Discussion. Thank you very much. Judge neil gorsuch, President Trumps pick has his his confirmation hearing coming up. Beginning march 20th with opening statements, the next day will be questioning of the nominee himself by outside groups and witnesses. Live starting on the 20thth check cspan. Org for coverage plans. Judge gorsuch was born in denver in 1967 and went to Harukyo Nomura lard law school before being appointed to the bench. Anyone working at any hedge fund who involved in short term trading meaning every day theyre coming in and out of stocks all these people want edge. That is a common term, they want edge and theres this wide edge kind of useless for their purposes, theres the gray zone and black edge which is clearly inside information. Sunday night on q a talks about the Insider Trading case against hedge manager steven cohen. In her book black edge, inside information, dirty money and the quest to bring down the most wanted man on wall street. The two central characters at the heart of the store, central in my book are these two portfolio managers, Matthew Martoma and michael steinberg, and martoma is serving a lengthy prison sentence, with you stein bergs was overturned. Sat night 7 00 p. M. Ian on cspans q a. Federal relations chair testified at a hearing over the Commerce Senate committee over neutrality rules, wireless Broadband Access and Internet Access and connectivity for americans in countrys rural areas, this was commissioners first appearance, in late january, this is about two hours, 40 minutes. Abouttwohours 40 minutes. Abouttwohours, 40 minutes. Twohours, 40 minutes. Hours, 40 minutes. Good morning. Welcome to todays hearing on oversight of communications commission, i should point out since this committee has jurisdiction over sports last night the South Dakota State University jack rabbits punched their ticket by inning the summit tournament. I no im getting gavelled down here by someone. That was applause . Thats what youre supposed to do. The last time we met was six years ago and a lot has changed since then. We have several new members of this committee for whom this is their first fcc oversight hearing, at the last i said i hope to see changes, i urged all to treat each other fairly, respect the law, and seek guidance and consensus wherever possible and im heartened because the fcc seemed to have heeded this advice, chairman pies need to improve the transparency, counter to the recent predecessors, the simple steps empower the public an other commissioners, chairman pie emphasized that guiding it representing a rural state where many people are still without Broadband Service this is a goal he and i share. The fcc has taken huge steps to improve broadband deployment by moving forward in both the Mobility Fund and connect america fund that the commission could move forward so quickly with the universal funds begs a question why they were not completed much sooner, nevertheless it is refreshing to help bring broadband to every corner of the country. Also nice to see a. M. Radio and broadcast Television Better serve the american public. I recognize that not everything the commission will do will be nonpartisan, i was a vocal critic of the previous chairmans hyper partisan leadership style. I am referring to the primarily 2015 title two order and broadband privacy order. I do think we need to hit reset on both items. And im glad to see the fcc has started that process bissettiy the rules next week. It is important for congress to pass bipartisan legislation, but since we dont have that agreement despite goodwill on both sides, theres no need to hold off under current statutes. Something tells me much of todays hearing will be dedicate today this topic. The fcc is in the final stage osthe broadcast tv incentive auction which has been a real success. 84 megahurts have been allocated for brad band. While the auction process maybe almost done the work is not complete. It will start on the repacking process and no small undertaking for the agency nor for many tv stations. I urge the commission to do everything in its power to ensure the transition is successful and occurs as quickly and responsibly as possible. Robocalls is another problem, this is a positive step in the right direction the government must do everything we can to protect consumers from truly bad actors, which is why this committee worked on antispoofing ladies and gentlemen legislation. The fcc proposed notice of inquiry will give a much needed jumpstart to that conversation. Lastly i will note for colleagues that we will be busy with fcc chairman nominations. The president renominated him to another term. There are two vacant positions, its my hope that the senate will move swiftly to review and confirm the president s appoint ees, we should not allow it to fall below the functioning quorum. Ensuring the agency is sufficiently constituted will be a priority of mine this year. Thank you and rebcognizing the chairman for opening statement. Thank you. I welcome the three members of the fcc including the new chairman in his first appearance as chairman. The president has renominated him and given him primary responsibility over what this senator believes is one of the most important Consumer Protection agencies of the federal government. The last eight years the fcc has had the consumers back. Ultimately for this senator the commission rests not on the fulfillment of wish lists, but on how those who are least able to protect themselves have been treated and whether First Amendment rights including those of journalists are vigorously protected. So since assuming the chairmanship in just the last few weeks, the fcc, chairman pal, under your leadership, has acted to prevent millions of broadband subscribers from receiving Key Information about rates, terms and conditions of their service. Acted to guarantee that broadband subscribers will have less protections with respect to the security of their own line data while promising to further weaken the duties broadband providers owed to protect the web browsing history and other personal information of paying subscribers. And by the way, that will arouse people pretty quick when you start stealing their personal data. Third thing is just in the last few weeks, threaten the expansion of broadband into the homes of lowincome americans by limiting the effectiveness of new Lifeline Program reforms. And the fourth thing, in the last few weeks, formally rescinded an fcc staff report detailing the implementation of the agencys comprehensive erate modernization effort that sent shockwaves through schools and libraries across the country that are worried that you all are going to try to up end this highly functioning and bipartisan program. These are actions that directly impact the lives of millions of americans. I hope theyre not signs of things to come. Because at the end of the day, the fcc has the responsibility to put the Public Interest ahead of special interest and just as it has with its past chairman, congress expects the commission to uphold the laws it has passed and enforce the regulations properly adopted by the agency. And thats what the Public Interest and this senator has and will continue to demand. Now, theres something left undone that hasnt been done. And that is the three of us right here were just talking about it. Discussing my frustration with the fact that Jessica Rosenwursal is not seated here today in front of us. The failure to confirm her in the last congress that was made a commitment as an exchange of the appointment of commissioner oreilly, that commitment was never fulfilled and thats a black mark on the senate. And the president s decision to pull her nomination last week i think was in fortune. I hope that the white house is going to correct that and nominate this impressive Public Servant for another fcc term once again. If it happens, it should, its imperative to the Senate Leadership for the promise and confirm her without dispatch. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you, senator nelson. And i would share your high level of interest in getting a full compliment of commissioners and i hope that we receive those nominations soon and we will process them very quickly through this committee when that time comes. I do want to recognize the commissioners we have in front of us today and thank you for being here. Were going to start with ajit pal who i would not congratulate by being nominated to another term. The agency has a lot of work ahead of it and getting reconfirmed soon will start steering the me in the right direction. If you perform well today, this could double as your ree n renomination hearing. Commissioner mignon clyburn, welcome, good to have you here, and commissioner michael ri oreilly. Did you get that . If you perform well. No pressure. Chairman thune, Ranking Member nelson, members of the committee, thank you for holding this hearing today. I also wish to thank the president for the confidence he has shown in me by nominating me to serve a second term at the fcc. Before discussing the matters ruling to the agency, i would like to offer a personal note. I grew up in the great state of kansas and i am an Indian American. And just a few months ago, i made a personal professional, rather, visit to garmans headquarters in kansas. It was thus quite painful to me to learn of the coldblooded murder of a garman engineer and the shootings. I cannot fathom how those involved must feel. As it stands, words cannot capture how this has hurt those of us, particularly those of indian descent, who call kansas home. I do want to say that my thoughts, my prayers, are with the families. To thank him for the courage he showed in risking his life and to stand alongside the millions of kansasians is saying the perpetrator is the despicable exception that proves the rule when it comes to the spirit of openness and respect in the sunflower state. Returning to the focus of todays hearing, id like to discuss four fcc priorities. Closing the Digital Divide. Promoting innovation. Protecting consumers and public safety. And reforming the processes. First, high speed Internet Access or broadband is critical to Economic Opportunity. The broadband is unavailable or unaffordable in too many places. The fcc can help close this Digital Divide by more efficiently targeting federal funds under u. S. Programs. By revising regulations that deter private investment in nextgeneration networks and by creating deploymentfriendly best practices. The first six weeks of my chairmanship, weve already taken bold action along these lines. We adopted on a bipartisan basis a 4. 5 billion plan to advance 4g lte across our country. We finalized rules on a bipartisan basis to provide 2 billion to deliver fixed broadband to unserved americans. Weve eliminated outdated rules so that providers can spend on broadband deployment and rather than unnecessary paperwork. Established for the first time, the Advisory Committee that will, among other things, develop a model code for localities that are interested in broadband deployment fair and friendly policies. Second, promoting innovation. Another fcc priority is creating an innovationfriendly regulatory environment. Entrepreneurs are constantly developing new technologies and services. Too often, theyre unable to bring them to market for consumers because outdated rules or regulatory inertia stand in the way. Going forward, i want the fcc to facilitate rather than frustrate innovation. Last month, for example, we proposed to allow Television Broadcasters to fully enter the era, by adopting a nextgeneration television standard on a voluntary marketdriven basis. We also authorized the the first ever lte devices in the 5 gigahertz band and allowed wireless consumers to benefit from innovative free data offerings. Third, the fccs core mission is to serve the broader Public Interest and that means protecting consumers. For instance, all americans seem united in their disgust of robocalls. They are the number one Consumer Complaint the fcc year in and year out and no wonder. Every year, receive approximately 2. 4 billion robocalls. I teed up an aggressive agenda to target unlawful robocalls. The commission will vote on my proposal to allow carriers to block many spoofed robocalls. There is no reason why any legitimate caller should be spoofing numbers so they appear to be becoming from an invad li or unassigned phone number. We helped enable those who are responsible for the recent wave of bomb threats. I hope this measure among others helps brings the perpetrators to justice. Fourth and finally, process reform. As chairman, im working to make the fcc more open and more transparent. For example, i found it strange that the public wasnt allowed to see Commission Meeting items until after the commission voted. Generally wellconnected lobbyists were still in the know but Everyday Americans were in the dark. At long last, that is changing. Last month, i made public the full text of two draft items on the agenda as part of a pilot project. Things went so well, last week, i made public the draft text and fact sheets for all six items for the march meeting. Thats just one of the many ways i intend to make the fcc more open, accountable to the American People. I look forward to working with my colleagues to implement more process reforms in the time to come. Chairman thune, Ranking Members nelson, members of committee, thank you once again for holding this hearing. Look forward to answering your questions and continuing to work with you in the time to come. Thank you, commissioner pal. Chairman thune, Ranking Member nelson, members of the committee, good morning. It is an honor to once again appear to share my priorities for putting consumers first. During my more than seven years as an fcc commissioner, i have been an advocate for those whose voices far too often go unheard. This means looking out for our nations most vulnerable populations including families who should not have to give up food or Health Care Just to keep in touch with an incarcerated loved one. It also means enabling Broadband Access for those living at or below the poverty line so they will be able to apply for jobs, start a business or benefit from telehealth services. My vision for robust competition, affordable conductivity, reliable service, no surprise billing and an open internet for all informs what i would like to share with the committee today including several of the issues at the top of my priority list. When we talk about the principles underpinning an open internet, larger question must be asked. Will there be a cop on the beat many a broadband world . When we rightly talk about finite universal service dollars supporting just one provider in a remote area, we cannot rely on the disciplining forces of the competition. As a protector of consumers and enabler of choice in the broadband ecosystem. If not the fcc, who will consumers turn to when their broadband provider throttles their favorite website and what if there were a billing dispute, poor service, privacy concerns . These questions underlie the many reasons why i strongly supported the commissions to 15 open Internet Order and continue to believe it provides the best Legal Framework to protect consumers, innovators and entrepreneurs. Consistent with the ftcs privacy framework, i am proud of the steps taken by the fcc last october to empower consumers to make informed choices about their personal information and give broadband providers the flexibility to comply with the rules in a manner that works for their company. I am committed to do everything i can to ensure consumers have the tools to recollect their privacy in a broadband world. While much attention has been given to the commissions work on open internet and privacy, the inmate calling regime continues to be the greatest and most distressing form of injustice i have witnessed in my 18 years as an industry regulator. We cannot continue to turn our backs while a wife pays as much as 24 for a 15 minute call with her husband. I applaud the leadership of senators booker and duckworth on these issues and look forward to working with all interested offices to ensure that an inmates debt to society is not paid again and again by their sons and daughters, mothers and fathers and grandparents. More broadly, i applaud this congress focus on broadband infrastructure and access. The fccs universal service mandate can be described as a fourlegged stool with four different programs working in concert to close the Digital Divide. Collectively, these programs are enabling Rural Broadband deployment, improving Rural Health Care. Theyre bringing about connectivity to schools and libraries and its tackling the affordability gap. We cannot leave out any leg of the stool and expect it to continue to stand. This means we need action on reforming our Rural Health Care program. It also means being courageous about reforming the contributions system which is increasingly becoming a heavy burden on Senior Citizens who can ill afford to shoulder the burden of nationwide broadband deployment. Turning now to our media ownership rules, i believe the conversation must start by asking how we move the inclusion