109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5252

AN ACT

To promote the deployment of broadband networks and 

services.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhance4 ment Act of 2006’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—NATIONAL CABLE FRANCHISING 

Sec. 101. National cable franchising. 

Sec. 102. Definitions. 

Sec. 103. Monitoring and reporting. 

Sec. 104. Rule of construction. 

TITLE II—ENFORCEMENT OF BROADBAND POLICY STATEMENT 

Sec. 201. Enforcement of broadband policy statement. 

TITLE III—VOIP/911

Sec. 301. Emergency services; interconnection. 

Sec. 302. Compensation and contribution. 

TITLE IV—MUNICIPAL PROVISION OF SERVICES 

Sec. 401. Government authority to provide services. 

TITLE V—BROADBAND SERVICE 

Sec. 501. Stand-alone broadband service. 

Sec. 502. Study of interference potential of broadband over power line systems. 

TITLE VI—SEAMLESS MOBILITY 

Sec. 601. Development of seamless mobility.

6 TITLE I—NATIONAL CABLE 

7 FRANCHISING 

8 SEC. 101. NATIONAL CABLE FRANCHISING. 

9 (a) AMENDMENT.—Part III of title VI of the Com10 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 541 et seq.) is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following new section: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 630. NATIONAL CABLE FRANCHISING. 

13 ‘‘(a) NATIONAL FRANCHISES.—
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1 ‘‘(1) ELECTION.—A person or group that is eli2 gible under subsection (d) may elect to obtain a na3 tional franchise under this section as authority to 

4 provide cable service in a franchise area in lieu of 

5 any other authority under Federal, State, or local 

6 law to provide cable service in such franchise area. 

7 A person or group may not provide cable service 

8 under the authority of this section in a franchise 

9 area unless such person or group has a franchise 

10 under this section that is effective with respect to 

11 such franchise area. A franchising authority may not 

12 require any person or group that has a national 

13 franchise under this section in effect with respect to 

14 a franchise area to obtain a franchise under section 

15 621 or any other law to provide cable service in such 

16 franchise area. 

17 ‘‘(2) CERTIFICATION.—To obtain a national 

18 franchise under this section as authority to provide 

19 cable service in a franchise area, a person or group 

20 shall—

21 ‘‘(A) file with the Commission a certifi22 cation for a national franchise containing the 

23 information required by paragraph (3) with re24 spect to such franchise area, if such person or 
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1 group has not previously obtained a national 

2 franchise; or 

3 ‘‘(B) file with the Commission a subse4 quent certification for additional franchise areas 

5 containing the information required by para6 graph (3) with respect to such additional fran7 chise areas, if such person or group has pre8 viously obtained a national franchise. 

9 ‘‘(3) CONTENTS OF CERTIFICATION.—Such cer10 tification shall be in such form as the Commission 

11 shall require by regulation and shall contain—

12 ‘‘(A) the name under which such person or 

13 group is offering or intends to offer cable serv14 ice; 

15 ‘‘(B) the names and business addresses of 

16 the directors and principal executive officers, or 

17 the persons performing similar functions, of 

18 such person or group; 

19 ‘‘(C) the location of such person or group’s 

20 principal business office; 

21 ‘‘(D) the name, business address, elec22 tronic mail address, and telephone and fax 

23 number of such person or group’s local agent; 

24 ‘‘(E) a declaration by such person or group 

25 that such person or group is eligible under sub-
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1 section (d) to obtain a national franchise under 

2 this section; 

3 ‘‘(F) an identification of each franchise 

4 area in which such person or group seeks au5 thority to offer cable service pursuant to such 

6 certification, which franchise area shall be—

7 ‘‘(i) the entirety of a franchise area in 

8 which a cable operator is, on the date of 

9 the filing of such certification, authorized 

10 to provide cable service under section 621 

11 or any other law (including this section); 

12 or 

13 ‘‘(ii) a geographic area that covers the 

14 entirety of the jurisdiction of a unit of gen15 eral local government, except that—

16 ‘‘(I) if the geographic area over17 laps with a franchise area in which a 

18 cable operator is, on such date, au19 thorized to provide cable service under 

20 section 621 or any other law, the geo21 graphic area identified in the certifi22 cation under this clause as a franchise 

23 area shall not include the overlapping 

24 area; and 
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1 ‘‘(II) if such geographic area in2 cludes areas that are, respectively, 

3 within the jurisdiction of different 

4 franchising authorities, the certifi5 cation shall specify each such area as 

6 a separate franchise area; 

7 ‘‘(G) a declaration that such person or 

8 group transmitted, or will transmit on the day 

9 of filing such declaration, a copy of such certifi10 cation to the franchising authority for each 

11 franchise area for which such person or group 

12 is filing a certification for authority to offer 

13 cable service under this section; 

14 ‘‘(H) a declaration by the person or group 

15 that the person or group will comply with the 

16 rights-of-way requirements of the franchising 

17 authority in accordance with subsection (f); and 

18 ‘‘(I) a declaration by the person or group 

19 that—

20 ‘‘(i) the person or group will comply 

21 with all Commission consumer protection 

22 and customer service rules under section 

23 632(b) (including the rules adopted under 

24 section 632(b) pursuant to subsection (g) 

25 of this section); and 
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1 ‘‘(ii) the person or group agrees that 

2 such standards may be enforced by the 

3 Commission or by the franchising author4 ity in accordance with subsection (g) of 

5 this section. 

6 ‘‘(4) LOCAL NOTIFICATION; PRESERVATION OF

7 OPPORTUNITY TO NEGOTIATE.—

8 ‘‘(A) COPY TO FRANCHISING AUTHOR9 ITY.—On the day of filing any certification 

10 under paragraph (2)(A) or (B) for a franchise 

11 area, the person or group shall transmit a copy 

12 of such certification to the franchising authority 

13 for such area. 

14 ‘‘(B) NEGOTIATED FRANCHISE AGREE15 MENTS PERMITTED.—Nothing in this section 

16 shall prevent a person or group from negoti17 ating a franchise agreement or any other au18 thority to provide cable service in a franchise 

19 area under section 621 or any other law. Upon 

20 entry into any such negotiated franchise agree21 ment, such negotiated franchise agreement shall 

22 apply in lieu of any national franchise held by 

23 that person or group under this section for such 

24 franchise area. 
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1 ‘‘(5) UPDATING OF CERTIFICATIONS.—A person 

2 or group with a certification under this section shall 

3 update any information contained in such certifi4 cation that is no longer accurate and correct. 

5 ‘‘(6) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF CERTIFI6 CATIONS.—The Commission shall provide for the 

7 public availability on the Commission’s Internet 

8 website or other electronic facility of all current cer9 tifications filed under this section. 

10 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVENESS; DURATION.—

11 ‘‘(1) EFFECTIVENESS.—A national franchise 

12 under this section shall be effective with respect to 

13 any franchise area 30 days after the date of the fil14 ing of a completed certification under subsection 

15 (a)(2)(A) or (B) that applies to such franchise area. 

16 ‘‘(2) DURATION.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A franchise under this 

18 section that applies to a franchise area shall be 

19 effective for that franchise area for a term of 

20 10 years. 

21 ‘‘(B) RENEWAL.—A franchise under this 

22 section for a franchise area shall be renewed 

23 automatically upon expiration of the 10-year 

24 period described in subparagraph (A). 
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1 ‘‘(C) PUBLIC HEARING.—At the request of 

2 a franchising authority in a franchise area, a 

3 cable operator authorized under this section to 

4 provide cable service in such franchise area 

5 shall, within the last year of the 10-year period 

6 applicable under subparagraph (A) to the cable 

7 operator’s franchise for such franchise area, 

8 participate in a public hearing on the cable op9 erator’s performance in the franchise area, in10 cluding the cable operator’s compliance with the 

11 requirements of this title. The hearing shall af12 ford the public the opportunity to participate 

13 for the purpose of identifying cable-related com14 munity needs and interests and assessing the 

15 operator’s performance. The cable operator 

16 shall provide notice to its subscribers of the 

17 hearing at least 30 days prior to the hearing. 

18 The Commission shall by rule specify the meth19 ods by which a franchising authority shall no20 tify a cable operator of the hearing for which its 

21 participation is required under this subpara22 graph. 

23 ‘‘(D) REVOCATION.—A franchise under 

24 this section for a franchise area may be revoked 

25 by the Commission—
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1 ‘‘(i) for willful or repeated violation of 

2 any Federal or State law, or any Commis3 sion regulation, relating to the provision of 

4 cable service in such franchise area; 

5 ‘‘(ii) for false statements or material 

6 omissions knowingly made in any filing 

7 with the Commission relating to the provi8 sion of cable service in such franchise area; 

9 ‘‘(iii) for willful or repeated violation 

10 of the rights-of-way management laws or 

11 regulations of any franchising authority in 

12 such franchise area relating to the provi13 sion of cable service in such franchise area; 

14 or 

15 ‘‘(iv) for willful or repeated violation 

16 of the antidiscrimination requirement of 

17 subsection (h) with respect to such fran18 chise area. 

19 ‘‘(E) NOTICE.—The Commission shall 

20 send a notice of such revocation to each fran21 chising authority with jurisdiction over the 

22 franchise areas for which the cable operator’s 

23 franchise was revoked. 

24 ‘‘(F) REINSTATEMENT.—After a revoca25 tion under subparagraph (D) of a franchise for 
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1 a franchise area of any person or group , the 

2 Commission may refuse to accept for filing a 

3 new certification for authority of such person or 

4 group to provide cable service under this section 

5 in such franchise area until the Commission de6 termines that the basis of such revocation has 

7 been remedied. 

8 ‘‘(G) RETURN TO LOCAL FRANCHISING IF

9 CABLE COMPETITION CEASES.—

10 ‘‘(i) If only one cable operator is pro11 viding cable service in a franchise area, 

12 and that cable operator obtained a national 

13 franchise for such franchise area under 

14 subsection (d)(2), the franchising authority 

15 for such franchise area may file a petition 

16 with the Commission requesting that the 

17 Commission terminate such national fran18 chise for such franchise area. 

19 ‘‘(ii) The Commission shall provide 

20 public notice and opportunity to comment 

21 on such petition. If it finds that the re22 quirements of clause (i) are satisfied, the 

23 Commission shall issue an order granting 

24 such petition. Such order shall take effect 

25 one year from the date of such grant, if no 
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1 other cable operator offers cable service in 

2 such area during that one year. If another 

3 cable operator does offer cable service in 

4 such franchise area during that one year, 

5 the Commission shall rescind such order 

6 and dismiss such petition. 

7 ‘‘(iii) A cable operator whose national 

8 franchise is terminated for such franchise 

9 area under this subparagraph may obtain 

10 new authority to provide cable service in 

11 such franchise area under this section, sec12 tion 621, or any other law, if and when eli13 gible. 

14 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS OF NATIONAL FRANCHISE.—A 

15 national franchise shall contain the following require16 ments: 

17 ‘‘(1) FRANCHISE FEE.—A cable operator au18 thorized under this section to provide cable service 

19 in a franchise area shall pay to the franchising au20 thority in such franchise area a franchise fee of up 

21 to 5 percent (as determined by the franchising au22 thority) of such cable operator’s gross revenues from 

23 the provision of cable service under this section in 

24 such franchise area. Such payment shall be assessed 

25 and collected in a manner consistent with section 
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1 622 and the definitions of gross revenues and fran2 chise fee in this section. 

3 ‘‘(2) PEG/I-NET REQUIREMENTS.—A cable op4 erator authorized under this section to provide cable 

5 service in a franchise area shall comply with the re6 quirements of subsection (e). 

7 ‘‘(3) RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—A cable operator au8 thorized under this section to provide cable service 

9 in a franchise area shall comply with the rights-of10 way requirements of the franchising authority under 

11 subsection (f). 

12 ‘‘(4) CONSUMER PROTECTION AND CUSTOMER

13 SERVICE STANDARDS.—A cable operator authorized 

14 under this section to provide cable service in a fran15 chise area shall comply with the consumer protection 

16 and customer service standards established by the 

17 Commission under section 632(b). 

18 ‘‘(5) CHILD PORNOGRAPHY.—A cable operator 

19 authorized under this section to provide cable service 

20 in a franchise area shall comply with the regulations 

21 on child pornography promulgated pursuant to sub22 section (i). 

23 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY FOR NATIONAL FRANCHISES.—

24 The following persons or groups are eligible to obtain a 

25 national franchise under this section: 
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1 ‘‘(1) COMMENCEMENT OF SERVICE AFTER EN2 ACTMENT.—A person or group that is not providing 

3 cable service in a franchise area on the date of en4 actment of this section under section 621 or any 

5 other law may obtain a national franchise under this 

6 section to provide cable service in such franchise 

7 area. 

8 ‘‘(2) EXISTING PROVIDERS OF CABLE SERV9 ICE.—A person or group that is providing cable 

10 service in a franchise area on the date of enactment 

11 of this section under section 621 or any other law 

12 may obtain a franchise under this section to provide 

13 cable service in such franchise area if, on the date 

14 that the national franchise becomes effective, an15 other person or group is providing cable service 

16 under this section, section 621, or any other law in 

17 such franchise area. 

18 ‘‘(e) PUBLIC, EDUCATIONAL, AND GOVERNMENTAL

19 USE.—

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (3), a 

21 cable operator with a national franchise for a fran22 chise area under this section shall provide channel 

23 capacity for public, educational, and governmental 

24 use that is not less than the channel capacity re25 quired of the cable operator with the most sub-
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1 scribers in such franchise area on the effective date 

2 of such national franchise. If there is no other cable 

3 operator in such franchise area on the effective date 

4 of such national franchise, or there is no other cable 

5 operator in such franchise area on such date that is 

6 required to provide channel capacity for public, edu7 cational, and governmental use, the cable operator 

8 shall provide the amount of channel capacity for 

9 such use as determined by Commission rule. 

10 ‘‘(2) PEG AND I–NET FINANCIAL SUPPORT.—A 

11 cable operator with a national franchise under this 

12 section for a franchise area shall pay an amount 

13 equal to 1 percent of the cable operator’s gross reve14 nues (as such term is defined in this section) in the 

15 franchise area to the franchising authority for the 

16 support of public, educational, and governmental use 

17 and institutional networks (as such term is defined 

18 in section 611(f)). Such payment shall be assessed 

19 and collected in a manner consistent with section 

20 622, including the authority of the cable operator to 

21 designate that portion of a subscriber’s bill attrib22 utable to such payment. A cable operator that pro23 vided cable service in a franchise area on the date 

24 of enactment of this section and that obtains a na25 tional franchise under this section shall continue to 
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1 provide any institutional network that it was re2 quired to provide on the day before its national fran3 chise became effective in such franchise area under 

4 section 621 or any other law. Notwithstanding sec5 tion 621(b)(3)(D), a franchising authority may not 

6 require a cable operator franchised under this sec7 tion to construct a new institutional network. 

8 ‘‘(3) ADJUSTMENT.—Every 10 years after the 

9 commencement of a franchise under this section for 

10 a franchise area, a franchising authority may require 

11 a cable operator authorized under such franchise to 

12 increase the channel capacity designated for public, 

13 educational, or governmental use, and the channel 

14 capacity designated for such use on any institutional 

15 networks required under paragraph (2). Such in16 crease shall not exceed the higher of—

17 ‘‘(A) one channel; or 

18 ‘‘(B) 10 percent of the public, educational, 

19 or governmental channel capacity required of 

20 that operator prior to the increase. 

21 ‘‘(4) TRANSMISSION AND PRODUCTION OF PRO22 GRAMMING.—

23 ‘‘(A) A cable operator franchised under 

24 this section shall ensure that any public, edu25 cational, or governmental programming carried 
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1 by the cable operator under this section within 

2 a franchise area is available to all of its sub3 scribers in such franchise area. 

4 ‘‘(B) The production of any programming 

5 provided under this subsection shall be the re6 sponsibility of the franchising authority. 

7 ‘‘(C) A cable operator franchised under 

8 this section shall be responsible for the trans9 mission from the signal origination point (or 

10 points) of the programming, or from the point 

11 of interconnection with another cable operator 

12 under subparagraph (D), to the cable operator’s 

13 subscribers, of any public, educational, or gov14 ernmental programming produced by or for the 

15 franchising authority and carried by the cable 

16 operator pursuant to this section. 

17 ‘‘(D) Unless two cable operators otherwise 

18 agree to the terms for interconnection and cost 

19 sharing, such cable operators shall, if at least 

20 one of the operators is providing cable service 

21 in the franchise area pursuant to a franchise 

22 under this section, comply with regulations pre23 scribed by the Commission providing for—

24 ‘‘(i) the interconnection between two 

25 cable operators in a franchise area for 
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1 transmission of public, educational, or gov2 ernmental programming, without material 

3 deterioration in signal quality or 

4 functionality; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) the reasonable allocation of the 

6 costs of such interconnection between such 

7 cable operators. 

8 ‘‘(E) A cable operator shall display the 

9 program information for public, educational, or 

10 governmental programming carried under this 

11 subsection in any print or electronic program 

12 guide in the same manner in which it displays 

13 program information for other video program14 ming in the franchise area. The cable operator 

15 shall not omit such public, educational, or gov16 ernmental programming from any navigational 

17 device, guide, or menu containing other video 

18 programming that is available to subscribers in 

19 the franchise area. 

20 ‘‘(f) RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—

21 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY TO USE.—Any franchise under 

22 this section for a franchise area shall be construed 

23 to authorize the construction of a cable system over 

24 public rights-of-way, and through easements, which 

25 is within the area to be served by the cable system 
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1 and which have been dedicated for compatible uses, 

2 except that in using such easements the cable oper3 ator shall ensure that—

4 ‘‘(A) the safety, functioning, and appear5 ance of the property and the convenience and 

6 the safety of other persons not be adversely af7 fected by the installation or construction of fa8 cilities necessary for a cable system; 

9 ‘‘(B) the cost of the installation, construc10 tion, operation, or removal of such facilities be 

11 borne by the cable operator or subscriber, or a 

12 combination of both; and 

13 ‘‘(C) the owner of the property be justly 

14 compensated by the cable operator for any dam15 ages caused by the installation, construction, 

16 operation, or removal of such facilities by the 

17 cable operator. 

18 ‘‘(2) MANAGEMENT OF PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF19 WAY.—Nothing in this section affects the authority 

20 of a State or local government (including a fran21 chising authority) over a person or group in their ca22 pacity as a cable operator with a franchise under 

23 this section to manage, on a reasonable, competi24 tively neutral, and non-discriminatory basis, the pub25 lic rights-of-way, and easements that have been dedi-
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1 cated for compatible uses. A State or local govern2 ment (including a franchising authority) may, on a 

3 reasonable, competitively neutral, and non-discrimi4 natory basis—

5 ‘‘(A) impose charges for such management; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(B) require compliance with such man8 agement, such charges, and paragraphs (1)(A), 

9 (B), and (C). 

10 ‘‘(g) CONSUMER PROTECTION AND CUSTOMER SERV11 ICE.—

12 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL STANDARDS.—Notwithstanding 

13 section 632(d), no State or local law (including any 

14 regulation) shall impose on a cable operator fran15 chised under this section any consumer protection or 

16 customer service requirements other than consumer 

17 protection or customer service requirements of gen18 eral applicability. 

19 ‘‘(2) PROCEEDING.—Within 120 days after the 

20 date of enactment of this section, the Commission 

21 shall issue a report and order that updates for cable 

22 operators franchised under this section the national 

23 consumer protection and customer service rules 

24 under section 632(b), taking into consideration the 

25 national nature of a franchise under this section and 
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1 the role of State and local governments in enforcing, 

2 but not creating, consumer protection and customer 

3 service standards for cable operators franchised 

4 under this section. 

5 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS OF NEW RULES.—

6 ‘‘(A) Such rules shall, in addition to the 

7 requirements of section 632(b), address, with 

8 specificity, no less than the following consumer 

9 protection and customer service issues: 

10 ‘‘(i) Billing, billing disputes, and dis11 continuation of service, including when and 

12 how any late fees may be assessed (but not 

13 the amount of such fees). 

14 ‘‘(ii) Loss of service or service quality. 

15 ‘‘(iii) Changes in channel lineups or 

16 other cable services and features. 

17 ‘‘(iv) Availability of parental control 

18 options. 

19 ‘‘(B) The Commission’s revised consumer 

20 protection rules shall provide for forfeiture pen21 alties, or customer rebates, refunds or credits, 

22 or both, and shall establish forfeiture, rebate, 

23 refund, and credit guidelines with respect to 

24 violations of such rules. Such guidelines shall—
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1 ‘‘(i) provide for increased forfeiture 

2 penalties for repeated violations of the 

3 standards in such rules; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) establish procedures by which 

5 any forfeiture penalty assessed by the 

6 Commission under this subsection shall be 

7 paid by the cable operator directly to the 

8 franchising authority affected by the viola9 tion. 

10 ‘‘(4) COMPLAINTS.—

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person may file a 

12 complaint with respect to an alleged violation of 

13 the Commission’s revised consumer protection 

14 rules in a franchise area by a cable operator 

15 franchised under this section—

16 ‘‘(i) with the franchising authority in 

17 such area; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) with the Commission. 

19 ‘‘(B) LOCAL FRANCHISING AUTHORITY

20 PROCEDURE.—On its own motion or at the re21 quest of any person, a franchising authority for 

22 a franchise area may—

23 ‘‘(i) initiate its own complaint pro24 ceeding with respect to such an alleged vio25 lation; or 
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1 ‘‘(ii) file a complaint with the Com2 mission regarding such an alleged viola3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(C) TIMING.—The Commission or the 

5 franchising authority conducting a proceeding 

6 under this paragraph shall render a decision on 

7 any complaint filed under this paragraph within 

8 90 days of its filing. 

9 ‘‘(5) LOCAL FRANCHISING ORDERS.—

10 ‘‘(A) REQUIRING COMPLIANCE.—In a pro11 ceeding commenced by a franchising authority, 

12 a franchising authority may issue an order re13 quiring compliance with the Commission’s re14 vised consumer protection rules, but a fran15 chising authority may not create any new 

16 standard or regulation, or expand upon or mod17 ify the Commission’s revised consumer protec18 tion rules. 

19 ‘‘(B) ACCESS TO RECORDS.—In such a 

20 proceeding, the franchising authority may issue 

21 an order requiring the filing of any data, docu22 ments, or records (including any contract, 

23 agreement, or arrangement between the sub24 scriber and the cable operator) that are directly 

25 related to the alleged violation. 
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1 ‘‘(C) COST OF FRANCHISING AUTHORITY

2 ORDERS.—A franchising authority may charge 

3 a cable operator franchised under this section a 

4 nominal fee to cover the costs of issuing orders 

5 under this paragraph. 

6 ‘‘(6) COMMISSION REMEDIES; APPEALS.—

7 ‘‘(A) REMEDIES.—An order of a fran8 chising authority under this subsection shall be 

9 enforced by the Commission under this Act if—

10 ‘‘(i) the order is not appealed to the 

11 Commission; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the Commission does not agree 

13 to grant review during the 30-day period 

14 described in subparagraph (B); or 

15 ‘‘(iii) the order is sustained on appeal 

16 by the Commission. 

17 ‘‘(B) APPEALS.—Any party may file a no18 tice of appeal of an order of a franchising au19 thority under this subsection with the Commis20 sion, and shall transmit a copy of such notice 

21 to the other parties to the franchising authority 

22 proceeding. Such appeal shall be deemed denied 

23 at the end of the 30-day period beginning on 

24 the date of the filing unless the Commission 
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1 agrees within such period to grant review of the 

2 appeal. 

3 ‘‘(C) TIMING.—After the filing of a notice 

4 of appeal under subparagraph (B), if such no5 tice is not denied by operation of such subpara6 graph, the Commission shall render a decision 

7 within 90 days of such filing. 

8 ‘‘(7) ANNUAL REPORT.—

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

10 after the date of enactment of this section, and 

11 annually thereafter, the Commission shall sub12 mit a report to the Committee on Energy and 

13 Commerce of the House of Representatives and 

14 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

15 Transportation of the Senate on the implemen16 tation of this subsection, including the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(i) The number of complaints filed 

19 with franchising authorities under clause 

20 (4)(A)(i). 

21 ‘‘(ii) Any trends concerning com22 plaints, such as increases in the number of 

23 particular types of complaints or in new 

24 types of complaints. 
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1 ‘‘(iii) The timeliness of the response 

2 of such franchising authorities and the re3 sults of the complaints filed with such 

4 franchising authorities, if not appealed to 

5 the Commission. 

6 ‘‘(iv) The number of complaints filed 

7 with the Commission under clause 

8 (4)(A)(ii). 

9 ‘‘(v) The number of appeals filed with 

10 the Commission under paragraph (6)(B) 

11 and the number of such appeals which the 

12 Commission agreed to hear. 

13 ‘‘(vi) The timeliness of the Commis14 sion’s responses to such complaints and 

15 appeals. 

16 ‘‘(vii) The results of such complaints 

17 and appeals filed with the Commission. 

18 ‘‘(B) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION BY

19 FRANCHISING AUTHORITIES.—The Commission 

20 may request franchising authorities to submit 

21 information about the complaints filed with the 

22 franchising authorities under subparagraph 

23 (4)(A)(i), including the number of such com24 plaints and the timeliness of the response and 

25 the results of such complaints. 
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1 ‘‘(8) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub2 section, the term ‘Commission’s revised consumer 

3 protection rules’ means the national consumer pro4 tection and customer service rules under section 

5 632(b) as revised by the Commission pursuant to 

6 paragraph (2) of this subsection. 

7 ‘‘(h) ANTIDISCRIMINATION.—

8 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—A cable operator with a 

9 national franchise under this section to provide cable 

10 service in a franchise area shall not deny access to 

11 its cable service to any group of potential residential 

12 cable service subscribers in such franchise area be13 cause of the income of that group. 

14 ‘‘(2) ENFORCEMENT.—

15 ‘‘(A) COMPLAINT.—If a franchising au16 thority in a franchise area has reasonable cause 

17 to believe that a cable operator is in violation 

18 of this subsection with respect to such franchise 

19 area, the franchising authority may, after com20 plying with subparagraph (B), file a complaint 

21 with the Commission alleging such violation. 

22 ‘‘(B) NOTICE BY FRANCHISING AUTHOR23 ITY.—Before filing a complaint with the Com24 mission under subparagraph (A), a franchising 

25 authority—
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1 ‘‘(i) shall give notice of each alleged 

2 violation to the cable operator; 

3 ‘‘(ii) shall provide a period of not less 

4 than 30 days for the cable operator to re5 spond to such allegations; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) during such period, may require 

7 the cable operator to submit a written re8 sponse stating the reasons why the oper9 ator has not violated this subsection. 

10 ‘‘(C) BIANNUAL REPORT.—A cable oper11 ator with a national franchise under this section 

12 for a franchise area, not later than 180 days 

13 after the effective date of such national fran14 chise, and biannually thereafter, shall submit a 

15 report to the Commission and the franchising 

16 authority in the franchise area—

17 ‘‘(i) identifying the geographic areas 

18 in the franchise area where the cable oper19 ator offers cable service; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) describing the cable operator’s 

21 progress in extending cable service to other 

22 areas in the franchise area. 

23 ‘‘(D) NOTICE BY COMMISSION.—Upon re24 ceipt of a complaint under this paragraph alleg25 ing a violation of this subsection by a cable op-
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1 erator, the Commission shall give notice of the 

2 complaint to the cable operator. 

3 ‘‘(E) INVESTIGATION.—In investigating a 

4 complaint under this paragraph, the Commis5 sion may require a cable operator to disclose to 

6 the Commission such information and docu7 ments as the Commission deems necessary to 

8 determine whether the cable operator is in com9 pliance with this subsection. The Commission 

10 shall maintain the confidentiality of any infor11 mation or document collected under this sub12 paragraph. 

13 ‘‘(F) DEADLINE FOR RESOLUTION OF

14 COMPLAINTS.—Not more than 60 days after 

15 the Commission receives a complaint under this 

16 paragraph, the Commission shall issue a deter17 mination with respect to each violation alleged 

18 in the complaint. 

19 ‘‘(G) DETERMINATION.—If the Commis20 sion determines (in response to a complaint 

21 under this paragraph or on its own initiative) 

22 that a cable operator with a franchise under 

23 this section to provide cable service in a fran24 chise area has denied access to its cable service 

25 to a group of potential residential cable service 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 subscribers in such franchise area because of 

2 the income of that group, the Commission shall 

3 ensure that the cable operator extends access to 

4 that group within a reasonable period of time. 

5 ‘‘(H) REMEDIES.—

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—This subsection 

7 shall be enforced by the Commission under 

8 titles IV and V. 

9 ‘‘(ii) MAXIMUM FORFEITURE PEN10 ALTY.—For purposes of section 503, the 

11 maximum forfeiture penalty applicable to a 

12 violation of this subsection shall be 

13 $750,000 for each day of the violation. 

14 ‘‘(iii) PAYMENT OF PENALTIES TO

15 FRANCHISING AUTHORITY.—The Commis16 sion shall order any cable operator subject 

17 to a forfeiture penalty under this sub18 section to pay the penalty directly to the 

19 franchising authority involved. 

20 ‘‘(i) CHILD PORNOGRAPHY.—Not later than 180 

21 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Com22 mission shall promulgate regulations to require a cable op23 erator with a national franchise under this section to pre24 vent the distribution of child pornography (as such term 

25 is defined in section 254(h)(7)(F)) over its network. 
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1 ‘‘(j) LEASED ACCESS.—The provisions of section 

2 612(i) regarding the carriage of programming from a 

3 qualified minority programming source or from any quali4 fied educational programming source shall apply to a cable 

5 operator franchised under this section to provide cable 

6 service in a franchise area. 

7 ‘‘(k) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER PROVISIONS.—The 

8 provisions of this title that apply to a cable operator shall 

9 apply in a franchise area to a person or group with a na10 tional franchise under this section to provide cable service 

11 in such franchise area, except that the following sections 

12 shall not apply in a franchise area to a person or group 

13 franchised under this section in such franchise area, or 

14 confer any authority to regulate or impose obligations on 

15 such person or group in such franchise area: Sections 

16 611(a), 611(b), 611(c), 613(a), 617, 621 (other than sub17 sections (b)(3)(A), (b)(3)(B), (b)(3)(C), and (c)), 624(b), 

18 624(c), 624(h), 625, 626, 627, and 632(a). 

19 ‘‘(l) EMERGENCY ALERTS.—Nothing in this section 

20 shall be construed to prohibit a State or local government 

21 from accessing the emergency alert system of a cable oper22 ator with a franchise under this section in the area served 

23 by the State or local government to transmit local or re24 gional emergency alerts. 

25 ‘‘(m) REPORTING, RECORDS, AND AUDITS.—
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1 ‘‘(1) REPORTING.—A cable operator with a 

2 franchise under this section to provide cable service 

3 in a franchise area shall make such periodic reports 

4 to the Commission and the franchising authority for 

5 such franchise area as the Commission may require 

6 to verify compliance with the fee obligations of sub7 sections (c)(1) and (e)(2). 

8 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY OF BOOKS AND RECORDS.—

9 Upon request under paragraph (3) by a franchising 

10 authority for a franchise area, and upon request by 

11 the Commission, a cable operator with a national 

12 franchise for such franchise area shall make avail13 able its books and records to periodic audit by such 

14 franchising authority or the Commission, respec15 tively. 

16 ‘‘(3) FRANCHISING AUTHORITY AUDIT PROCE17 DURE.—A franchising authority may, upon reason18 able written request, but no more than once in any 

19 12-month period, review the business records of such 

20 cable operator to the extent reasonably necessary to 

21 ensure payment of the fees required by subsections 

22 (c)(1) and (e)(2). Such review may include the meth23 odology used by such cable operator to assign por24 tions of the revenue from cable service that may be 

25 bundled or functionally integrated with other serv-
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 ices, capabilities, or applications. Such review shall 

2 be conducted in accordance with procedures estab3 lished by the Commission. 

4 ‘‘(4) COST RECOVERY.—

5 ‘‘(A) To the extent that the review under 

6 paragraph (3) identifies an underpayment of an 

7 amount meeting the minimum percentage speci8 fied in subparagraph (B) of the fee required 

9 under subsection (c)(1) or (e)(2) for the period 

10 of review, the cable operator shall reimburse the 

11 franchising authority the reasonable costs of 

12 any such review conducted by an independent 

13 third party, as determined by the Commission, 

14 with respect to such fee. The costs of any con15 tingency fee arrangement between the fran16 chising authority and the independent reviewer 

17 shall not be subject to reimbursement. 

18 ‘‘(B) The Commission shall determine by 

19 rule the minimum percentage underpayment 

20 that requires cost reimbursement under sub21 paragraph (A). 

22 ‘‘(5) LIMITATION.—Any fee that is not reviewed 

23 by a franchising authority within 3 years after it is 

24 paid or remitted shall not be subject to later review 

25 by the franchising authority under this subsection 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 and shall be deemed accepted in full payment by the 

2 franchising authority. 

3 ‘‘(6) FEE DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—

4 ‘‘(A) COMPLAINT.—A franchising author5 ity or a cable operator may file a complaint at 

6 the Commission to resolve a dispute between 

7 such authority and operator with respect to the 

8 amount of any fee required under subsection 

9 (c)(1) or (e)(2) if—

10 ‘‘(i) the franchising authority or the 

11 cable operator provides the other entity 

12 written notice of such dispute; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) the franchising authority and the 

14 cable operator have not resolved the dis15 pute within 90 calendar days after receipt 

16 of such notice. 

17 ‘‘(B) MEETINGS.—Within 30 calendar 

18 days after receipt of notice of a dispute pro19 vided pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i), rep20 resentatives of the franchising authority and 

21 the cable operator, with authority to resolve the 

22 dispute, shall meet to attempt to resolve the 

23 dispute. 

24 ‘‘(C) LIMITATION.—A complaint under 

25 subparagraph (A) shall be filed not later than 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 3 years after the end of the period to which the 

2 disputed amount relates, unless such time is ex3 tended by written agreement between the fran4 chising authority and cable operator. 

5 ‘‘(D) RESOLUTION.—The Commission 

6 shall issue an order resolving any complaint 

7 filed under subparagraph (A) within 90 days of 

8 filing. 

9 ‘‘(n) ACCESS TO PROGRAMMING FOR SHARED FA10 CILITIES.—

11 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—A cable programming ven12 dor in which a cable operator has an attributable in13 terest shall not deny a cable operator with a national 

14 franchise under this section access to video program15 ming solely because such cable operator with a na16 tional franchise uses a headend for its cable system 

17 that is also used, under a shared ownership or leas18 ing agreement, as the headend for another cable sys19 tem. 

20 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—The term ‘cable program21 ming vendor’ means a person engaged in the produc22 tion, creation, or wholesale distribution for sale of 

23 video programming which is primarily intended for 

24 the direct receipt by cable operators for their re25 transmission to cable subscribers. 
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1 ‘‘(o) GROSS REVENUES.—As used in this section: 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) 

3 and (3), the term ‘gross revenues’ means all consid4 eration of any kind or nature, including cash, cred5 its, property, and in-kind contributions (services or 

6 goods) received by the cable operator from the provi7 sion of cable service within the franchise area. 

8 ‘‘(2) INCLUDED ITEMS.—Subject to paragraph 

9 (3), the term ‘gross revenues’ shall include the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(A) all charges and fees paid by sub12 scribers for the provision of cable service, in13 cluding fees attributable to cable service when 

14 sold individually or as part of a package or bun15 dle, or functionally integrated, with services 

16 other than cable service; 

17 ‘‘(B) any franchise fee imposed on the 

18 cable operator that is passed on to subscribers; 

19 ‘‘(C) compensation received by the cable 

20 operator for promotion or exhibition of any 

21 products or services over the cable service, such 

22 as on ‘home shopping’ or similar programming; 

23 ‘‘(D) revenue received by the cable oper24 ator as compensation for carriage of video pro-
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 gramming or other programming service on 

2 that operator’s cable service; 

3 ‘‘(E) all revenue derived from the cable op4 erator’s cable service pursuant to compensation 

5 arrangements for advertising; and 

6 ‘‘(F) any advertising commissions paid to 

7 an affiliated third party for cable services ad8 vertising. 

9 ‘‘(3) EXCLUDED ITEMS.—The term ‘gross reve10 nues’ shall not include the following: 

11 ‘‘(A) any revenue not actually received, 

12 even if billed, such as bad debt net of any re13 coveries of bad debt; 

14 ‘‘(B) refunds, rebates, credits, or discounts 

15 to subscribers or a municipality to the extent 

16 not already offset by subparagraph (A) and to 

17 the extent such refund, rebate, credit, or dis18 count is attributable to the cable service; 

19 ‘‘(C) subject to paragraph (4), any reve20 nues received by the cable operator or its affili21 ates from the provision of services or capabili22 ties other than cable service, including tele23 communications services, Internet access serv24 ices, and services, capabilities, and applications 

25 that may be sold as part of a package or bun-
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 dle, or functionally integrated, with cable serv2 ice; 

3 ‘‘(D) any revenues received by the cable 

4 operator or its affiliates for the provision of di5 rectory or Internet advertising, including yellow 

6 pages, white pages, banner advertisement, and 

7 electronic publishing; 

8 ‘‘(E) any amounts attributable to the pro9 vision of cable service to customers at no 

10 charge, including the provision of such service 

11 to public institutions without charge; 

12 ‘‘(F) any tax, fee, or assessment of general 

13 applicability imposed on the customer or the 

14 transaction by a Federal, State, or local govern15 ment or any other governmental entity, col16 lected by the provider, and required to be remit17 ted to the taxing entity, including sales and use 

18 taxes and utility user taxes; 

19 ‘‘(G) any forgone revenue from the provi20 sion of cable service at no charge to any person, 

21 except that any forgone revenue exchanged for 

22 trades, barters, services, or other items of value 

23 shall be included in gross revenue; 

24 ‘‘(H) sales of capital assets or surplus 

25 equipment; 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 ‘‘(I) reimbursement by programmers of 

2 marketing costs actually incurred by the cable 

3 operator for the introduction of new program4 ming; and 

5 ‘‘(J) the sale of cable services for resale to 

6 the extent the purchaser certifies in writing 

7 that it will resell the service and pay a franchise 

8 fee with respect thereto. 

9 ‘‘(4) FUNCTIONALLY INTEGRATED SERVICES.—

10 In the case of a cable service that is bundled or inte11 grated functionally with other services, capabilities, 

12 or applications, the portion of the cable operator’s 

13 revenue attributable to such other services, capabili14 ties, or applications shall be included in gross rev15 enue unless the cable operator can reasonably iden16 tify the division or exclusion of such revenue from 

17 its books and records that are kept in the regular 

18 course of business. 

19 ‘‘(5) AFFILIATE REVENUE.—Revenue of an af20 filiate shall be included in the calculation of gross 

21 revenues to the extent the treatment of such revenue 

22 as revenue of the affiliate has the effect (whether in23 tentional or unintentional) of evading the payment 

24 of franchise fees which would otherwise be paid for 

25 cable service. 
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1 ‘‘(6) AFFECT ON OTHER LAW.—Nothing in this 

2 section is intended to limit a franchising authority’s 

3 rights pursuant to section 622(h). 

4 ‘‘(p) ADDITIONAL DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 

5 this section: 

6 ‘‘(1) CABLE OPERATOR.—The term ‘cable oper7 ator’ has the meaning provided in section 602(5) ex8 cept that such term also includes a person or group 

9 with a national franchise under this section. 

10 ‘‘(2) FRANCHISE FEE.—

11 ‘‘(A) The term ‘franchise fee’ includes any 

12 fee or assessment of any kind imposed by a 

13 franchising authority or other governmental en14 tity on a person or group providing cable serv15 ice in a franchise area under this section, or on 

16 a subscriber of such person or group, or both, 

17 solely because of their status as such. 

18 ‘‘(B) The term ‘franchise fee’ does not in19 clude—

20 ‘‘(i) any tax, fee, or assessment of 

21 general applicability (including any such 

22 tax, fee, or assessment imposed on both 

23 utilities and a person or group providing 

24 cable service in a franchise area under this 

25 section (or the services of such person or 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 group) but not including a fee or assess2 ment which is unduly discriminatory 

3 against such person or group or the sub4 scribers of such person or group); 

5 ‘‘(ii) any fee assessed under sub6 section (e)(2) for support of public, edu7 cational, and governmental use and institu8 tional networks (as such term is defined in 

9 section 611(f)); 

10 ‘‘(iii) requirements or charges under 

11 subsection (f)(2) for the management of 

12 public rights-of-way, including payments 

13 for bonds, security funds, letters of credit, 

14 insurance, indemnification, penalties, or 

15 liquidated damages; or 

16 ‘‘(iv) any fee imposed under title 17, 

17 United States Code. 

18 ‘‘(3) INTERNET ACCESS SERVICE.—The term 

19 ‘Internet access service’ means a service that enables 

20 users to access content, information, electronic mail, 

21 or other services offered over the Internet. 

22 ‘‘(4) UNIT OF GENERAL LOCAL GOVERN23 MENT.—The term ‘unit of general local government’ 

24 means—
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 ‘‘(A) a county, township, city, or political 

2 subdivision of a county, township, or city; 

3 ‘‘(B) the District of Columbia; or 

4 ‘‘(C) the recognized governing body of an 

5 Indian tribe or Alaskan Native village that car6 ries out substantial governmental duties and 

7 powers.’’. 

8 (b) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—The Federal 

9 Communications Commission shall prescribe regulations 

10 to implement the amendment made by subsection (a) with11 in 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

12 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS. 

13 Section 602 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

14 U.S.C. 522) is amended—

15 (1) in paragraph (4), by inserting before the 

16 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, or its equiva17 lent as determined by the Commission’’; 

18 (2) in paragraph (5)(A), by inserting ‘‘(regard19 less of whether such person or group provides such 

20 service separately or combined with a telecommuni21 cations service or information service)’’ after ‘‘over 

22 a cable system’’; 

23 (3) by striking paragraph (6) and inserting the 

24 following: 

25 ‘‘(6) the term ‘cable service’ means—
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 ‘‘(A)(i) the one-way transmission to sub2 scribers of (I) video programming, or (II) other 

3 programming service; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) subscriber interaction, if any, which is 

5 required for the selection or use of such video 

6 programming or other programming service; or 

7 ‘‘(B) the transmission to subscribers of 

8 video programming or other programming serv9 ice provided through wireline facilities located 

10 at least in part in the public rights-of-way, 

11 without regard to delivery technology, including 

12 Internet protocol technology, except to the ex13 tent that such video programming or other pro14 gramming service is provided as part of—

15 ‘‘(i) a commercial mobile service (as 

16 such term is defined in section 332(d)); or 

17 ‘‘(ii) an Internet access service (as 

18 such term is defined in section 630(p));’’; 

19 (4) in paragraph (7)(D), by inserting after 

20 ‘‘section 653 of this title’’ the following; ‘‘except in 

21 a franchise area in which such system is used to 

22 provide cable service under a national franchise pur23 suant to section 630’’; 

24 (5) in paragraph (9)—

25 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘means’’; and 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 (B) by inserting before the semicolon at 

2 the end the following: ‘‘; and (B) a national 

3 franchise that is effective under section 630 on 

4 the basis of a certification with the Commis5 sion’’; and 

6 (6) in paragraph (10), by inserting before the 

7 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, but does not 

8 include the Commission with respect to a national 

9 franchise under section 630’’. 

10 SEC. 103. MONITORING AND REPORTING. 

11 (a) REPORT ON CABLE SERVICE DEPLOYMENT.—

12 The Federal Communications Commission shall, com13 mencing not later than one year after the date of enact14 ment of this Act, issue a report annually on the deploy15 ment of cable service pursuant to the amendments made 

16 by this title. In its report, the Commission shall describe 

17 in detail—

18 (1) with respect to deployment by new cable op19 erators—

20 (A) the progress of deployment of such 

21 service within the telephone service area of 

22 cable operators, if the operator is also an in23 cumbent local exchange carrier, including a 

24 comparison with the progress of deployment of 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 broadband services not defined as cable services 

2 within such telephone service area; 

3 (B) the number of franchise areas in which 

4 such service is being deployed and offered; 

5 (C) where such service is not being de6 ployed and offered; and 

7 (D) the number and locations of franchise 

8 areas in which the cable operator is serving only 

9 a portion of the franchise area, and the extent 

10 of such service within the franchise area; 

11 (2) the number and locations of franchise areas 

12 in which a cable operator with a franchise under sec13 tion 621 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

14 U.S.C. 541) on the date of enactment of this Act 

15 withdraws service from any portion of the franchise 

16 area for which it previously offered service, and the 

17 extent of such withdrawal of service within the fran18 chise area; 

19 (3) the rates generally charged for cable service; 

20 (4) the rates charged by overlapping, competing 

21 multichannel video programming distributors and by 

22 competing cable operators for comparable service or 

23 cable service; 

24 (5) the average household income of those fran25 chise areas or portions of franchise areas where 
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•HR 5252 EH 

1 cable services is being offered, and the average 

2 household income of those franchise areas, or por3 tions of franchise areas, where cable service is not 

4 being offered; 

5 (6) the proportion of rural households to urban 

6 households, as defined by the Bureau of the Census, 

7 in those franchise areas or portions of franchise 

8 areas where cable service is being offered, and the 

9 proportion of rural households to urban households 

10 in those franchise areas or portions of franchise 

11 areas where cable service is not being offered, in12 cluding a State-by-State breakdown of such data 

13 and a comparison with the overall ratio of rural and 

14 urban households in each State; and 

15 (7) a comparison of the services and rates in 

16 areas served by national franchisees under section 

17 630 of the Communications Act of 1934 (as added 

18 by section 101 of this Act) and the services and 

19 rates in other areas. 

20 (b) CABLE OPERATOR REPORTS.—The Federal Com21 munications Commission is authorized—

22 (1) to require cable operators to report to the 

23 Commission all of the information that the Commis24 sion needs to compile the report required by this sec25 tion; and 
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1 (2) to require cable operators to file the same 

2 information with the relevant franchising authorities 

3 and State commissions. 

4 SEC. 104. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

5 Nothing in this Act or the amendments made by this 

6 Act shall affect the application or interpretation of section 

7 224 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 224). 

8 TITLE II—ENFORCEMENT OF 

9 BROADBAND POLICY STATE10 MENT 

11 SEC. 201. ENFORCEMENT OF BROADBAND POLICY STATE12 MENT. 

13 Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

14 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 

15 following new section: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 715. ENFORCEMENT OF BROADBAND POLICY STATE17 MENT. 

18 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The Commission shall have the 

19 authority to enforce the Commission’s broadband policy 

20 statement and the principles incorporated therein. 

21 ‘‘(b) ENFORCEMENT.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—This section shall be en23 forced by the Commission under titles IV and V. A 

24 violation of the Commission’s broadband policy 
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1 statement or the principles incorporated therein 

2 shall be treated as a violation of this Act. 

3 ‘‘(2) MAXIMUM FORFEITURE PENALTY.—For 

4 purposes of section 503, the maximum forfeiture 

5 penalty applicable to a violation described in para6 graph (1) of this subsection shall be $500,000 for 

7 each violation. 

8 ‘‘(3) ADJUDICATORY AUTHORITY.—The Com9 mission shall have exclusive authority to adjudicate 

10 any complaint alleging a violation of the broadband 

11 policy statement and the principles incorporated 

12 therein. The Commission shall complete an adjudica13 tory proceeding under this subsection not later than 

14 90 days after receipt of the complaint. If, upon com15 pletion of an adjudicatory proceeding pursuant to 

16 this section, the Commission determines that such a 

17 violation has occurred, the Commission shall have 

18 authority to adopt an order to require the entity 

19 subject to the complaint to comply with the 

20 broadband policy statement and the principles incor21 porated therein. Such authority shall be in addition 

22 to the authority specified in paragraph (1) to en23 force this section under titles IV and V. In addition, 

24 the Commission shall have authority to adopt proce25 dures for the adjudication of complaints alleging a 
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1 violation of the broadband policy statement or prin2 ciples incorporated therein. 

3 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph 

4 (1), the Commission’s authority to enforce the 

5 broadband policy statement and the principles incor6 porated therein does not include authorization for 

7 the Commission to adopt or implement rules or reg8 ulations regarding enforcement of the broadband 

9 policy statement and the principles incorporated 

10 therein, with the sole exception of the authority to 

11 adopt procedures for the adjudication of complaints, 

12 as provided in paragraph (3). 

13 ‘‘(c) STUDY.—Within 180 days after the date of en14 actment of this section, the Commission shall conduct, and 

15 submit to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce 

16 and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

17 Transportation, a study regarding whether the objectives 

18 of the broadband policy statement and the principles in19 corporated therein are being achieved. 

20 ‘‘(d)(1) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

21 section shall be construed to modify, impair, or supersede 

22 the applicability of the antitrust laws or the jurisdiction 

23 of the district courts of the United States to hear claims 

24 arising under the antitrust laws. 
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1 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION OF ANTITRUST LAWS.—The term 

2 ‘antitrust laws’ has the meaning given it in subsection (a) 

3 of the first section of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)), 

4 except that such term includes section 5 of the Federal 

5 Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent that 

6 such section 5 applies to unfair methods of competition.

7 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

8 term ‘Commission’s broadband policy statement’ means 

9 the policy statement adopted on August 5, 2005, and 

10 issued on September 23, 2005, In the Matters of Appro11 priate Framework for Broadband Access to the Internet 

12 over Wireline Facilities, and other Matters (FCC 05–151; 

13 CC Docket No. 02–33; CC Docket No. 01–337; CC Dock14 et Nos. 95–20, 98–10; GN Docket No. 00–185; CS Dock15 et No. 02–52).’’. 

16 TITLE III—VOIP/911

17 SEC. 301. EMERGENCY SERVICES; INTERCONNECTION. 

18 Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

19 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is further amended by adding after 

20 section 715 (as added by section 201 of this Act) the fol21 lowing new sections: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 716. EMERGENCY SERVICES. 

23 ‘‘(a) 911 AND E–911 SERVICES.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each VOIP service pro2 vider has a duty to ensure that 911 and E–911 serv3 ices are provided to subscribers of VOIP services. 

4 ‘‘(2) USE OF EXISTING REGULATIONS.—A 

5 VOIP service provider that complies with the Com6 mission’s regulations requiring providers of VOIP 

7 service to supply 911 and E911 capabilities to their 

8 customers (Report and Order in WC Docket Nos. 

9 04–36 and 05–196) and that are in effect on the 

10 date of enactment of this section shall be considered 

11 to be in compliance with the requirements of this 

12 section, other than subsection (c), until such regula13 tions are modified or superseded by subsequent reg14 ulations. 

15 ‘‘(b) NON-DISCRIMINATORY ACCESS TO CAPABILI16 TIES.—

17 ‘‘(1) ACCESS.—Each incumbent local exchange 

18 carrier (as such term is defined in section 251(h)) 

19 or government entity with ownership or control of 

20 the necessary E–911 infrastructure shall provide any 

21 requesting VOIP service provider with nondiscrim22 inatory access to such infrastructure. Such carrier 

23 or entity shall provide access to the infrastructure at 

24 just and reasonable, nondiscriminatory rates, terms, 

25 and conditions. Such access shall be consistent with 
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1 industry standards established by the National 

2 Emergency Number Association or other applicable 

3 industry standards organizations. 

4 ‘‘(2) ENFORCEMENT.—The Commission or a 

5 State commission may enforce the requirements of 

6 this subsection and the Commission’s regulations 

7 thereunder. A VOIP service provider may obtain ac8 cess to such infrastructure pursuant to section 717 

9 by asserting the rights described in such section. 

10 ‘‘(c) NEW CUSTOMERS.—A VOIP service provider 

11 shall make 911 service available to new customers within 

12 a reasonable time in accordance with the following require13 ments: 

14 ‘‘(1) CONNECTION TO SELECTIVE ROUTER.—

15 For all new customers not within the geographic 

16 areas where a VOIP service provider can imme17 diately provide 911 service to the geographically ap18 propriate PSAP, a VOIP service provider, or its 

19 third party vendor, shall have no more than 30 days 

20 from the date the VOIP provider has acquired a cus21 tomer to order service providing connectivity to the 

22 selective router so that 911 service, or E911 service 

23 where the PSAP is capable of receiving and proc24 essing such information, can be provided through 

25 the selective router. 
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1 ‘‘(2) INTERIM SERVICE.—For all new customers 

2 not within the geographic areas where the VOIP 

3 service provider can immediately provide 911 service 

4 to the geographically appropriate PSAP, a VOIP 

5 service provider shall provide 911 service through—

6 ‘‘(A) an arrangement mutually agreed to 

7 by the VOIP service provider and the PSAP or 

8 PSAP governing authority; or 

9 ‘‘(B) an emergency response center with 

10 national call routing capabilities. 

11 Such service shall be provided 24 hours a day from 

12 the date a VOIP service provider has acquired a cus13 tomer until the VOIP service provider can provide 

14 911 service to the geographically appropriate PSAP. 

15 ‘‘(3) NOTICE.—Before providing service to any 

16 new customer not within the geographic areas where 

17 the VOIP service provider can immediately provide 

18 911 service to the geographically appropriate PSAP, 

19 a VOIP service provider shall provide such customer 

20 with clear notice that 911 service will be available 

21 only as described in paragraph (2). 

22 ‘‘(4) RESTRICTION ON ACQUISITION OF NEW

23 CUSTOMERS.—A VOIP service provider may not ac24 quire new customers within a geographic area served 

25 by a selective router if, within 180 days of first ac-
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1 quiring a new customer in the area served by the se2 lective router, the VOIP service provider does not 

3 provide 911 service, or E911 service where the 

4 PSAP is capable of receiving and processing such in5 formation, to the geographically appropriate PSAP 

6 for all existing customers served by the selective 

7 router. 

8 ‘‘(5) ENFORCEMENT: NO FIRST WARNINGS.—

9 Paragraph (5) of section 503(b) shall not apply to 

10 the assessment of forfeiture penalties for violations 

11 of this subsection or the regulations thereunder. 

12 ‘‘(d) STATE AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this Act or any 

13 Commission regulation or order shall prevent the imposi14 tion on or collection from a VOIP service provider, of any 

15 fee or charge specifically designated or presented as dedi16 cated by a State, political subdivision thereof, or Indian 

17 tribe on an equitable, and non-discriminatory basis for the 

18 support of 911 and E–911 services if no portion of the 

19 revenue derived from such fee or charge is obligated or 

20 expended for any purpose other than support of 911 and 

21 E–911 services or enhancements of such services. 

22 ‘‘(e) FEASIBILITY.—In establishing requirements or 

23 obligations under subsections (a) and (b), the Commission 

24 shall ensure that such standards impose requirements or 

25 obligations on VOIP service providers and entities with 
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1 ownership or control of necessary E–911 infrastructure 

2 that the Commission determines are technologically and 

3 operationally feasible. In determining the requirements 

4 and obligations that are technologically and operationally 

5 feasible, the Commission shall take into consideration 

6 available industry technological and operational standards. 

7 ‘‘(f) PROGRESS REPORTS.—To the extent that the 

8 Commission concludes that it is not technologically or 

9 operationally feasible for VOIP service providers to comply 

10 with E–911 requirements or obligations, then the Com11 mission shall submit reports to the Committee on Energy 

12 and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the 

13 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

14 the Senate on the progress in attaining and deploying E–

15 911 service. Such reports shall be submitted semiannually 

16 until the Commission concludes that it is technologically 

17 and operationally feasible for all VOIP service providers 

18 to comply with E–911 requirements and obligations. Such 

19 reports may include any recommendations the Commission 

20 considers appropriate to encourage the migration of emer21 gency services to TCP/IP protocol or other advanced serv22 ices. 

23 ‘‘(g) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—The Commission 

24 shall have the authority to compile a list of PSAP contact 

25 information, testing procedures, and classes and types of 
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1 services supported by PSAPs, or other information con2 cerning the necessary E–911 infrastructure, for the pur3 pose of assisting providers in complying with the require4 ments of this section. 

5 ‘‘(h) EMERGENCY ROUTING NUMBER ADMINIS6 TRATOR.—Within 30 days after the date of enactment of 

7 this section, the Federal Communications Commission 

8 shall establish an emergency routing number adminis9 trator to enable VOIP service providers to acquire non10 dialable pseudo-automatic number identification numbers 

11 for 9–1-1 routing purposes on a national scale. The Com12 mission may adopt such rules and practices as are nec13 essary to guide such administrator in the fair and expedi14 tious assignment of these numbers. 

15 ‘‘(i) EMERGENCY RESPONSE SYSTEMS.—

16 ‘‘(1) NOTICE PRIOR TO INSTALLATION OR NUM17 BER ACTIVATION OF VOIP SERVICE.—Prior to instal18 lation or number activation of VOIP service for a 

19 customer, a VOIP service provider shall provide 

20 clear and conspicuous notice to the customer that—

21 ‘‘(A) such customer should arrange with 

22 his or her emergency response system provider, 

23 if any, to test such system after installation; 
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1 ‘‘(B) such customer should notify his or 

2 her emergency response system provider after 

3 VOIP service is installed; and 

4 ‘‘(C) a battery backup is required for cus5 tomer premises equipment installed in connec6 tion with the VOIP service in order for the sig7 naling of such system to function in the event 

8 of a power outage. 

9 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—In this subsection: 

10 ‘‘(A) The term ‘emergency response sys11 tem’ means an alarm or security system, or per12 sonal security or medical monitoring system, 

13 that is connected to an emergency response cen14 ter by means of a telecommunications carrier or 

15 VOIP service provider. 

16 ‘‘(B) The term ‘emergency response center’ 

17 means an entity that monitors transmissions 

18 from an emergency response system. 

19 ‘‘(j) MIGRATION TO IP-ENABLED EMERGENCY NET20 WORK.—

21 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL REPORT.—No more than 18 

22 months after the date of the enactment of this sec23 tion, the National 911 Implementation and Coordi24 nation Office shall develop a report to Congress on 

25 migrating to a national IP-enabled emergency net-
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1 work capable of receiving and responding to all cit2 izen activated emergency communications. 

3 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—The report re4 quired by paragraph (1) shall—

5 ‘‘(A) outline the potential benefits of such 

6 a migration; 

7 ‘‘(B) identify barriers that must be over8 come and funding mechanisms to address those 

9 barriers; 

10 ‘‘(C) include a proposed timetable, an out11 line of costs and potential savings; 

12 ‘‘(D) provide recommendations on specific 

13 legislative language, 

14 ‘‘(E) provide recommendations on any leg15 islative changes, including updating definitions, 

16 to facilitate a national IP-enabled emergency 

17 network; and 

18 ‘‘(F) assess, collect, and analyze the expe19 riences of the PSAPs and related public safety 

20 authorities who are conducting trial deploy21 ments of IP-enabled emergency networks as of 

22 the date of enactment of this section. 

23 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION.—In developing the report 

24 required by paragraph (1), the Office shall consult 

25 with representatives of the public safety community, 
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1 technology and telecommunications providers, and 

2 others it deems appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(k) IMPLEMENTATION.—

4 ‘‘(1) DEADLINE.—The Commission shall pre5 scribe regulations to implement this section within 

6 120 days after the date of enactment of this section. 

7 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section 

8 shall be construed to permit the Commission to issue 

9 regulations that require or impose a specific tech10 nology or technological standard. 

11 ‘‘(l) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 

12 ‘‘(1) VOIP SERVICE.—The term ‘VOIP service’ 

13 means a service that—

14 ‘‘(A) provides real-time 2-way voice com15 munications transmitted through customer 

16 premises equipment using TCP/IP protocol, or 

17 a successor protocol (including when the voice 

18 communication is converted to or from TCP/IP 

19 protocol by the VOIP service provider and 

20 transmitted to the subscriber without use of cir21 cuit switching), for a fee or without a fee; 

22 ‘‘(B) is offered to the public, or such class23 es of users as to be effectively available to the 

24 public (whether part of a bundle of services or 

25 separately); and 
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1 ‘‘(C) has the capability so that the service 

2 can originate traffic to, and terminate traffic 

3 from, the public switched telephone network. 

4 ‘‘(2) VOIP SERVICE PROVIDER.—The term 

5 ‘VOIP service provider’ means any person who pro6 vides or offers to provide a VOIP service. 

7 ‘‘(3) NECESSARY E–911 INFRASTRUCTURE.—

8 The term ‘necessary E–911 infrastructure’ means 

9 the originating trucks to the selective routers, selec10 tive routers, databases (including automatic location 

11 information databases and master street address 

12 guides), trunks, or other related facilities necessary 

13 for the delivery and completion of 911 and E–911 

14 calls, or other 911 and E–911 equipment, facilities, 

15 databases, interfaces, and related capabilities speci16 fied by the Commission. 

17 ‘‘(4) NON-DIALABLE PSEUDO-AUTOMATIC NUM18 BER IDENTIFICATION NUMBER.—The term ‘non19 dialable pseudo-automatic number identification 

20 number’ means a number, consisting of the same 

21 number of digits as numbers used for automatic 

22 number identification, that is not a North American 

23 Numbering Plan telephone directory number and 

24 that may be used in place of an automatic number 

25 identification number to convey special meaning. 
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1 The special meaning assigned to the non-dialable 

2 pseudo-automatic number identification number is 

3 determined by nationally standard agreements, or by 

4 individual agreements, as necessary, between the 

5 system originating the call, intermediate systems 

6 handling and routing the call, and the destination 

7 system. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 717. RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF VOIP SERVICE 

9 PROVIDERS. 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

11 ‘‘(1) FACILITIES-BASED VOIP SERVICE PRO12 VIDERS.—A facilities-based VOIP service provider 

13 shall have the same rights, duties, and obligations as 

14 a requesting telecommunications carrier under sec15 tions 251 and 252, if the provider elects to assert 

16 such rights. 

17 ‘‘(2) VOIP SERVICE PROVIDERS.—A VOIP serv18 ice provider that is not a facilities-based VOIP serv19 ice provider shall have only the same rights, duties, 

20 and obligations as a requesting telecommunications 

21 carrier under sections 251(b), 251(e), and 252, if 

22 the provider elects to assert such rights. 

23 ‘‘(3) CLARIFYING TREATMENT OF VOIP SERV24 ICE.—A telecommunications carrier may use inter25 connection, services, and network elements obtained 
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1 pursuant to sections 251 and 252 from an incum2 bent local exchange carrier (as such term is defined 

3 in section 251(h)) to exchange VOIP service traffic 

4 with such incumbent local exchange carrier regard5 less of the provider originating such VOIP service 

6 traffic, including an affiliate of such telecommuni7 cations carrier. 

8 ‘‘(b) DISABLED ACCESS.—A VOIP service provider 

9 or a manufacturer of VOIP service equipment shall have 

10 the same rights, duties, and obligations as a telecommuni11 cations carrier or telecommunications equipment manufac12 turer, respectively, under sections 225, 255, and 710 of 

13 the Act. Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this 

14 Act, the Commission, in consultation with the Architec15 tural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, 

16 shall prescribe such regulations as are necessary to imple17 ment this section. In implementing this subsection, the 

18 Commission shall consider whether a VOIP service pro19 vider or manufacturer of VOIP service equipment pri20 marily markets such service or equipment as a substitute 

21 for telecommunications service, telecommunications equip22 ment, customer premises equipment, or telecommuni23 cations relay services. 

24 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 
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1 ‘‘(1) FACILITIES-BASED VOIP SERVICE PRO2 VIDER.—The term ‘facilities-based VOIP service 

3 provider’ means an entity that provides VOIP serv4 ice over a physical facility that terminates at the end 

5 user’s location and which such entity or an affiliate 

6 owns or over which such entity or affiliate has exclu7 sive use. An entity or affiliate shall be considered a 

8 facilities-based VOIP service provider only in those 

9 geographic areas where such terminating physical 

10 facilities are located. 

11 ‘‘(2) VOIP SERVICE PROVIDER; VOIP SERVICE.—

12 The terms ‘VOIP service provider’ and ‘VOIP serv13 ice’ have the meanings given such terms by section 

14 716(l).’’. 

15 SEC. 302. COMPENSATION AND CONTRIBUTION. 

16 (a) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act 

17 (including the amendments made by this Act) shall be con18 strued to exempt a VOIP service provider from require19 ments imposed by the Federal Communications Commis20 sion or a State commission on all VOIP service providers 

21 to—

22 (1) pay appropriate compensation for the trans23 mission of a VOIP service over the facilities and 

24 equipment of another provider; or 
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1 (2) contribute on an equitable and non-discrimi2 natory basis to the preservation and advancement 

3 of universal service. 

4 (b) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section—

5 (1) the terms ‘‘VOIP service provider’’ and 

6 ‘‘VOIP service’’ have the meanings given such terms 

7 in section 716(h) of the Communications Act of 

8 1934, as added by section 301 of this Act; and 

9 (2) the term ‘‘State commission’’ has the mean10 ing given such term in section 3 of the Communica11 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153). 

12 TITLE IV—MUNICIPAL 

13 PROVISION OF SERVICES 

14 SEC. 401. GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE SERV15 ICES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Neither the Communications Act 

17 of 1934 nor any State statute, regulation, or other State 

18 legal requirement may prohibit or have the effect of pro19 hibiting any public provider of telecommunications service, 

20 information service, or cable service (as such terms are 

21 defined in sections 3 and 602 of such Act) from providing 

22 such services to any person or entity. 

23 (b) COMPETITION NEUTRALITY.—Any State or polit24 ical subdivision thereof, or any agency, authority, or in25 strumentality of a State or political subdivision thereof, 
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1 that is, owns, controls, or is otherwise affiliated with a 

2 public provider of telecommunications service, information 

3 service, or cable service shall not grant any preference or 

4 advantage to any such provider. Such entity shall apply 

5 its ordinances, rules, and policies, including those relating 

6 to the use of public rights-of-way, permitting, performance 

7 bonding, and reporting without discrimination in favor of 

8 any such provider as compared to other providers of such 

9 services. 

10 (c) COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAWS NOT AF11 FECTED.—Nothing in this section shall exempt a public 

12 provider from any law or regulation that applies to pro13 viders of telecommunications service, information service, 

14 or cable service. 

15 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

16 of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications 

17 Commission shall submit to the Congress a report on the 

18 status of the provision of telecommunications service, in19 formation service, and cable service by States and political 

20 subdivisions thereof. 

21 (e) DEFINITION OF PUBLIC PROVIDER.—For pur22 poses of this section, the term ‘‘public provider’’ means 

23 a State or political subdivision thereof, or any agency, au24 thority, or instrumentality of a State or political subdivi25 sion thereof, that provides telecommunications service, in-
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1 formation service, or cable service, or any entity that is 

2 owned, controlled, or is otherwise affiliated with such 

3 State or political subdivision thereof, or agency, authority, 

4 or instrumentality of a State or political subdivision there5 of. 

6 TITLE V—BROADBAND SERVICE 

7 SEC. 501. STAND-ALONE BROADBAND SERVICE. 

8 Title VII of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

9 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is further amended by adding after 

10 section 717 (as added by section 301 of this Act) the fol11 lowing new section: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 718. STAND-ALONE BROADBAND SERVICE. 

13 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—A broadband service provider 

14 shall not require a subscriber, as a condition on the pur15 chase of any broadband service the provider offers, to pur16 chase any cable service, telecommunications service, or 

17 VOIP service offered by the provider. 

18 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

19 ‘‘(1) The term ‘broadband service’ means a two20 way transmission service that connects to the Inter21 net and transmits information at an average rate of 

22 at least 200 kilobits per second in at least one direc23 tion. 

24 ‘‘(2) The term ‘broadband service provider’ 

25 means a person or entity that controls, operates, or 
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1 resells and controls any facility used to provide 

2 broadband service to the public, by whatever tech3 nology and whether provided for a fee, in exchange 

4 for an explicit benefit, or for free. 

5 ‘‘(3) The term ‘VOIP service’ has the meaning 

6 given such term by section 716(l).’’. 

7 SEC. 502. STUDY OF INTERFERENCE POTENTIAL OF 

8 BROADBAND OVER POWER LINE SYSTEMS. 

9 Within 90 days after the date of enactment of this 

10 Act, the Federal Communications Commission shall con11 duct, and submit to the Committee on Energy and Com12 merce of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

13 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, 

14 a study of the interference potential of broadband over 

15 power line systems. 

16 TITLE VI—SEAMLESS MOBILITY 

17 SEC. 601. DEVELOPMENT OF SEAMLESS MOBILITY. 

18 (a) STREAMLINED REVIEW.—

19 (1) The Commission shall further the develop20 ment of seamless mobility. 

21 (2) Within 120 days after the date of enact22 ment of this Act, the Commission shall implement a 

23 process for streamlined review and authorization of 

24 multi-mode devices that permit communication 
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1 across multiple Internet protocol-enabled broadband 

2 platforms, facilities, and networks. 

3 (b) STUDY.—The Commission shall undertake an in4 quiry to identify barriers to the achievement of seamless 

5 mobility. Within 180 days after the date of enactment of 

6 this Act, the Commission shall report to the Congress on 

7 its findings and its recommendations for steps to eliminate 

8 those barriers. 

9 (c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the 

10 term ‘‘seamless mobility’’ means the ability of a commu11 nications device to select between and utilize multiple 

12 Internet protocol-enabled technology platforms, facilities, 

13 and networks in a real-time manner to provide a unified 

14 service.

Passed the House of Representatives June 8, 2006. 

Attest:

Clerk. 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5252

AN ACT

To promote the deployment of broadband networks 

and services.