I

107TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2120

To ensure the application of the antitrust laws to local telephone monopolies,

and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 12, 2001

Mr. CANNON (for himself, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. ISSA, and Mr. NADLER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To ensure the application of the antitrust laws to local

telephone monopolies, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Broadband Antitrust

5 Restoration and Reform Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO THE CLAYTON ACT.

7 The Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12 et seq.) is amended

8 by adding at the end the following:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 28. COMPETITION IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERV2 ICES.

3 ‘‘(a) APPLICATION PREREQUISITE TO PROVIDING

4 HIGH SPEED DATA SERVICE OR INTERNET BACKBONE

5 SERVICE; ATTORNEY GENERAL REINSTATEMENT OF PRO6 COMPETITIVE REGULATIONS.—

7 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT TO FILE APPLICATION

8 WITH ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE UNITED

9 STATES.—A Bell operating company or an affiliate

10 of a Bell operating company may not provide any

11 interLATA service in any of its in-region States

12 under the authority of any amendment to section

13 271 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.

14 271) enacted after June 13, 2001—

15 ‘‘(A) unless it files with the Attorney Gen16 eral of the United States an application to pro17 vide such service; and

18 ‘‘(B) until the Attorney General—

19 ‘‘(i) approves such application before

20 the expiration of the 90-day period begin21 ning on the date such application is filed;

22 or

23 ‘‘(ii) fails to approve or to disapprove

24 such application during such 90-day pe25 riod.
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1 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY OF ATTORNEY GENERAL.—

2 The Attorney General of the United States—

3 ‘‘(A) may issue rules to establish require4 ments applicable to the form and contents of

5 applications filed under paragraph (1);

6 ‘‘(B) may make recommendations to an

7 applicant regarding—

8 ‘‘(i) withdrawal of an application filed

9 under paragraph (1); or

10 ‘‘(ii) filing of an application under

11 paragraph (1), with or without modifica12 tions, subsequent to the withdrawal of an

13 application filed under such paragraph;

14 and

15 ‘‘(C) may not approve an application filed

16 in compliance with this subsection if the Attor17 ney General determines that the applicant—

18 ‘‘(i) has monopoly power in the local

19 exchange market; and

20 ‘‘(ii) is using or is likely to use its mo21 nopoly power in order to engage in exclu22 sionary or other anticompetitive conduct.

23 ‘‘(3) WITHDRAWAL OF APPLICATION.—An ap24 plication filed under paragraph (1) may be with25 drawn by the applicant at any time before the Attor-
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1 ney General approves or disapproves such applica2 tion, but may not be modified after being filed.

3 ‘‘(4) REINSTATEMENT OF REGULATION.—If the

4 Attorney General, sua sponte, determines that the

5 conditions specified in paragraph (2)(C) have been

6 met with respect to a Bell operating company or an

7 affiliate of a Bell operating company, then the At8 torney General may reinstate, as to such company or

9 such affiliate, any Federal regulation in effect as of

10 June 13, 2001, which the Attorney General deter11 mines was designed to protect against exclusionary

12 conduct or other abusive monopoly power.

13 ‘‘(5) EXCLUSION.—Nothing in this subsection

14 shall apply to two-percent carriers.

15 ‘‘(b) CONTINUING OPERATION OF THE ANTITRUST

16 LAWS.—The rights, obligations, powers, and remedies

17 provided under the antitrust laws are in addition to, and

18 are—

19 ‘‘(1) not preempted by;

20 ‘‘(2) not inconsistent with; and

21 ‘‘(3) not incompatible with;

22 any of the rights, obligations, powers, and remedies pro23 vided under the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.

24 151 et seq.), under the Telecommunications Act of 1996

25 (Public Law 104–104; 110 Stat. 56), or under any law
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1 amended by either such Act, regardless of the progress

2 of competition in any market.

3 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section:

4 ‘‘(1) AFFILIATE.—The term ‘affiliate’ means a

5 person that (directly or indirectly) owns or controls,

6 is owned or controlled by, or is under common own7 ership or control with, another person. For purposes

8 of this paragraph, the term ‘own’ means to own an

9 equity interest (or equivalent thereof) of more than

10 10 percent.

11 ‘‘(2) BELL OPERATING COMPANY.—The term

12 ‘Bell operating company’ has the meaning given

13 such term in section 3 of the Communications Act

14 of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153).

15 ‘‘(3) IN-REGION STATE.—The term ‘in-region

16 State’ has the meaning given to such term in section

17 271(i) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47

18 U.S.C. 271(i)).

19 ‘‘(4) INTERLATA SERVICE.—The term

20 ‘interLATA service’ has the meaning given such

21 term in section 3 of the Communications Act of

22 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153).

23 ‘‘(5) TWO-PERCENT CARRIER.—The term ‘two24 percent carrier’ means an incumbent local exchange

25 carrier within the meaning of section 251(h) of the
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1 Communications Act (47 U.S.C. 254(h)) whose ac2 cess lines, when aggregated with the access lines of

3 any local exchange carrier that such incumbent local

4 exchange carrier directly or indirectly controls, is

5 controlled by, or is under common control with, are

6 fewer than two percent of the Nation’s subscriber

7 lines installed in the aggregate nationwide.’’.

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