****Begin File*************Begin File**************Begin File**** ***************************************************************** ISSN 1069-7799 ALAWON ALA Washington Office Newsline An electronic publication of the American Library Association Washington Office Volume 4, Number 91 November 1, 1995 In this issue: (280 lines) SNOWE-ROCKEFELLER-KERREY-EXON (SRKE) AMENDMENT SCHEDULED FOR CONFERENCE COMMITTEE ACTION IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED: CONTACT CONFEREES TO SUPPORT DISCOUNTED TELECOMMUNICATION RATES FOR LIBRARIES ***************************************************************** SNOWE-ROCKEFELLER-KERREY-EXON (SRKE) AMENDMENT SCHEDULED FOR CONFERENCE COMMITTEE ACTION Discussion could begin within in the next two days on the Snowe-Rockefeller-Kerrey-Exon amendment, the provision in the Senate telecommunications bill, S. 652, which calls for a type of discounted telecommunications rates for libraries and K-12 schools. ALA has just been advised by key congressional supporters, that the House-Senate telecommunications conference committee has adjusted its agenda to begin negotiations on the universal service sections of the telecommunications bills which include the critical "SRKE" amendment within the next two or three days. Conferees may even be working throughout the weekend on the universal service issues. "SRKE" is an extremely important provision for libraries and K-12 schools because it addresses the ongoing charges for connectivity. Listed below are the conferees that will be participating in the negotiations on section 310 of S. 652, the section on universal service. Because of the timeliness of this conference debate, ALAWON has also included below a retransmission of a "Questions and Answers" on the SRKE amendment previously published in ALAWON, Vol. 4, No. 89. The Cox-Wyden amendment and related provisions on "family empowerment" or cyber-censorship may be scheduled for negotiation in about a week. ALAWON will publish an update on that provision as soon as additional information is available. IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED: Library advocates and other supporters should contact the conferees as soon as possible and request them to keep the Snowe-Rockefeller-Kerrey-Exon amendment in this new telecommunciations legislation. Local examples and situations can be used to expand and supplement the "talking points" from the "Questions and Answers." TELECOMMUNICATIONS CONFERENCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Following is a list of the telecommunications conferees. Note that some have been appointed only to certain provisions in the legislation. SENATE: Republicans: Democrats: Sen. Larry Pressler (R-SD) Sen. Ernest F. Hollings (D-SC) Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI) Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) Sen. Wendell H. Ford (D-KY) Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) Sen. James Exon (D-NE) Sen. Slade Gorton (R-WA) Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS) HOUSE: Commerce Committee: Republicans: Democrats: Rep. Thomas J. Bliley, Jr., (R-VA) Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) Rep. Jack Fields (R-TX) Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA) Rep. Michael Oxley (R-OH) Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA) Rep. Rick White (R-WA) Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) *Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) *in lieu of Boucher solely for consideration of sec. 205 of the Senate bill Additional Conferees: For consideration of sections 1-6, 101-104, 106-107, 201, 204-205, 221-225, 301-305, 307-311, 401-402, 405-406, 410, 601-606, 703, and 705 of the Senate bill and Title I of the House amendment: Rep. Dan Schaefer (R-CO), Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL), Rep. Bill Paxon (R- NY), Rep. Scott Klug (R-WI), Rep. Daniel Frisa (R-NY), Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN), Rep. Blanche Lambert Lincoln (D-ARK) As conferees from Committee on the Judiciary for consideration of the Senate bill (except for sections 1-6, 101-104, 106-107, 201, 204-205, 221-225, 301-305, 307-311, 401-402, 405-406, 410, 601-606, 703, and 705) and of the House amendment except title I: Rep. Henry Hyde (R-IL), Rep. Carlos Moorhead (R-CA), Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN), Rep. Michael Flanagan (R-IL), Rep. John Conyers, Jr., (D-MI), Rep. Patricia Schroeder (D-CO), and Rep. John Bryant (D-TX). Additional conferees for consideration of sections 1-6, 101-104, 106-107, 201, 204-205, 221-225, 301-305, 307-311, 401-402, 405-406, 410, 601-606, 703 and 705 of the Senate bill, and title I of the House amendment, and modifications: Rep. Henry Hyde (R-IL), Rep. Carlos Moorhead (R-CA), Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN), Rep. Michael Flanagan, (R-IL), Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-CA), Rep. Bob Barr (R-GA), Rep. Martin Hoke, (R-OH), Rep. John Conyers, Jr., (D-MI), Rep. Patricia Schroeder (D-CO), Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA), Rep. John Bryant (D-TX), Rep. Robert Scott (D-VA), and Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX). ***************************************************************** QUESTION AND ANSWER ON SNOWE-ROCKEFELLER-KERREY-EXON LET LIBRARIES CONNECT AMERICA Buried in a long and complex telecommunications bill is a crucial provision to ensure that libraries, schools, and rural health-care providers have affordable telecommunications rates. WHAT'S THE VEHICLE? Congress has passed a major rewrite of the nation's telecommunications law. The Senate version (S. 652) and the House version (H.R. 1555) are headed for a House-Senate conference. The bills remove many regulatory requirements and provide incentives for major industries to speed up development of the information superhighway. WHO BENEFITS? The telecommunications industry stands to gain the most. The public would presumably benefit indirectly. Yet very little in the bills would guarantee that the public interest is served. The information superhighway promises a wealth of information, but it could leave those who can't afford it, don't know what it can do for them, or need help to navigate it at the curbside. WHAT'S AT STAKE? One small provision in the Senate version of this complex measure would require that certain key public institutions--libraries, schools, rural health-care providers--receive telecommunications services at discounted, affordable rates. This provision is an amendment agreed to by a resounding Senate vote of 98 to 1 in June, 1995. The amendment was originated by Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME), John D. Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Bob Kerrey (D-NE), and J. James Exon (D-NE). The House bill has no comparable provision. WHAT DOES THE AMENDMENT DO? Libraries--and elementary and secondary schools--would receive telecommunications services at rates less than those charged for similar services to other parties. The amount of the discount for libraries and schools would be determined by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the states, as necessary and appropriate to ensure affordable access to and use of telecommunications. Rural health-care providers would receive services at rates comparable to their urban counterparts. The amendment would also require the FCC to establish rules to make advanced telecommunications services more available to libraries, schools, and health-care providers. WOULD THE LIBRARY/SCHOOL RATES IMPOSE REQUIREMENTS ON ANY INDUSTRY? The library/school amendment would apply to all telecommunications carriers serving a geographic area, upon the request of a qualifying library or school. Schools are defined as elementary and secondary schools under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Libraries are those eligible for participation in state-based plans for interlibrary cooperation under the federal Library Services and Construction Act. WOULD THE LIBRARY/SCHOOL RATES RAISE OTHER CUSTOMERS' RATES? The library/school amendment should not affect other rates. Telecommunications carriers would be entitled to have the amount of the discount provided to libraries and schools treated as a universal service obligation. WHO DETERMINES WHAT SERVICES SHOULD BE "UNIVERSAL"? Since 1934, in the public interest, common carriers have been required to contribute toward the availability of phone service for all Americans. The new definition of universal service will evolve as technology evolves, as determined by the FCC and a joint federal/state board. The amendment provides that the FCC may, in the public interest, provide a separate definition of universal service to apply to libraries, schools, and health-care providers. WHY SHOULD LIBRARIES AND SCHOOLS BE CONSIDERED PART OF UNIVERSAL SERVICE? Education, information, and health-care are the life blood of democracy. America's economic well-being depends on workers who are technologically competent. Our democracy depends on citizens who are well-informed. Through libraries and schools, pre-schoolers through great-grandparents have access to lifelong learning, and to what they need to know to make wise decisions in their personal, work, and public lives. Increasingly, learning and knowing require use of advanced technologies. Libraries and schools provide the access points, the training, and the point-of-use help. WHY DO LIBRARIES AND SCHOOLS NEED SPECIAL ATTENTION? A recent U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science study found that 21 percent of public libraries have Internet connections, but only 13 percent of libraries serving rural and/or small communities are on-line. A 1995 National Center for Education Statistics report found that only 3 percent of public school classrooms were connected to the Internet or information services for instructional purposes. The major barrier is lack of funding. What's more, rural libraries and schools are often in isolated regions without local "nodes" for electronic data connections. Each time a connection is made becomes the equivalent of a long distance call, making rural connectivity prohibitively expensive in some areas. IS THE AMENDMENT A GOOD DEAL FOR THE PUBLIC? Yes. Libraries and schools have always been our on ramp to society's information resources--teaching us the skills we need to use them, showing us new possibilities for getting and using information, and serving as friendly guides through mountains of irrelevant data to find just the information we need. It makes great sense to help these institutions get an early start on the information superhighway. IS THE AMENDMENT A GOOD DEAL FOR INDUSTRY? If the telecommunications companies are going to earn a return from their investments in building the infrastructure, they are going to have to convince us that there are resources worth paying for out in cyberspace. What's more, we are all going to have to learn the new skills to get at those resources. Libraries and schools are the learning fields of the information society. WHAT SHOULD BE DONE? The House and Senate should agree to include discounted affordable rates for libraries and schools in the final telecommunications legislation that goes to the President's desk. It will help assure that the benefits from the information superhighway are available to us all, regardless of background, income or hometown. ***************************************************************** ***************************************************************** ALAWON (ISSN 1069-7799) is an irregular publication of the American Library Association Washington Office, 1301 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20004. Internet: alawash@alawash.org; Phone: 202-628-8410; Fax: 202-628-8419. Contributing to this issue: Carol C. Henderson; Editor: Lynne E. Bradley (leb@alawash.org). ALAWON is available free of charge and is available only in electronic form. To subscribe, send the message "subscribe ala-wo [your name]" to listserv@uicvm (Bitnet) or listserv@uicvm.uic.edu (Internet). Back issues and other documents are available from the listserv the list server. To find out what's available, send the message "send ala-wo filelist" to the listserv. 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