was unclear whether the total Senate seat count for the GOP would be 53 or 54. That will be determined by a run-off in Louisiana, where the Republican, Bill Cassidy, is predicted to oust incumbent Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu. That will mean even more political ad money spent in the run-up to the runoff next month.

The Republicans held the House, and picked up at least a dozen seats (“GOP Ready to Lead Victory 2014” T-shirts were being hawked on the RNC Web site). Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R- Mich.), Communications Subcommittee chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and ranking Communications Subcommittee member Anna Eshoo (DCalif.), all won re-election handily. Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chair of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, is retiring.

Fresh from those convincing victories in their respective House races, Upton and Walden outlined their priorities for the new Congress, which includes beginning the rewrite of telecommunications law, though again that would need to be legislation that President Obama would not veto, assuming it passed before he exits in 2016.

Not returning is Rep. Terry Lee (R-Neb.) a prominent member of the House Communications Subcommittee. He lost to Democrat Brad Ashford. His seat was thought to be in danger before the election, but it was one of the few setbacks for the Republicans.

On the Senate side, change and lots of it is in the offing. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W. Va.) is retiring and his seat was won by Republican Shelley Moore Capito, one of the pickups that helped the GOP take the Senate. Communications Subcommittee chairman Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) was also defeated by Republican Tom Cotton, yet another of those key seat switches.

Pryor and Rockefeller had pushed for retransmission-consent reform as part of the satellite reauthorization bill, though ultimately recognizing that would hold up the must-pass measure.

Rockefeller’s retirement and Pryor’s defeat also takes two senators off the committee who were focused on content issues, such as media violence.

With Rockefeller and Pryor gone, Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) could become a more prominent figure on the Commerce Committee. He is former chair of the House Communications (formerly Telecommunications) Subcommittee, and has been among the more active legislators on communications issues, including network-neutrality regulations — he favors common-carrier regulations based on Title II of the Telecommunications Act — media consolidation and online privacy.

Open Internet rules will continue to have another strong champion in Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), though no longer from the bully pulpit of a chairmanship.

Franken won far more handily than last time around. According to the Minnesota unofficial returns, the Saturday Night Live writer-turned-politican won by about 200,000 votes. In 2008, after months-long recounts and a state Supreme Court decision, Franken won by 312 votes.

Tale of the Tape in Senate Commerce

Who’s in and out following the midterm elections:

Retired: Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W. Va.).

Lost: Communications Subcommittee chairman Mark Pryor (D-Ark.)

Undetermined: Mark Begich (D-Alaska) *

Won: Cory Booker (D-N.J.)

Won: Tim Scott (R-S.C.) **

Won: Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.)

Won: Ed Markey (D-Mass.)

Won: Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)

* Begich was behind by a little over 8,000 votes but had not conceded at press time with absentee ballots still to be counted.

** First black senator elected from the South since reconstruction.