[Appologies for my previous posting which did not include a Subject line.]
On The Hill
Sen. McCain Warns Against Legislating Technology Policy
by Teri Rucker <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Members of Congress and federal regulators must be careful about
legislating technology policy because technology has a way of finding its
own answers to problems that make many laws obsolete, a key senator said on
Thursday.
In an interview with the National Journal Group reporters, Sen. John
McCain, R-Ariz., argued, for example, that some provisions in the 1996
Telecommunications Act <http://www.fcc.gov/telecom.html> are obsolete
because technology has crossed the barriers to the deployment of advanced
services.
He specifically cited wireless technology. As traditional telephone
providers mulled investments in "last mile" infrastructure to reach U.S.
homes and lobbied for preferential legislation, he said, technologists
developed the Wi-Fi technology that solves the last-mile problem wirelessly.
Congress "has to be careful about how we legislate because technology
provides the answers," McCain said. That is why he said he is "nervous"
about Congress mandating a technology standard to protect movies, music and
other copyrighted material from piracy via the Internet. Besides, there
will be "some smart 17-year-old who will beat what we've done," McCain said.
The telecom and technology industries are "the future of the economy," he
said, and company representatives should continue to educate Congress.
But he also warned that corporate advocacy can get out of control, noting
the fight in Congress and at the FCC over rules governing the regional Bell
telephone companies and their competitors.
"The reason so much responsibility accrues to the FCC" is because Congress
is "grid locked" in a battle over legislation "all tailored to advantage
one special interest or another," McCain said, citing bills from the 107th
Congress that would have deregulated the Bells as examples. "It is just a
shame Congress won't carry out its responsibility."
The FCC is expected to rule next week on a proceeding that will determine
the rules governing competitors' access to the Bell networks. McCain said
he would like to see the agency "moving toward gradual deregulation,"
noting that it must be "done with care, but it can't take forever."
He said that one technology-related area where legislation is needed is
on-line privacy. Meetings with tech industry leaders indicate that the
issue is one of their biggest concerns, he said, and while Congress will
try to solve the problem this year, he is not certain that it will get
resolved.
The biggest sticking point, he said, is whether consumers should be
required to "opt in" to information-sharing programs before on-line
companies can share consumers' personal data or whether companies should be
allowed to share the data until consumers "opt out."
"I am in the opt-out camp," McCain said. "I am not totally comfortable with
that position, but it is the lesser of two evils."
"Reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be
fooled."
-- Richard P. Feynman
