>> saturday 10:00 and eastern on american history tv, live all-day coverage of the confederate icon topic from james madison university in harrisburg virginia. speakers include kristi coleman, ceo of the american civil war museum. and the museums historian john coffey. kevin walker, ceo of the shenandoah valley battlefield foundation, caroline jeannie purdue university professor, and james robertson officer -- author of the book after the war, the heroes, villains, soldiers, and civilians who changed america. watch the confederate's does make the confederate icon conference saturday morning on american history tv on c-span

3. the house energy and commerce committee on medications for testimony recently dropped federal communications commission or's the ftc members answered questions about upgrades to 5g technology. and the presidents twitter criticism calling action by the fcc sad and unfair. connect the subcommittee communications and technology will come to order >> this panel will now come to order i would look to think our witnesses for being here i recognize myself five minutes for a comment. welcome to this hearing on oversight for federal communications commission.

today's hearing marks the first time in 28 years that the ftc has appeared before this subcommittee having been reauthorized by congress. i am delighted to welcome the recently reauthorized commission here today. the reauthorization effort reflects bipartisan support of the ftc and the important work to enhance public safety, technologies and strengthen our national security increase broadband deployment and protect consumers while processing is mac posturing innovation and the medication and marketplace. i hope today demonstrates the importance of being reauthorized into each of the commissioners articulating how the action benefits the organization, i know we could deliver the same bipartisan accomplishment for your colleagues while the fcc is charged with many important

tasks one of the most critical roles in place revolves around public safety. from working to ensure that alerting technologies warn the public of impending emergencies to aiding in the restoration of communications network and services following emergencies the fcc is responsible for making sure that our communication system is there when americans are most in need of lifesaving information. this work is chartered to the nation's 911 service platform and with the seer being the 50th anniversary of the first 911 call we here in congress have been actively working with the fcc and the and cia to improve the country's 911 systems and facilitate the transition to the next generation 911 services. i look forward to hearing the

fcc's work to improve connectivity for communicator that are in desperate need of improvement education and healthcare. promoting broadband access and closing the digital divide, where we all agree on the importance of bringing the benefits of broadband to all americans which is especially true in rural america. we included a number of bipartisan provisions from members of this subcommittee and members of the energy and commerce committee that will help the fcc in removing federal barriers for broad land broadband deployment. just last week, a hearing on rural broadband we heard from a variety of stakeholders on the impact of this legislation and i look forward to hearing more today on how the fcc has begun to implement the legislation.

i look forward to hearing the commission's recommendations on how we can improve connectivity for communities that are in desperate need of improvements to their education and healthcare services. it is this committee's primary role to conduct oversight of all the programs and policies overseen by the fcc and i remain focused on our key priorities so that we could focus the work of this commission and at this time i yield the balance of my time for an opening statement.>> thank you very much chairman, this is the most important responsibility that we have on the subcommittee and certainly, we believe it is incredibly important that the commission which does such fine work in response to our concerns, so i commend the commissioners for your work and it's been my

honor to work with every member of the commission and i would like to continue to do so at a strong capacity as possible. we have to make sure that we work and bipartisan cooperation on the issue which is so important so thank you chairman, i yield back the balance of my time.>> the gentleman yields back at this time i recognize the sub committee ranking member for five minutes.>> thank you for holding this very heavy and very long-overdue hearing and thank you to the witnesses for finally after nine long months coming before this committee once again. in the nine months since our last hearing the ftc -- fcc has expanded its track record of anticonsumer and anti- small business and anti- innovation policy. it seems at almost every opportunity the commission has children corporations over consumers and failed to uphold the public interest. in december of last year, the commission voted to eliminate net neutrality protection which

is supported by the vast majority of americans from all sides of the political spectrum. the chairman's comments regarding the chicken littles who are concerned about the repeal to take a look at the public opinion polls who show the vast majority of his own party is opposed to the commission's action and these rules protect the consumers and small businesses as well as entrepreneurs and innovators and i'm happy to say that the senate has already passed a resolution restoring these rules and we hope that we could have a vote on our own bipartisan resolution here in the house. the rest of the agenda has done no better as they proposed cutting the lifeline program which is an essential communications post for millions of americans including veterans and seniors. the commission has made a series of decisions to encourage consolidation among broadcasters from eliminating the main studio rule to reinstating the discounts we

getting these rules and proposing the change to congressionally establish national ownership. it seems that in each of these actions that they benefit the broadcast corporations and leaves the public worse off. the chairman claims he cares about rural bob band appointment and that the commission in the wireless carriers where they have wireless service deployed imposing this portion of mobility, a bizarre and odorous challenge process which requires rural providers to hire people to walk through cornfields and in backyards trying to prove the community doesn't have wireless service and if those companies can't afford to send people out that the commission would sue does make assume the communities are connected. how does this help 24 million americans without access to high-speed broadband? and in the same vein, how does making changes to this band making it less accessible

deploying broadband and hard-to- reach community enhance the commission and this committee's shared goal of closing the digital divide? it doesn't so this commission's reckless actions on broadband data services and copper retirement was so corporate friendly that the white house's advisor for telecommunications policy recently said that they remain " concerned, however the streamlined regulatory requirements they place on federal departments and agencies which rely on services subject to this continuance in the untenable position of losing access to critical national security and public safety communications functionality. " how is the commission putting the convenience of carriers above our nation's national security and public safety needs? that is beside the impact that the policies have on schools, libraries, hospitals, small businesses, and competitors who rely on these services?

what about americans privacy? the senator's office found that wireless carriers had been sharing real-time location data of hundreds of millions of cell phones with third parties without consent from their users which included sharing information with law enforcement agencies which used data to illicitly look up americans locations data without a warrant or due process and we don't even know the scope of the problem because the commission was asleep at the wheel and i understand that the commission is now investigating but how were you so in the dark on an abuse that was a widespread history practice? what confidence could the committee have that the commission will take the appropriate enforcement action against carriers who have so recklessly shared our location data without our consent? again and again, the commission has failed in their obligations to upload -- uphold public interest and has repeatedly sided with corporations over

consumers. and waiting nine months to do this oversight hearing the committee has been complicit in the commission's actions by turning a blind eye and being derelict in responsibilities to provide oversight for the agency. i would add that while i'm pleased the commission issued a hearing designation order for the merger in doing so acknowledges the universal concerns about sinclair's honesty and candor i am extremely concerned that the president has waded into this issue. i hope chairman's can ensure is that the president's tweet won't cause the commission to change course or affect the proceedings of an administrative law jacking i yield back.>> the gentleman yields back, mister walden the chairman of the poll committee is recognized for five seconds.>> thank you madam chair and i would like to thank you for your leadership on these topics specifically, i want to thank you for highlighting the improvement of

the 911 emergency alert services as well as outreach to seniority on the reauthorization as we've reauthorized the fcc for the first time in 28 years under the act. and i think this is the last time you were here mister chairman. the efforts for wildfire and hurricane response was focused on call routing and location accuracy and key priorities for all of us and we reauthorized the fcc for the first time in two decades so we appreciated the commission's input on our work and thanks to the hard work of everyone on the committee we were able to incorporate provisions from 18 bipartisan bills that now form a act ii that is now law. so we do try to work together whenever we can regarding these issues for the 18 bipartisan bills and i think we did 57 bills on opioids virtually all

of which are bipartisan. i look forward to hearing about the f cc progress -- the fcc's progress. the commission has been very busy doing work on this act. we provided an extra $1 billion to fix some of these issues that were there in order to make sure that translators and fm radio stations could get their antennas moved or their equipment moved to free up that spectrum. the commission under your leadership and others successfully pulled off the biggest reverse auction in history that you brought to our attention mister chairman, the issue involving the illegality of the funds that came to the commission, you could not put them anywhere legally even though your predecessors did and so we fixed that which i think was important to take care of and i would like to thank you for coming to my district last month, we traveled around and we saw a

health clinic and i want to commend the commission for the decision to lift the cap on the rural health medicine piece which made a huge and positive difference for our rural clinics so when you added $170 million over the quarter million dollar, you heard this firsthand when you are out there, meeting with the clinic, i appreciate the discussion we had with broadcasters. i think we got a taste for the congressional district in the country even though we never got of one county. we were there all day. commissioner riley and i had a conversation about the challenge facing our radio industry which i've some experience as my colleague say i've got a great voice for radio and a face for it to. they aren't very nice people. radio as you know was my original story and my father's as well which i think is an important part of our countries framework and fabric for sharing information and

entertainment. carrying the same fate of newspapers unfortunately, never gaining the benefit of gras ownership under the commission for some 15 years and it's captured once again by regulations for another time. is been trapped in this constant time warp that regulations from the 70s to the 1930s for that matter have somehow worked through the present day or beyond some taking us back to the regime of the 1930s we will discuss the changing media landscape as well as well as other sectors that edge providers are disrupting. another example of why put this callout a year ago and then again a few months ago inviting the ceos for some of america's greatest innovative technology companies, please come out here to share with us before this committee their concerns as well as recommendations on the wide range of topics. the rhetoric around these issues is like a television show waiting to get the same old

programming. we listen to the same falsehoods about ripping away net neutrality but we restored framework that is part of the industry years ago. mom and pop startups found their way through regulatory framework that we would know now as facebook, google, netflix, you name it they grew up with this framework and not with the 1930s way we regulated telephones and in this committee room we've got the benefit of hearing our critics speak out loud which is unlike other approaches of voices who speak to destroy our discourse. if you let your views be known, i started to let you and your families no. on the right or the left somewhere we've got to get back our humanity where we are not shouting or threatening each other but instead we're trying to work our differences. we do this often in the committee and will continue to do so.

madam chair, thank you for this hearing and i yield back the balance of my time.>> i recognize the ranking member of the full committee for five minutes.>> thank you madam chairman. the center communication commission is a independent agency created by the cannibal congress. we gave the agency broad powers and responsibly to protect consumers and advance competition and promotion of universal service and reasonable rates. work in the public interest. work in the it's hard to ensure the commission's actions advance those goals and tol holds the te chairman and accountable when agency does not. unfortunately the majority of the committee has been unwilling to follow through on its promise to hold quarterly oversight hearings and this is the first oversight hearing in nine months and only the third in this congress. the commission has acted contrary to its core mission in the partisan votes the agency dismantled protections for

consumers and initiated numerous >> the agency dismantle protections for consumers and initiated numerous proceedings designed to benefit big corporations to the detriment of working-class americans and working communities. the most controversial decision was the elimination of the net neutrality rule. protecting consumers and small businesses and protecting free speech. chairman ignore the vast majority of the 24 million comments from individuals and businesses recording -- reporting that neutrality. it's not surprising that his order faces massive consumer opposition. public outrage from start up companies, working families, educators and healthcare professionals, veterans and so many others at the town halls and community centers have driven congressional action and made the controlled senate passed legislation which would reinstate net neutrality. ranking member doyle is not championing that legislation in the house. i urged speaker ryan to bring

this legislation up for a vote within bipartisan members to sign them petition -- sign the petition. the regard for consumers is not in there in a time with other agencies stepping up. stepping up against violence. the fcc wants to rollback rules which limit advertising to children and require educational programming for kids which doesn't make sense. if the agency was serious about focusing on the consumers it would want to help parents searching for quality educational programming and shield children and not make them easier targets for big businesses. another example of siding with corporations over consumers, german pies changes for the f cc ownership protection undermining competition, localism and diverse viewpoints in favor of corporate consolidation while the commission rightfully acknowledges the proposed merger and related divestitures may violate the law but the

rollback for the media ownership rules opens up the doors for the next. universal service critical of the most vulnerable populations has been undermined -- undermined. the proposal to provide lifeline programs is particularly egregious in its example. approximately 8.3 million people. either single mother struggling to get by, veterans searching for jobs, seniors on a fixed income, they are at risk of being left behind. the fcc should be looking at ways to help these struggling participants within the economy and community and not just cut them off and while the commission has worked to update the emergency alert system advanced next generation 911 and implement this it's fallen short in making cyber security a priority. the agency has retreated from the efforts of previous administrations at a time when cyber criminals, foreign and

domestic are becoming more aggressive in the communication today in the network for the next business consumer and government agencies, these networks drive the modern economy so the same networks provide a target for cyber attacks by criminal gangs and nations as the agency charters promoting public safety and the ftc should work with and encourage companies to develop the best practices to address vulnerabilities and prepare for cyber security attacks. the fcc is shirking its responsibility and congress should be conducting more oversight so i want to thank the chairman and commissioners for hearing before us today and we look forward to your testimony and now i yield back madam chair.>> that includes -- that concludes the member opening statement i would like to remember this mike i would like to remind members that the statements will be made part of the record. we will try to get through our opening statements before the votes are called around 1:40. i would like to thank all of you for being here today,

today's witnesses will have the opportunity to give their opening statement and it will be followed by a round of questions from members, our panels today include chairman pye, commissioner o'reilly, commissioner carr and commissioner rosen. we appreciate your here and that your testimony has been submitted on time and we will go in order of seniority which is the tradition in the subcommittee so i begin with you today chairman pye, you are recognized for five minutes in your opening statement.>> thank you members of the subcommittee and for holding this hearing i appreciate the chance to update you on the fcc's work. before i do, i would like to think the subcommittee for its vital assistance. act of 2018 which originated in this subcommittee contained a host of provisions already having a positive impact on the fcc's work. perhaps most importantly, correcting a technical problem involving deposits with respect

to auction. the fcc is moving forward aggressively to hold options moving substantial amounts of high-end spectrums into the commercial marketplace. where commencing the figure for the stand auction followed immediately by the 20 gigahertz stand. we intend to hold an auction of spectrum at 37, 39, and 47 gigahertz band. combined at these auctions we will make almost 5 gigahertz of spectrum available and advance the global leadership within the next generation of continuity. this would not have a policy -- possible without the subcommittee's leadership. closing the digital divide, yesterday the fcc kicked off its net america fund phase 2 river oaks does make reverse auctioned -- -- reverse

auction. earlier this year we dedicated $500 million in additional funding to assist small carriers deploying rural broadband and proposed over one -- $1 billion to improve communication networks in puerto rico and in the virgin islands. following the devastating hurricane season and we boosted the promise by extending funding in our rural healthcare program by 43 %. funding aside we are monitoring our rule cutting through the regulatory state and making it easier for broadband providers to prevent the next-generation network and have exempted small sales from the federal historic preservation and environmental review processes designed for traditional cell towers. we've updated our business data for business regulation and have reformed our network transition will -- rule to make it easier for the resilient

works of tomorrow. making it easier and cheaper including competitive entrance to give access to utility poles with one touch proposed by the implement advisory committee and have returned to the successful regulatory framework under which the internet flourished in the united states from 1996-2015. i am pleased to report our policies to promote broadband deployment is working. according to a study in 2017 more commercial buildings in the united states added fiber connections than in any year since at least 2004. according to figures released today it appears broadband network investments in the united states increased by between $1.5 billion and $3 billion in 2017, reversing the decline that occurred over the last two years of the prior administration. the increased investment is having a tangible and positive impact on american consumers. i will give you an example, details as a small internet

service provider, because of recent policies it committed $4 million to purchase equipment and services to upgrade its core and enable wi-fi calling to vermont rule subscribers and begin rolling out mobile broadband to start the transition. the detail concludes that it's quite optimistic about the future with a significant reason for our optimism. we are on the right track and i am confident we will continue to see more positive results in the months to come as more policies take hold. i'm pleased about the amount of a partisan cooperation seen here , fewer than six % or one in 16 of our over 100 votes have been party lined. there will be times when we disagree of course but my hope is that this debate will be based on fact consistent with the laws and grounded in

reality. i will close on a personal note, i love this agency and i've worked at the fcc for the majority of the past 11 years as a staffer then in appointee. it's been an honor to lead the commission over the last 18 months and the major reason why is because i get to work alongside and have gotten to know the fantastic staff at the fcc, they raced to work to help. strive to make technology available to those with disability and devote countless hours to represent our country abroad and more. and as for me, these decisions are challenging and they have not always been favorable but as i've got the privilege of serving, i'm going to find the facts and follow the laws and call them as i see them. chairman blackburn, members of the subcommittee, thank you once again for holding this hearing and i look forward to

answering questions and continuing to work with you and your staff in the times to come.>> mister o'reilly you are recognized. >> thank you chairman blackburn and raking member doyle and the members of the subcommittee to engage with these issues. i would like to thank representative lance and collins and their cosponsors and many on the subcommittee for the leadership on this act. under chairman trent's leadership we've made strides in determining unlawful activity. without tools provided by congress you could only go so far to eliminate this harmful practice. i would like to highlight today some critical issues that have been a focus of mine. i firmly believe that the ongoing problem of 911 data version by certain states and territories must end once and for all. on disputing ratepayers, it's a consequence to the community and the public in need of critical emergency assistance

the ninth annual report of this committee which will on self reporting in states and territories showed $135 million away from 91 enhancement. seven states and territories figured out that instead of being labeled a diverter they would rather just not submit the necessary paperwork. a previously self-admitted diverter which failed to respond to the conditions data collection and corey. the sufficient public record information supported finding it's a substantial diverter of funds for nonpublic safety purposes. there's good news reported that in several states and territories they've clarified the reported diversion or made commitments to prevent a reoccurrence including illinois, new mexico, oklahoma, and puerto rico. i suggest additional federal action such as legislation proposed which is necessary to

address the states like new york and new jersey and rhode island and guam to identify. the commission is focusing on every taking -- taking every step to provide americans with access to broadband services and the commission's efforts to be examined in parallel with programs by other federal agencies. congress allocated last year's consolidated appropriation act in 2018, an initial $600 billion for broadband pilot programs to be administered for the utility service within our u.s. being considered as part of the senate and house farmville. the efforts to provide us with new federal money is commendable as there is the potential for certain problems to arise. there's this significant possibility to programming which could be used for subsidize areas which have broadband providers and

competition with those who currently receive subsidies or may have buildout plans to require them to write it out in the future. the program could be used to allow providers their favorite institutions about costly nearby areas. it should be targeted to address the 14 million+ americans without any broadband today. i would humbly suggest that the proper direction from the subcommittee within a bad outcome, the policy includes this fall and i hope you will consider additional safeguards regarding other programs and a focus on those who are truly unserved. turning to spectrum policy, the commission has been hard at work ensuring that the spectrum is available for the next generation of wireless services. i recognize there was a need for wireless carriers who offer these services nationally and internationally. the speed band downlink, and attractive opposition for this

purpose providing significant spectrum reducing their spectrum footprint using a market-based spectrum reallocation reproach -- approach. they recently noted the commission that the six gigahertz band is necessary to address the need for more on license spectrum and must be part of the rules and i would like to think the subcommittee for holding his hearing and i look forward to answering the questions you may have. >> the gentleman yields back mister carr you are recognized. microphone please. >> thank you members of the subcommittee for the invitation to testify. i have had the honor of working with you and your staff and the commissioner for nearly one year and it's been a rewarding and productive time and i'm proud of the work that the agency has accomplished and i would like

to commend the subcommittee on its notable achievements from identifying additional spectrums in the act and enhancing public safety and encouraging broadband deployment including the precision act. at the fcc i focus on work that we could do to help bring more broadband. this has meant working closely with my colleague at the commission and it's about spending time outside of the agency regarding policies as how they impact communities across the country. over the past 11 months i visited 17 states and benefited from perspective gained on the road weather at town hall or in chelsea michigan or a roundtable in nebraska or at the kitchen table with families who wanted better and asked for broadband. i spent time with construction crews doing the hard and often gritty work to deploy broadband network. in arcadia indiana, susan

brooks and streeters me -- introduced me to to brothers who run a small wireless provider, a scrappy bunch having climbed everything from barns, grain elevators, catching the antennas needed to bring broadband into indiana's farmland. i have seen similar efforts across the country. only underscoring why the work of this subcommittee and the fcc is so important. we want every community to get their fair shot of the next generation one year ago i noticed the challenge that we faced, extending american leadership in wireless moving from four gigs, five gigs network. i testified about the need to focus on two things spectrum infrastructure. the commission has made substantial progress on both and i would like to focus this afternoon on the second portion of infrastructure. i appreciate the chairman

asking to lead these efforts on the wireless infrastructure and have taken several steps to assure the regulatory structure is 5g ready. 5g networks will look different than the 3g and 4g deployment from the past. the framework that worked 400 foot towers won't work for new small cell deployment. we are working to modernize our approach we exempted small cells from certain purview -- review procedures. it's expected to cut about 30 % with one step causing deployment of small cells. it could put the business face for thousands of communities in rural areas which may otherwise miss out. the one place for increased deployment will payoff is healthcare. the fcc has supported broadband deployment to healthcare facilities but there is a trend now which supports connective

pairs everywhere and the delivery of high-tech and high quality air is no longer limited to the confines of connected brick and mortar facilities with remote patient monitoring and mobile health application, we have technology to deliver healthcare and deliver it directly to our patients. i saw this two weeks ago in mississippi delta, ground zero for the diabetes epidemic, the delta is also a place where connective gear is artie making a difference. one woman noticed her signs of diabetes after seeing little progress with traditional care options she signed up for remote patient monitoring program and showed me the ipad and the bluetooth enabled blood glucose monitor and she cracked -- and she tracked her care on a daily basis. a app gives her feedback including the steps you could take that day to remain healthy. this technology has offered her

to feel better. the research backs up her results. showing significant cost savings and the improved outcome of connective care, allying -- relying public policy. which is why i'm glad german pai asked me to lead this new initiative which will consider -- which will be considered at the august meeting. provides up to $100 million to support connective care point. i look forward to working with stakeholders as we receive comments establishing the program, thank you to the members of committee again for holding this hearing and i welcome your questions.>> the gentleman yields back. >> good afternoon, ranking member doyle and other members of the subcommittee.

thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today, i believe the future belongs to the connected no matter who you are or where you live, you need access to modern communication at fair 21st century success clearing the way for the future would be at the heart of everything that we do at the federal communications commission and it's been nine months to the day since we last appeared before you for the oversight hearing which is a long time even going into the school year so let me offer you the equivalent. many americans still lack access to broadband and we put a number on it, 24 million americans don't have access to high-speed service which is not acceptable and we need to do better. too often during the last nine months this agency acted at the behest of corporate forces which surrounded changing --

changes around the american people you could see that clearly including the rollback of net neutrality with the deployment of new networks with the failure to engage those who need a voice in the policies and cities and towns which should be our partner in the process and tribal communities entitled to government consultation and the department of commerce which just last week expressed concern about how our reform could harm national security as well as public safety services and likewise you see this and proposed reforms which undermine our lifeline program and the populations which rely on this including those served by domestic violence shelters, military veterans, homeless youth, and the residents of puerto rico who are recovering from on harrowing storms -- from harrowing storms and a great humanitarian crisis. our mapping practices for

broadband does not accurately reflect states of connectivity or on the ground. our claim that the agency suffered and distributed denial of service attacks following john oliver's report on our net neutrality plans is not credible. in the meantime, the agency has ignored the fact that the public docket is flooded with fraud. including have 1 million comments from russia, 2 million individuals with stolen identities, i believe these things need to be fixed. so many people think that washington is rigged against them which saddens me and on too many occasions in the last nine months, the agency proved them right. the good report cards not only look to the past but also offer ai to the future -- a look to

the future. i believe at this table there's the desire to extend the region of broadband service and leave the world and 5g wireless deployment and bring the opportunity of the digital age with more people in more places and i see the same dire -- desire everywhere i go. i was in rural new mexico and urban new york, i visited schools with students who lack broadband at home and struggle with nightly schoolwork. there are 12 million children in every state across the country with this problem. they fall into a homework gap which is the cruelest part of our digital divide and i saw that these communities are trying to address this gap so that every student has a chance at digital age success. experimenting with connected school buses looking to loan out hotspots in the library and exploring public wi-fi in the community and they deserve our support and the plan to address this gap so that no child is left off-line, i believe it is within our capability to do this.

i would be remiss if i didn't mention the agency's recent decision regarding sinclair broadcast. when i appeared before you nine months ago i expressed concern about how the agency had bent and twisted its media policies to serve the business plans of this one company which changed last week when the agency adopted the order designating the proposed sinclair tribune transaction for hearing. i would like to thank my colleagues and the chairman in particular for the effort to reach a consensus on the matter. i will close by saying thank you for having me here at your hearing and i look forward to the questions you may have.>> i think each of you for your testimony and we will now move into our questions and i'm going to begin, i will recognize myself for five minutes. chairman pai i will come to you from the public safety point , it's something we are focused on in the emergency alert, and

our 911 systems. as you know, our ranking member was included in the act and it has been a good and solid bipartisan initiative to help with wi-fi resources bringing these the hearing and emergency. while the system is primarily a tool, we saw the really is -- the resiliency of the infrastructure and the aftermath of hurricane harvey and the widespread use of this alert. how will the addition of setting up wi-fi access points in times of emergency and in addition to carrier location information and other input help a device create more precise location information to better enable our first responders to reach those who

are in need of the emergency help.>> thank you for this question and ranking member alone for your leadership on this legislation. a critical element of information first responders when a 911 caller is placed is where is the color? regarding wi-fi access points to introduce more details and information about where the color is, a combination of gps information and cellular information, wi-fi asked points -- access points could help them pinpoint exactly where the company is to dispatch help more quickly. i think it's interesting that companies are taking this step forward. apple announced in iowa that when corporate set of technology, one of our predecessors talked about the fact that the technology could use access points as well as under information -- other

information.>> looking at states and locale base to use, you think that this is going to help?>> absolutely.>> encourage that? >> when you think about meeting help to people, one of the things that we reported on this issue, it was the next general 911, making certain that it is more reliable and more widely used. >> i will give you a quick example of why this is so, i did the office of communications that handled 911 calls, they are coming to the district, every year the district gets approximately 10 does emergency calls properly routed to maryland and vice versa. when marilyn gets 10,000 calls,

the district gets a caller, imagine ubiquitous wi-fi access points which would allow emergency responders to know when they receive this call at the 911 call center that we are getting calls from the district, we don't waste precious sections does make seconds to figure out which district needs that call which could lead -- which could later save lives in a pinch.>> commissioner, i would like to come to you on something. i've worked for years on the privacy issue and i presume that you saw the letters that we saw -- that we sent. regarding the location information, i'm pleased that you are investigating this as well. as we are all concerned about protecting consumer privacy.

and on this more broad topic, i received a letter from our friends at the electronic privacy information center and to quote from the letter, " it's clear the fcc has the ability to enact internet privacy rules, the fcc has the authority to regulate companies through ancillary jurisdiction. " do you agree with this assertion?>> no i do not.>> do you believe the telecommunications act section 706 or any other position does make revision gives authority to the fcc to regulate his providers?>> i do not believe it gives us this authority.>> you do not, thank you. i yelled back and i recognize mister doyle for five minutes.>> thank you madam chair, welcome back and it's good to see all of you. i would like to talk about rural broadband, the commission received a letter on july 23

from a group of 182 fixed wireless providers they noted that and i quote, without these licenses we would have virtually no ability to acquire protected spectrums within this band which would be an intolerable block to harm our businesses and inhibit our ability to grow and harm those millions of consumers for who mid band spectrum is the key to high fixed broadband access and i would note that chairman pai you tweeted that their parents are served by wade wireless and commissioner carr, you referred to the good work of the on-ramp indiana to serve brooks district. these companies were part of the 108 companies who had been to that letter so i would like to ask each of these commissioners which is a simple yes or no question, will you

commit to maintaining these licenses in this band?>> i've delegated this issue to commissioner o'reilly recently providing a lot of analysis on this question so i don't want to presuppose what direction he would want to recommend for the full commission.>> would you commit to having this? >> we don't want to presuppose the results as we are still studying this issue and i'm looking at this issue along with commissioner o'reilly.>> commissioner o'reilly he's dump this on you, what do you say?>> i like the direct answer, i don't agree but i like it. >> i haven't made my decision up yet on how to proceed. >> we will need smaller license sizes if we want wireless providers through rural america.>> one yes, one undecided, one no, and one ascension or? are we still looking at the issue?

>> undecided.>> we have not reached the endpoint. >> chairman pai i mentioned in the opening statement that many stakeholders including the government are concerned about your plans regarding the discontinuance of service with changes to the market, in place of our national security operations in these untenable positions so are you concerned in addition to the potential loss of service that some customers are telling us they've had their bills increased by 175 %, i'm concerned that not only putting the carrier's interest over the public's but it is endangering public safety, national security, and it's leading to a -- and it's leading to a huge rate increase for those who have the service how do you respond?>> congressman, i was thrown off their. >> is that a phone ring?

>> it is. >> mister olson is trying to play with new technology. >> guilty as charged.>> the gentleman apologizes and it's excepted. >> thank you madam chair. >> could you address the concerns we are hearing about this market?>> i will try to address those interned. we welcome the submission which is part of the reason why we've got this open process to take public input. looking at the overall tenure of the letter it's supportive of our approach. we want to take these concerns into account. overall, the price increase that you described, it's the reason why it was important in the order last year to preserve the authority under section 201 and 202. as well as the ability to complain directly to the fcc.

we adjudicate any complaint that we get about prices that may be in violation of our rule. and if you look at the overall gist of our media approach, the notion is that price regulation deterred by deployment. if you are the owner of that infrastructure and there is heavy price regulation you would have less incentive to build out additional infrastructure. if you are a competitive interest you would be less likely to build the infrastructure of your own. why would you? we put our fingers on the scale and price regulation. also promoting an incentive to get more fiber out which the result speaks for itself. for the first time over 50 % commercial buildings in the united states are connected with fiber and we want every one of these buildings to be connected through fiber which we think it's a market-based approach to determine and it's

the right way to go.>> let me ask you another question, you're aware of the letter for the fcc regarding the real-time location data and the companies secure technologies. and on may 18, the senator called on you to recuse yourself from the investigation based on previous work have you recused yourself?>> i have not. >> did you get an opinion from the ethics office as to whether you should reduce your self?>> yes i did. >> mister walden you are recognized for five minutes. >> i appreciate again, the commissioners being here. i believe we sent a letter to the company regarding this issue. we all care for privacy and data location issues. it's something with pursuit for some time. chairman fcc -- chairman pai it's switch to electronic band. it's our understanding that the cable companies depend on this for content distribution for 100 million thousand which is

lots of people in every state or congressional district. a challenge to ensure noninterference is to know the exact location of hundreds of potentially thousands of register to receive, what is the commission doing to identify the location of these and ensure they are protected from harmful interference? and what steps has the commission taken to balance these goals to ensure that we win the race for 5g which requires mid band spectrum and the perfection that these cable companies depend upon.>> i think you put your finger on the goals we need to pair in this proceedings. we try to address the concern that you identified in a few different ways, we reduced the fees required to file some of these reports and additionally extended the timeframe by 90 days october 17 is when the

deadline is for reporting in addition we recognize some of these entities are smaller and may not have the resources to compile the full study required traditionally so it's important to streamline the process to get as much information as they can within the record and we are confident that steps like these will enable us to get us a more robust level of participation in order to make a fully informed decision about the appropriate disposition. >> thank you. as you've heard from many members of both sides of the aisle, we need to do more as a country to connect each other with high-speed data and broadband connection and what can you tell us about the work that the fcc is doing today to close this initial divide? what should we look forward to going forward and what do you need from us? >> i appreciate the question, we are doing a lot, i don't want to use the remainder of your time but i will say with

the two critical tools in the toolbox we have, modernization of a regulation, and the wiser distribution of universal service -- service funding we are making major steps toward the divide. the program that started yesterday, the reverse broadband reverse option, the $4.5 billion mobility fund started next year. i could tell you when i'm on the ground, they are not small. this is one of the things that american people understand, especially in rural communities where it's hard to attract specialists like my parents, it's very difficult in some cases, the only way that some of these people in rural communities could get adequate healthcare is through telemedicine and you saw the response for yourself as did i at the health clinic in oregon when they heard the news that

we were proposing they increase by 42 % the budget for the rural healthcare program and they broke out in applause as they recognized this was a lifeline literally for some of these communities. pendleton and hermiston are big cities in your district. but there are other towns that will never see a specialist so i'm proud of the funding we taken on the funding side. in terms of modernization we done lots to promote infrastructure in rural areas making it easier to build towers for example in rural areas or lay fiber in places where there may not be places for deployment. i stopped in baker city oregon where they said the steps we are taking in terms of making this easier to gain access or get more spectrums, those are the tools necessary for smaller companies in particular, the ones that don't make headlines that no one knows about. these are the things that will help close the digital file.>> 5g as it rules out, -- as it rolls out what do we need to do there? >> regarding spectrum and infrastructure i outlined the steps we were taking to move

quickly. i came from some conferences where i could tell you that counterparts abroad are interested and envious, we are in the lead in terms of spectrum leadership and as far as infrastructure goes, commissioner carr has done an able job, we need to think nimbly and progressively about how to monetize -- modernizer regulations. sparsely populated cell towers are fading away. the era of the small cell, hundreds of small cells being deployed here. our regulatory approach needs to be as nimble as the industry we are seeking to regulate. >> my time has expired, meta- chair thank you for having this hearing and the commissioners for your participation.>> the gentleman yields back, the votes have been called. mister pallone will ask his question and i will move to recess the subcommittee until we have returned from the vote.

mister pallone are recognized for five minutes.>> thank you madame chairman. i was glad to see the commission vote regarding this transaction for the administration to review. i've long had serious concerns about this merger including the agreement that sinclair used to try to hide the scope of the transaction. we wrote two weeks ago to ask them to review how these sham agreements affect localism and diversity and competition. last night the president tweeted and i quote, " those sad and unfair that the fcc would not approve the merger with tribune. this would have been a great and much-needed conservative voice for and of the people. liberal fake news in dc and comcast gets approved much bigger but not sinclair. disgraceful. " le-quote. the only thing i find distasteful is that they try to undermine the integrity of dedicated journalists wildly simply trying to amplify his

message at the expense of local news across the country. so what we just ask yes or no if i can ask you do you agree with the president, yes or no? >> i stand by our decision. i think the hearing designation -- >> i do not agree with that. >> i know we only have three minutes, given the presidents solicitation of the merger, you commit to ensuring that a comprehensive and thorough review conducted by the alj insulated from the president or anybody reporting -- yes or no? >> we have already issued an order. and understand that it is the purview of the administrative law judge. >> you're going to assure that

a comprehensive review is conducted by the alj? >> we should note >> has the president discussed this with you or anyone at the secretary, do you commit to disclosing that in the public document? >> yes we have ex parte rules about specific proceedings. we are limited to what information we receive and what we can put on the record. that is pursuant to ex parte rules. >> the president said he wants a conservative voice. that's what concerns me. i don't and you're supposed to make decisions on what a conservative or liberal might be. is the secretary considered an secretary -- a liberal or

conservative viewpoint, do you care whether it is a conservative you are not? >> i think the answer that i gave in december as a nominee, you can look at the fact, and apply the law. and make a decision that is in the public interest. >> how would you help if we are not looking at this from an ideological point of view, which the president is trying to achieve. the secretary unanimously approved to -- or lack of candor to the commission about the merger. whether he is lying to the commission -- making misrepresentations. without commenting on the -- will the commission conduct a factual inquiry, with the lack of candor regarding -- at the time

of the renewal, yes or no? >> congressman, the issue has been referred to the alj. i can't comment under advice of our general caution -- general counsel -- from the issues that were -- >> so the answer is, would you like to add anything to that? >> i would point out that we have raised issues about the candor of the company before the secretary and the misrepresentations they made in the context in the documents. i think there are serious issues about the qualifications to the extent that they have been identified as a problem here. and open for investigation under other context. >> thank you. >> the committee stands and recess. -- in recess.

commissioner o'reilly,