THE LEDE: Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler is returning to Capitol Hill on Tuesday for another round of testimony.
This time, Wheeler and GOP commissioner Ajit Pai will speak at a Senate Appropriations subcommittee on the FCC’s 2016 budget request. Past FCC budget hearings have hit on a number of issues, including the commission’s plan to move some office space and questions about FCC field office closures. But the controversial net neutrality regulations could make appearance.
Wheeler has already testified a half dozen times this year, including a marathon five hearings over seven days in March related to the FCC’s new Internet rules, which are strongly opposed by Republicans.
{mosads}When asked last week if he enjoyed the marathon, he gave a laugh and said: “I think you know the answer to that.”
“They say, ‘Mr. Chairman we want you to show up,'” Wheeler told a crowd last week about the spate of hearings. “I say, ‘you are the Congress of the United States. I respect the Congress of the United States. I will show up and I’ll be happy [to do it].'”
WH TAPS FELTEN FOR DEPUTY CTO ROLE: Ed Felten, a Princeton computer science professor, was named deputy U.S. chief technology officer by the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy. His previous government service includes stints with the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. Felten will be tweeting from @Felten44 during his time at the White House.
SILICON VALLEY EXECS NAMED TO OBAMA PROGRAM: President Obama named a number of Silicon Valley executives to his initiative to help develop the next crop of the world’s entrepreneurs. The Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship was created last year and had previously recruited 17 members to help advocate and raise funds for the program. The new members include, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky; the executive chairman of Kiva, Julie Hanna; the founder of Theranos, Elizabeth Holmes; and Alison Rosenthal, the vice president of Strategic Partnerships Wealthfront, among others.
FTC PROBING CHILD APP PRIVACY: The Federal Trade Commission announced Monday it would probe the privacy terms and information collection practices of children’s mobile apps. The report is expected to be completed later this year. The FTC said it and 27 other world partners are “marshaling resources” to protect child privacy online. The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act currently gives the FTC authority to enforce privacy standards.
AT&T, OTHERS WANT CHANGES TO SPECTRUM AUCTION DISCOUNT: AT&T joined with a host of smaller telecom companies to press the FCC to reform the “designated entity” program that allowed Dish to claim billions of dollars in discounts during the AWS-3 spectrum auction earlier this year by placing bids through two smaller companies. Dish maintains its bidding complied with current rules. Since February, AT&T has called for changes ahead of next year’s broadcast incentive auction. In a letter, the companies called for a “strict cap of $10 [million] on the bidding credit available to any individual eligible applicant.” They also said winnings should only go to companies “willing to deploy [the spectrum] for the benefit of the customer.”
BACKBONE OPERATOR MAKES DEAL WITH AT&T: AT&T struck an interconnection deal Monday with internet backbone provider Level 3 to help them avoid a possible net neutrality complaint. Level 3 had said that it was still noticing congestion at interconnection points with consumer ISPs. In a joint statement, the companies said the deal “will result in improved efficiency of traffic exchange, and the additional capacity and new interconnection locations between the networks will allow customers to continue to experience high-quality performance and network reliability.” Verizon entered into a similar deal with Level 3 in April. Complaints under the net neutrality order can be filed starting on June 12.
ON TAP:
At 10 a.m., #Hack4Congress will hold a final live demo in the Rayburn House Office Building
At 10:30 a.m., FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and GOP Commissioner Ajit Pai will testify at a Senate Appropriations subcommittee.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
The House Oversight Committee asked nearly two dozen public interest groups to share their complaints about the federal government’s compliance with requests for government documents.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said in an interview that he will filibuster a reauthorization of provisions within the Patriot Act.
Seven tech groups are backing the main Patriot Act reform bill.
A House panel is getting ready to take the first votes on process reform at the Federal Communications Commission since the agency approved controversial net neutrality rules earlier this year.
In the six years they have been on the road, Google’s self-driving cars have been in 11 “minor accidents,” the company said Monday.
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