THE LEDE: A group of 10 Democratic Senators including Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) wrote to the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday opposing any action that would prevent the Federal Communications Commission from getting the funds needed to enforce the net-neutrality rules passed in December. The House recently voted to block any funding that would be used to implement the rules, which most Republicans oppose.

“The final network neutrality rules are built on principles everyone should support – promoting transparency of broadband service operations; preventing blocking of legal content and websites; and prohibiting discrimination of individuals, applications, and other websites,” the senators wrote. “Some members of Congress have decided that they know better what is good for the Internet than the people who use, fund, and work on it. We side with the agency of expertise and supporters of the rule and urge you to reject any proposals that will prevent the FCC from implementing or enforcing its net neutrality rules.”

Sens. Al Franken (D-Minn.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mark Udall (D-Colo.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Mark Begich (D-Alaska) joined Kerry and Rockefeller in the letter to Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) and ranking member Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)

Lugar to unveil energy play on Facebook: In a first for the upper chamber, Sen. Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) will announce his Practical Energy Plan exclusively on Facebook Thursday at 11 a.m. Lugar will discuss his plan to reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil with fans who must "Like" his Facebook page to see the webcast. Lugar has a tradition of embracing new tools to communicate with his constituents; he was the first Senator to participate in a C-SPAN call-in TV show in the early 1980s.

On Tap Thursday: The American Consumer Institute will hold a panel discussion on the FCC's recent Wireless Report and the latest news surrounding AT&T's proposed acquisition of T-Mobile USA. The event will take place at noon in Rayburn House Office Building.

Senators agree on data breach, split over privacy bill: Members of the Senate Commerce Committee expressed broad agreement on the need for a national data breach reporting standard but were less unified with regards to the prospect of comprehensive privacy legislation at a hearing on Wednesday. Both Chairman Rockefeller and Sen. Kerry spoke of the need for comprehensive privacy protections, but ranking member Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) was less convinced of the need for comprehensive privacy legislation. Toomey said he wanted a clear picture of the potential harms to consumers that would be addressed by any privacy bill along with the potential cost to industry.

Both witnesses and lawmakers agreed on need for a national data reporting standard to replace the current patchwork of state laws. Rockefeller has offered a data-breach bill with Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) that has drawn industry support; there are also several similar measures being considered in the House. A national data breach reporting standard appears likely to pass this year either as part of comprehensive privacy or security legislation or as a stand-alone measure.

Senates Dems refresh website: Senate Democrats unveiled a revamped website on Wednesday that includes a database of Senate votes, a blog and more than 500 YouTube videos. The sites features live updates from the Senate floor along with daily summaries and vote counts. The videos explain legislation and highlight key speeches, hearings and press briefings. The archive of Senate votes stretches back to 1989, and a blog featuring posts from anonymous staffers will offer views on new legislation, debates and long-term goals for the caucus. Check out the new site at democrats.senate.gov.

House E&C Committee to hold series of privacy hearings starting July 14: The House Energy and Commerce Committee will hold the first in a series of hearings on consumer privacy and data collection on July 14. Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade Subcommittee Chairwoman Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.) and Telecom subpanel Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) will lead the effort with a joint hearing featuring testimony from federal regulators including the Federal Communications Commission and Federal Trade Commission.

The hearing will focus on existing privacy laws in hopes of identifying key issues for future legislation. Topics the committee plans to address during future hearings include whether consumers are aware of their data being collected and whether they have any means to control it; aggregation and anonymization of personally identifiable information; and the role of targeted online advertising.

NFL to FCC on retrans: Don't end local game blackouts - The National Football League filed comments with the FCC this week urging the agency not to end blackouts of local sports games. NFL games are often blacked out locally when they fail to sell out 72 hours in advance in order to compel fans to buy tickets. The FCC's sports blackout rules prevent cable or satellite providers from carrying a game locally when the free broadcast has been blacked out under the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961.

Last month the Sports Fan Coalition wrote to the FCC asking the agency to prevent games from being blacked out due to retransmission disputes between broadcasters and pay-TV providers. The NFL argued in response that the sports blackout rule serves the public interest and has been repeatedly approved by Congress. The League contends that waiving the rule during retrans disputes would encourage brinkmanship by pay-TV providers.

Members of the Senate Commerce Committee expressed broad agreement on the need for a national data breach reporting standard but were less unified with regards to the prospect of comprehensive privacy legislation at a hearing on Wednesday.

Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) said his Do Not Track Online Act focuses on forcing companies to give consumers a clear picture of what information they're collecting and allowing those users a single easy way to stop the collection process.

"This bill is based on a simple concept. With an easy click of the mouse, consumers can tell all online companies that they do not want their information collected. Under my bill, companies would be obliged to honor that request. It’s that simple," Rockefeller said.

"I don't think that's too much to ask."

Rockefeller also voiced support for a comprehensive privacy bill from Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and McCain (R-Ariz.), calling it "a very good piece of legislation." But ranking member Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) was less convinced of the need for comprehensive privacy legislation.

"I"m not sure there is a consensus yet on how to best protect consumers or whether a legislative solution is the best method for doing so," Toomey said in his opening remarks, arguing the U.S. has been more innovative on the Web in part because firms are not subject to the same regulations as in European nations.

Toomey said he wanted a clear picture of the potential harms to consumers that would be addressed by any privacy bill along with the potential cost to industry. He also pointed out that millions of people voluntarily share personal information on Facebook and Twitter.

Senate Democrats unveiled a revamped website on Wednesday that includes a database of Senate votes, a blog and more than 500 YouTube videos.

The new site will feature live updates from the Senate floor along with daily summaries and vote counts. A live Twitter feed from Democrats on the front offers real-time thoughts from lawmakers.

The videos explain legislation and highlight key speeches, hearings and press briefings. The archive of Senate votes stretches back to 1989, and a blog featuring posts from anonymous staffers will offer views on new legislation, debates and long-term goals for the caucus.

Check out the new site at democrats.senate.gov.

Two prominent Republicans on House Energy and Commerce Committee announced Wednesday that the first in a series of hearings on consumer privacy and data collection will take place on July 14th.

Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade Subcommittee Chairwoman Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.) and Telecom subpanel Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.) will lead the effort with a joint hearing featuring testimony from federal regulators including the Federal Communications Commission and Federal Trade Commission.

“Chairman [Fred] Upton (R-Mich.) has asked me to take the lead in this Congress on what we need to do on U.S. Internet privacy policy, and with input from Greg Walden and my other colleagues, I’m eager to take on that challenge,” Bono Mack said.

“Most Americans are concerned about how our personal information is handled on the Internet. What we need to figure out is what role the federal government should play in protecting it."

The hearing focus on existing privacy laws in hopes of identifying key issues for future legislation. Topics the committee plans to address during future hearings include whether consumers are aware of their data being collected and whether they have any means to control it; aggregation and anonymization of personally identifiable information; and the role of targeted online advertising.

The National Football League filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission this week urging the agency not to end blackouts of local sports games.

NFL games are often blacked out locally when they fail to sell out 72 hours in advance in order to compel fans to buy tickets. The FCC's sports blackout rules prevent cable or satellite providers from carrying a game locally when the free broadcast has been blacked out under the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961.

Last month the Sports Fan Coalition wrote to the FCC asking the agency to prevent games from being blacked out due to retransmission disputes between broadcasters and pay-TV providers, such as the recent standoff between Cablevision and Fox that caused millions of New York-area residents to miss the first two games of the 2010 World Series.

The NFL argued in response that the sports blackout rule serves the public interest and has been repeatedly approved by Congress. The League contends that waiving the rule during retrans disputes would encourage brinkmanship by pay-TV providers.

"The SFC’s proposal would not help fans, but instead would work to the advantage of only one interest: pay-TV providers," the NFL said.

Gannett Government Media, which includes the Army Times, Defense News and the Federal Times, was hacked and user information was breached earlier this month.

Sony is shuffling the leadership of its video game unit, which was the target of several data breaches in recent months.

HP has struggled since CEO Mark Hurd resigned one year ago.

California lawmakers are not ready to give up on a law that prevents the sale of violent video games to minors.

THE LEDE: The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing Wednesday on privacy and data security that will examine three key pieces of legislation currently in front of the Senate: the Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights from Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.), the Data Security and Breach Notification Act, from Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), and Rockefeller's Do-Not-Track Online Act.

Witnesses for the first panel of the 10 a.m. hearing will be Federal Trade Commissioner Julie Brill, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) general counsel Austin Schlick and Commerce Department general counsel Cameron Kerry, who is Sen. Kerry's younger brother. The second panel includes HP chief privacy officer Scott Taylor, Sony Network Entertainment President Tim Schaff and Consumers Union regulatory counsel Ioana Rusu.

The nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports magazine released the results of a May poll on Tuesday that shows two-thirds of Americans want the government to play a role in protecting their privacy online and 81 percent favor some sort of permanent Do Not Track mechanism. Rusu's prepared remarks voice support for adding Rockefeller's Do Not Track provision to the Privacy Bill of Rights, along with establishing national standards for protecting consumers' personal information and notifying them in the event of a breach. Taylor will also voice HP's support for federal privacy legislation at the hearing.

The Business Software Alliance issued a statement praising the Privacy Bill of Rights and data breach bills, but was silent on a Do Not Track requirement. The Federal Trade Commission has warned developers of Web browsers to give users the option of turning off online tracking or risk having the feature mandated by law. Technology Policy Institute President Thomas Lenard's prepared remarks for the hearing include an argument against imposing the requirement, noting the three major browsers are working on a solution and should be allowed to do so with no additional pressure or requirements.

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Two-thirds of consumers want the government to safeguard their privacy online, according to a poll released by Consumers Union.

A coalition of advocacy groups wrote to Federal Communications Commission chairman Julius Genachowski on Tuesday asking him to hold field hearings on AT&T's proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile USA.

The groups, which include Public Knowledge, Consumers Union, and Media Access Project, cite the FCC's field hearing in Chicago on the NBC Universal-Comcast merger and ask Genachowski to hold a series of publis hearings around the country to discuss the implications of the merger.

"Your testimony makes clear that the FCC has become a leader in providing online tools that allow the agency to communicate to the public and the public to communicate to the agency," the groups state.

"But as the Commission realizes, online participation is not enough—particularly when millions of Americans do not have adequate broadband access. Therefore, public hearings will provide an opportunity for all stakeholders to provide their input directly to the Commission."

The groups argued the merger would essentially reduce the wireless market to a duopoly leading to higher prices for consumers and less innovation. They urged the Commission to scrutinize the transaction as closely as possible.