The following statement was delivered on 24 May 1995 by the Congressman in support of the markup of The Communications Act of 1995

Rush, Bobby L.

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Trotter ReviewVolume 9Issue 2 The Information Superhighway andCommunities of ColorArticle 139-21-1995Politics and the Information SuperhighwayBobby L. RushFollow this and additional works at: http://scholarworks.umb.edu/trotter_reviewPart of the Communication Technology and New Media Commons, Political Science Commons,Science and Technology Policy Commons, and the Science and Technology Studies CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the William Monroe Trotter Institute at ScholarWorks at UMass Boston. It has been acceptedfor inclusion in Trotter Review by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at UMass Boston. For more information, please contactlibrary.uasc@umb.edu.Recommended CitationRush, Bobby L. (1995) "Politics and the Information Superhighway," Trotter Review: Vol. 9: Iss. 2, Article 13.Available at: http://scholarworks.umb.edu/trotter_review/vol9/iss2/13Politicsand theInformationSuperhighwayby The Honorable CongressmanBobby L. Rush (D-IL)The following statement was delivered on 24 May1995 by the Congressman in support of the markup ofThe Communications Act of 1995:Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to start today bycommending you and the ranking minority member, Mr.Dingell, for providing this committee with the legislativegroundwork for the information revolution which thetelecommunications industry is well on its way toembracing. We are engaged in this effort in order toensure that ALL Americans receive the benefits thatmodern technology has to offer.As I indicated in my opening statements before thesubcommittee on Telecommunication and Finance, I amproud to be a part of this legislative effort because Irepresent a part of the nation where many of the mostprogressive telecommunication companies serve myconstituents. I also want to make very clear my concernthat all players, large and small, entrepreneurs andcorporations, women and men, be granted equal footing toprovide telecommunications services and subcontractingneeds in the new competitive marketplace we areembarking toward.I join my friend my New York, Mr. Towns, in offeringan amendment that will ensure that the concerns I haveexpressed will be addressed in a proceeding by the FCC.This amendment will grant the FCC authority to identifyand eliminate market barriers for entrepreneurs and othersmall businesses in the provision and ownership oftelecommunications services, including informationservices or in the provision of parts or services to providersof telecommunications and information services.I want to raise two other points for the record. First, Isee a bit of irony in the fact, although most schools havetelephone service, that service rarely extends past theprincipal's office. According to a May 12, 1995 letter sentto the Chairman of this subcommittee, Mr. Fields, by FCCChairman Reed Hundt, 88% of the nation's classroomsare without a phone line and 97% are not connected toany computer network. In other words, we are legislatingfor competition in the telecommunications marketplaceand yet the majority of our children are not even exposedto learning the practical uses these services have to offer. Ioffer a challenge to the telecommunications industry toimpose a self-regulated mandate to provide our nation'sschools with the necessary infrastructure, computers andprogramming to ensure that there is a pool of technology-literate consumers who can benefit from the competitivemarketplace that the industry is asking Congress tolegislate.Second, I want to express my concern over the loss ofthe FCC's Tax Certificate Policy. The Commission's TaxCertificate Policy has been instrumental in substantiallyincreasing the number of broadcast licenses owned byminorities. According to testimony by William Kennard,the FCC's General Counsel, given to the SenateCommittee on Finance in March of this year, the numberof broadcast licenses owned by minorities has increasedmore than eight-fold since 1978 and during the 17-yearhistory of the Commission's Tax Certificate Program. Thelack of access to capital was identified by the Commissionin 1981 as the biggest obstacle to ownership. Clearly, theTax Certificate Program is the reason for the gains wehave seen until recently.I wanted to express my concerns for the record on thisissue and express my strong hope that we are notwitnesses to a new policy trend. It was impossible to notnotice that, out of all the 49 witnesses who offeredtestimony during the hearings held by theTelecommunication and Finance subcommittee, only onewas African-American, the Honorable Larry Irving,Assistant Secretary of Commerce. . .a public servant.39

Politics and the Information Superhighway

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