New Networks Institute     Tauzin-Dingell is Evil The Process of Getting A Bill Passed You may remember some of this from one of your high-school classes on government. This discussion is as basic as possible. In the USA there are two divisions of Congress:  The Senate, which as two senators for each state, The House of Representatives, the number of representatives from each state is determined by population. A bill can start in either part, and it is presented by a Congressmen or group of congressmen. The Bill is first sent, usually to a subcommittee, and then to a full committee, and at each step, a bill can be killed by a lack of supporters. Usually there are a number of hearings, with industry members giving their views --- or being grilled. After the Bill is "Out of Committee", it may be sent back for consideration based on a series of amendments, or it is cleared by the committees and there is a discussion and then a vote on the floor. If the bill is voted on and passed, there is usually a corresponding bill presented in the other division --- for example, if the Tauzin-Dingell passes the House vote, it will be sent to the Senate, or there will be another senate bill that is similar. If there are two bills, one in the house and one in the senate, then the Bills then sent to another committee where a final draft is presented, combining the two bills Most bills take years to go through the process. For example, the initial Tauzin-Dingell bill was first introduced in 1999. The Telecom Act of 1996 had many versions of the bill, starting in 1992, and some could argue even earlier. Power of the Ruling Party ---The House is ruled by the Republicans, who have the majority of members. and Committee Chairs are usually selected from the party in control. For example, Billy Tauzin, the Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, is a Republican. This also means that they control which bills will and will not make it out of committee and onto the floor for a vote. After the Bill is passed, it is then handed to the various regulatory commissions to do the detailed work, since most bills are somewhat vague in their presentation. In the case of the Telecom Act, it was up to the FCC and the state Public Service Commissions to put the bill into action, and there were hundreds of minor and major decisions that the FCC and states were responsible for. --- from how to set "access" fees, or implement the E-Rate. Power of the Little Guy --- The Bell companies have hundreds of lobbyists--- according to one lobbyist, the Bells have three-five full-time staffers per representative, not counting the various groups that the Bells pay or are members of, such as USTA, (United States Telecom Association) Therefore, it is important for them to hear the other side. Call your Senators and Representatives and tell them this bill is bad. Check to see if your Representative is on Commerce Committee, and contact them. The more they hear from the side of the Public, the better --- votes do count.