Statement of Congressman John D. Dingell, Chairman
Committee on Energy and Commerce

SUBCOMMITTEE ON
TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND THE INTERNET
PUBLIC SAFETY AND BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT MARKUP

October 10, 2007

Good Afternoon. Today, the Subcommittee will markup two important pieces of telecommunications legislation. Both will serve the interests of consumers. One concerns public safety and the other addresses broadband deployment. I am happy to support both.

The first bill we will take up is aimed at improving broadband deployment across the United States. The bill will greatly improve the quality of Government-collected data concerning broadband availability. The bill also aims to assist underserved communities in taking concrete steps to improve broadband deployment in their areas. Much of this legislation is modeled after the very successful Connect Kentucky program, and it is my hope that this bill will enable our entire Nation to achieve the same results as Kentucky. Some details must be resolved before we move to full Committee markup, and I am committed to working to address concerns of my colleagues.

The second bill we will take up today, H.R. 3403, deals with 9-1-1 service. I wish to commend my good friend and colleague, Rep. Gordon, for his longstanding leadership on this critical public safety issue. The legislation aims to ensure that consumers who use voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) services have the same ability to reach 9-1-1 emergency services as subscribers to wireline or wireless services. The legislation also ensures that VoIP providers are on equal footing with respect to liability when providing 9-1-1 services. I congratulate Rep. Gordon on advancing this measure. It improves our 9-1-1 system, and I will support it.

Thank you again, Mr. Chairman.