9/7. The Senate Judiciary Committee announced an ambitious agenda for its executive business meeting of Thursday, September 9. It includes Sen. Chambliss's L-1 visa bill, the House bill to replace copyright arbitration royalty panels, and judicial nominees.

The agenda includes consideration of S 1635, the "L-1 Visa (Intracompany Transferee) Reform Act of 2003", sponsored by Sen. Saxbe Chambliss (R-GA). This bill has been placed on the Committee's agenda many times in the past, only to be held over.

The agenda also includes HR 1417, the "Copyright Royalty and Distribution Reform Act of 2004", a bill to amend the Copyright Act to replace copyright arbitration royalty panels with Copyright Royalty Judges. It is sponsored by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA), and Rep. John Conyers (D-MI). The House passed HR 1417 on March 3, 2004 by a vote of 406-0. See, Roll Call No. 37. See also, story titled "House Passes Copyright Royalty and Distribution Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 849, March 4, 2004.

The agenda also includes S 2204, the "Stop Terrorist and Military Hoaxes Act of 2004", a bill to provide criminal penalties for false information and hoaxes relating to terrorism. The Senate bill is sponsored by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA). The House Judiciary Committee approved its version of this bill, HR 1678, on May 12, 2004.

The agenda also includes consideration of numerous judicial nominees, including Claude Allen (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit), and David Nahmias (Northern District of Georgia).

The Senate Judiciary Committee typically does not actually take up all of the items on its executive business meeting agendas.

Also, several bills that fall within the jurisdiction of the Senate Judiciary Committee are notably not on the agenda for the September 9 meeting.

S 2560, the "Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act of 2004 " is not on the agenda. Although, Sen. Hatch, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), their staffs, the Copyright Office, and interested parties have been working on revised language since the Committee's July 22, 2004 hearing.

9/7. President Bush nominated Paul Crotty to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court (SDNY). See, White House release. He currently works for Verizon. He has also worked as New York City Corporation Counsel.

This nomination comes very late in the 108th Congress, just before a Presidential election. However, Crotty is a consensus nominee. His nomination is also supported by Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY). The Southern District of New York lies within the state that he represents. Moreover, Sen. Schumer is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Crotty's nomination is also supported by New York Governor George Pataki, a Republican. See, Sen. Schumer release.

Crotty testified on March 6, 2002 before the Senate Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Communications regarding wireless communications infrastructure.

9/7. Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge gave a speech, and answered questions, at the National Press Club in Washington DC. See, transcript.

He was asked, "Do we need a national ID card and should it include biometrics?"

Ridge (at right) responded that "The legislation that created the department specifically prohibited a national ID card, but I must tell you that there are areas where identification, and cards including biometrics, are needed and part of our mission in homeland security to get done."

He continued that "We are obliged to come up with transportation worker identification cards. We literally have hundreds of thousands of people who not only have access to potential points of vulnerability, but are driving trucks with hazardous material and the like. We're in the process of doing that. One of the things we're looking -- we are doing, looking at within the administration is a set of basic requirements for federal employees and contractors that work here. We're in discussion with the National Governors' Association to see if we can come to some agreement where at least on the driver's license there is an agreement among -- and this is tough to do. It's a federal system. You don't mandate this, and it's a challenge we have. But the National Governors' Association wanted to take it on."

He also addressed driver's licenses. "Are there certain pieces of information that all states would require to be included as part of their driver's license? Because that is the most commonly referred to piece of identification that people are more often than not inclined to use. So no national ID, but what we have an opportunity to use biometrics, and particularly to identify people who have access to certain areas -- nuclear power plants and airports and the like, or the driver's license -- we're working toward a little more regularity and a certain standard that we would be able to use across the board."

9/3. The AEI Brookings Joint Center for Regulatory Studies released a paper [16 pages in PDF] titled "The Coming Revolution in Information Markets". Its authors, Robert Hahn and Paul Tetlock, argue that information markets "have the potential to revolutionize the way government, the non-profit world, and the private sector do business. Moving to a performance-based policy paradigm could have great benefits for consumers and the economy. In addition to providing economic benefits, this approach would also promote greater accountability and transparency in the development of policy."

They define information markets as "markets for contracts that yield payments based on the outcome of an uncertain future event".

John Poindexter, during his recent and brief tenure as head of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Information Awareness Office (IAO), proposed using an information market to assist in the prediction of terrorist events. Criticism of this proposal was one of the reasons that he resigned in August of 2003. Before being abandoned, it went by the name of Futures Markets Applied to Predict, or FutureMAP for short.

On August 12, 2003, he wrote a public letter [5 pages in PDF] addressed to Anthony Tether, Director of the DARPA, in which he explained and advocated the activities of his office, including FutureMAP. See, story titled "Poindexter Writes About Uses of Information Technology to Fight Terrorism" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 719, August 15, 2003.

Hahn and Tetlock argue that Poindexter's idea, in theory, was "not a bad idea". The problem was that he picked "the really hard case first".

These information markets would utilize the internet. Hence, Hahn and Tetlock argue that anyone who sets up such a market could be regulated by 50 different state gambling commissions. They argue that the federal government should preempt state gambling commissions from regulating information markets.

9/1. The U.S. Court of Appeals (7thCir) issued its divided opinion [28 pages in PDF] in Gutierrez v. AT&T Broadband LLC, a case involving the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), which is codified at 15 U.S.C. §§ 1692, et seq.

The defendant corporations prevailed in the District Court, and on appeal, on a mechanical, if not tenuous, reading of the statute. One Judge of the Court of Appeals wrote a vigorous dissent, in which she attacked the contracting, billing, collection, and litigation practices of various AT&T Corp. entities, more than she criticized the majority's interpretation of the statute. She wrote that the defendants "played a shell game with its various corporate affiliates", and that its attorneys "should have been sanctioned" for their litigation practices. She wrote that the defendants' approach "is what has brought the American discovery system into international disrepute."

TLJ normally abbreviates corporate names for the sake of brevity. For example, the "Microsoft Corporation" is usually referred to as merely "Microsoft". However, in this article, full corporate named are used because this case involves what Judge Wood labeled a "shell game" conducted subsidiary corporations of AT&T Corp. by using abbreviated versions of corporate names.

Francis Gutierrez and Joseph Rydel contracted for cable television service by an entity which identified itself to them as "AT&T Broadband". Gutierrez and Rydel disputed charges that were placed on their bills. The cable service entity then turned the claims over to a third party collection agency, which attempted to collect on behalf of "AT&T Broadband".

Gutierrez and Rydel initially filed a complaint in Illinois state court against AT&T Broadband LLC.

AT&T Broadband LLC moved to dismiss the state court action on the grounds that the plaintiffs did not contract with it. Rather, it stated that the plaintiffs contracted with two companies named LaSalle Telecommunications, Inc. and Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc.

AT&T Broadband LLC asserted that AT&T Broadband (with no LLC attached) is not a legal entity. Rather, it is merely a brand name used, not by AT&T Broadband LLC, but by LaSalle Telecommunications, Inc. and Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc.

Moreover, LaSalle Telecommunications, Inc., Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc., and AT&T Broadband LLC share the same parent, AT&T Corp.

Also, while AT&T Broadband LLC asserted that AT&T Broadband is a brand name of Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc., Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc. did not register "AT&T Broadband" as a service mark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and did not register "AT&T Broadband" as an assumed name with the state of Illiniois -- that is, until litigation was under way.

When AT&T Broadband LLC made these assertions, Gutierrez and Rydel filed a second complaint in U.S. District Court (NDIll) against AT&T Broadband LLC and Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc. alleging that this billing and collection scheme constituted violations of the FDCPA.

Relevant Sections of the FDCPA. Section 1692 contains the Congressional findings and declaration of purpose of the FDCPA. Section 1692a contains definitions, included that of "debt collector". Section 1692e prohibits false and misleading representations by debt collectors. Section 1692j prohibits furnishing certain deceptive forms.

§ 1692a(6) provides, in part, that "The term ``debt collector´´ means any person who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in any business the principal purpose of which is the collection of any debts, or who regularly collects or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another."

§ 1692e provides, in part, that "A debt collector may not use any false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is a violation of this section: ... (14) The use of any business, company, or organization name other than the true name of the debt collector's business, company, or organization."

§ 1692j provides, in part, that "It is unlawful to design, compile, and furnish any form knowing that such form would be used to create the false belief in a consumer that a person other than the creditor of such consumer is participating in the collection of or in an attempt to collect a debt such consumer allegedly owes such creditor, when in fact such person is not so participating."

Complaint in U.S. District Court. Both plaintiffs alleged that AT&T Broadband LLC violated § 1692j for allegedly designing, compiling, and furnishing "any form knowing that such form would be used to create the false belief in a consumer that a person other than the creditor of such consumer is participating in the collection of ... a debt ..."

Rydel only also alleged that Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc. violated § 1692e, by using a "name other than the true name of the debt collector's business, company, or organization".

The District Court granted summary judgment to the defendants, AT&T Broadband, LLC and Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc. Gutierrez and Rydel appealed.

Majority Opinion. The Court of Appeals affirmed in a split opinion. Judge Michael Kanne wrote the majority opinion, in which Judge Frank Easterbrook joined. Judge Diane Wood dissented, vociferously.

The majority first rejected the 1692j argument. The Court wrote that the purpose of this section it to prohibit a practice called "flat-rating", or the selling of letterhead by a collection agency to a purported creditor, in exchange for a fee, in order to give demand letters greater intimidation value. It found that the practice employed here is not the kind of deception that the statute was intended to prohibit.

In addition, the Court also found that AT&T Broadband LLC did not design, compile, and furnish the allegedly deceptive forms, as required for a violation of this section.

The majority then rejected Rydel's 1692e argument. It reasoned that for Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc. to be held liable under this section, it must be a "debt collector", but that it could not be a "debt collector" because § 1692a(6) defines "debt collector" as someone who collects debts owed to another. The Court concluded it is the creditor, not a debt collector working on behalf of the creditor.

The gist of the Court's analysis is that it does not matter if it used a name different from its own, even if it was not legally permitted to use such a name. What mattered is that Rydel could not have been deceived. That is, while Rydel might have seen paperwork that said "AT&T" on it, he never knew of the existence of Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc. until well into the litigation process. The Court wrote that the "bills could not have left Rydel, or any unsophisticated consumer, with the impression that a third party was involved in the debt collection process."

Dissent. Judge Dianne Wood was shocked. She wrote in her dissent that "in my opinion there are disputed issues of material fact that render summary judgment in favor of the defendants inappropriate at this time. This is true even taking the record as my colleagues do. Unlike them, however, I would find that the district court abused its discretion in refusing to permit the plaintiffs to conduct further discovery when AT&T pulled key affidavits out of its hat at the last minute. Indeed, throughout the pretrial proceedings, AT&T’s approach to the case was deplorable. It played a shell game with its various corporate affiliates, forcing the plaintiffs to guess which entity was doing what at each moment. To this day, I am not sure myself. This record contains no answers to important questions such as what type of entity Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc. (CCC) is; how is it related to the other AT&T corporate entities at issue here; and where did it derive its authority to use the AT&T name and logo, in combination with the word ``Broadband.´´ Moreover, AT&T’s conduct during discovery bordered on the sanctionable, and at the very least, should not have been allowed to stand uncorrected. I would remand this case for further proceedings."

With respect to the 1692e claim, she wrote that "My colleagues take a ``no harm, no foul´´ approach to the problem of the mis-named service provider, but the FDCPA does not." She also recited the harms to consumers. She added that had they known of the deception, "they may have chosen a different method for receiving television services. Satellite TV is one alternative option for consumers".

This case is Francis Gutierrez and Joseph Rydel v. AT&T Broadband LLC and Communications and Cable of Chicago, Inc., U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, App. Ct. No. 03-3484, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, D.C. No. 01 C 7025, Judge Amy St. Eve presiding.

9/7. President Bush nominated Rep. Porter Goss (R-FL) to be Director of Central Intelligence. President Bush previously announced that he would make this appointment. If confirmed, he would replace George Tenet, who previously resigned. See, White House release.

9/7. The U.S. District Court (DMd) issued its opinion [5 pages in PDF] in Verizon Maryland, Inc. v. Mobile Dredging and Pumping Company, a case regarding liability for damage to underwater cables during a dredging operation. Verizon's predecessor laid underwater (but not buried) cable under the Byrd River in Maryland in 1971. The Corps or Engineers issued it a permit that provides that "That the permittee shall assume full responsibility for any and all damage which may be caused by or to navigation by reason of placing the cable loosely on the bottom." Mobile Dredging, while dredging the river, damages two cables. Verizon filed a complaint in U.S. District Court against Mobile Dredging seeking damages. Jurisdiction is based upon diversity of citizenship. Mobile Dredging filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that the above quoted language constitutes an assumption of the risk of damage to unburied cable by Verizon. The District Court denied the motion.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Republican Whip Notice.

The Senate will meet at 10:30 AM for morning business. At 11:30 AM it will begin consideration of HR 4567, the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act for FY 2005.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee will meet to mark up several bills, including HR 4661, the "Internet Spyware (I-SPY) Prevention Act of 2004", and HR 4077, the "Piracy Deterrence and Education Act of 2004". HR 4661 is the spyware bill sponsored by Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), of the Judiciary Committee. The House Commerce Committee has already approved its spyware bill, HR 2929, the "Safeguard Against Privacy Invasions Act" or "SPY Act", sponsored by Rep. Mary Bono (R-CA). See, story titled "House Commerce Committee Approves Spyware Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 926, June 25, 2004. HR 4661 is the fifth item on the agenda. HR 4077 is the sixth item on the agenda. The markup is scheduled to continue on Thursday, September 9 at 10:00 AM. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on judicial nominations. The agenda includes Susan Neilson (nominated to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit), Micaela Alvarez (Southern District of Texas), Keith Starrett (Southern District of Mississippi), and Raymond Finch (District Court of the Virgin Islands). Press contact: Margarita Tapia at 202 224-5225. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) will preside. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing titled "Protecting our Financial Infrastructure: Preparation and Vigilance". The witness will include Robert Liscouski (Department of Homeland Security) and Wayne Abernathy (Department of the Treasury). Location: Room 2128, Rayburn Building.

11:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "Law Enforcement Access to Communications Systems in a Digital Age". On August 9, 2004 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Declaratory Ruling (NPRM & DR) [100 pages in PDF] regarding imposing Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) obligations upon broadband internet access services and voice over internet protocol (VOIP) services. See, notice of hearing. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Mass Media Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. William Freedman, Deputy Chief of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Enforcement Bureau's (EB) Investigations and Hearings Division, will discuss the FCC's policies and procedures for enforcement of indecency related complaints. No RSVP is required. Location: National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), 1771 N Street NW, Conference Rooms A&B.

1:00 - 2:00 PM. Harris Miller, President of the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), will host an event titled "Media Availability / Teleconference" to release a report titled "Adding Value … Growing Careers:  The Employment Outlook in Today's Increasingly Competitive IT Job Market". The report will be published in the ITAA web site on September 8. Call in to 1-800-416-8128. The participant code is 277364. For more information, contact Bob Cohen at 703 284-5301 or bcohen@itaa.org.

2:30 PM. The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing titled "Spectrum for Public Safety Users". The witnesses will be Michael Powell (FCC Chairman), Stephen Devine (Missouri State Highway Patrol), Gary Grube (Motorola), David Donovan (Association for Maximum Service Television), Robert LeGrande (District of Columbia), Bud Paxson (Paxson Communications Corporation). The hearing will be webcast by the Committee. Press contact: David Wonnenberg at 202 224-2670 or david_wonnenberg @commerce.senate.gov. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

5:30 - 6:45 PM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a lecture by Sam Peltzman (University of Chicago) titled "Regulation and the Natural Progress of Opulence". He will argue that some regulations make matters worse because of offsetting personal or market behavior, and discuss why some counterproductive regulations remain in place while others are repealed. The lecture will be followed by a reception. See, notice. Location: AEI, Twelfth floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its further notice of proposed rulemaking (FNPRM) to determine whether mobile satellite service (MSS) operators using different technologies could share additional spectrum in the 1610-1626.5 MHz band (L-band). This FNPRM is FCC 04-134 in IB Docket No. 02-364 and ET Docket No. 00-258. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 9, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 152, at Pages 48192 - 48194.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Republican Whip Notice.

9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. See, agenda [4 pages in PDF]. The event will be webcast. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of numerous items, including S 1635, the "L-1 Visa (Intracompany Transferee) Reform Act of 2003" sponsored by Sen. Saxbe Chambliss (R-GA). This bill has been placed on the Committee's agenda many times in the past, only to be held over. The agenda also includes HR 1417, the "Copyright Royalty and Distribution Reform Act of 2004", a bill to amend the Copyright Act to replace copyright arbitration royalty panels with Copyright Royalty Judges. The House has already passed this bill. The agenda also includes consideration of judicial nominees, including Claude Allen (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit), and David Nahmias (Northern District of Georgia). Press contact: Margarita Tapia at 202 224-5225. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee will meet to continue its mark up of several bills. The agenda includes HR 4661, the "Internet Spyware (I-SPY) Prevention Act of 2004", and HR 4077, the "Piracy Deterrence and Education Act of 2004". HR 4661 is the fifth item on the agenda. HR 4077 is the sixth item on the agenda. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury and General Government will meet to mark up the appropriations bill for the Departments of Transportation and Treasury, the Executive Office of the President, and certain independent agencies for FY 2005. Location: Room 116, Dirksen Building.

2:00 - 4:30 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "Discussion on the Debt Collection Improvement Act Rules and Rules Governing Applications or Other Request for Benefits by Debtors". See, original notice [PDF] and rescheduling notice [PDF]. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th Street, SW.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a demonstration titled "How NASDAQ's Electronic Market Works". The speakers will be Frank Hatheway and Peter Marlyn (NASDAQ) and Peter Wallison (AEI). See, notice. Location: AEI, Twelfth floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding its notice in the Federal Register that it intends to withdraw Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 46–3, which specified the Data Encryption Standard (DES), and the associated FIPS 74 and FIPS 81. The NIST has determined that "the strength of the DES algorithm is no longer sufficient to adequately protect Federal government information". See, Federal Register, July 26, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 142, at Pages 44509 - 44510. Send comments to descomments@nist.gov.

8:00 AM - 5:30 PM. The George Mason School of Law's (GMULS) Journal of Law, Economics and Policy will host a one day symposium titled "The Economics of Self Help and Self Defense in Cyberspace". See, event brochure [PDF]. The event is free, but requires pre-registration. Location: GMUSL, 3301 Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA.

9:30 - 11:00 AM. The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) will host a panel discussion titled "Telecommunications Reform: Is the “Network Layers” Approach the Right One?". The speakers will be Rick Whitt (Senior Director of Global Policy and Planning at WorldCom), Link Hoeing (Assistant Vice President, Issues Management and Technology Policy at Verizon), and Rob Atkinson (Director of the PPI's Technology and New Economy Project). Free. Breakfast will be served. Location: PPI, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 400.

12:00 NOON. Dane Snowden, Chief of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, will hold a press briefing. RSVP to Rosemary Kimball at 202 418-0511 or rosemary.kimball@fcc.gov. Location: FCC, 445 12th St., SW, Hearing Room B/Conference Room, TW A-402/A-442.

Extended deadline to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its public notice (DA 04-1690) requesting public comments on constitutionally permissible ways for the FCC to identify and eliminate market entry barriers for small telecommunications businesses and to further opportunities in the allocation of spectrum-based services for small businesses and businesses owned by women and minorities. See, original notice in the Federal Register, June 22, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 119, at Pages 34672 - 34673; and, notice of extension [PDF].

Deadline to submit requests to testify at the September 23 public hearing of the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) regarding the USTR's annual report to the Congress on the Peoples Republic of China's compliance with the commitments that it made in connection with its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). Requesters must also submit a copy of their written testimony. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 29, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 145, at Pages 45369 - 45370.

9:00 AM - 5:30 PM. Day one of a two day workshop cosponsored by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics titled "Protecting Consumer Interests in Class Actions". See, FTC notice. Press contact: Claudia Farrell at 202 326-2181. Staff contact: John Delacourt (Office of Policy Planning) at 202 326-3754.

9:30 AM. The House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "The Effect of Television Violence on Children: What Policymakers Need to Know". See, notice of hearing. This hearing will be held in Chicago, Illinois, but will also be webcast by the Committee.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security will hold a hearing titled "A Review of the Tools to Fight Terrorism Act". Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) will preside. Press contact: Margarita Tapia at 202 224-5225. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

2:00 PM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in Delta Radio Inc v. FCC, No. 03-1295 Location: Courtroom __, Prettyman Courthouse, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the Library of Congress in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding continuation, with a few modifications, of the procedures adopted by the Copyright Office in 1995 that permit copyright applicants to request reconsideration of decisions to refuse registration. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 13, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 133, at Pages 42004-42007.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FCC) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to implement the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pormography and Marketing Act of 2003 (CAN-SPAM Act). See, notice in the Federal Register, August 13, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 156, at Pages 50091 - 50107. There is no reply comment period.

9:00 AM - 12:15 PM. Day two of a two day workshop cosponsored by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics titled "Protecting Consumer Interests in Class Actions". See, FTC notice. Press contact: Claudia Farrell at 202 326-2181. Staff contact: John Delacourt (Office of Policy Planning) at 202 326-3754.

9:30 AM - 5:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) North American Numbering Council will meet. See, notice and agenda [PDF]. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C305 (Commission Meeting Room).

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Mass Media Practice Committee will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Ownership Rules of the Federal Communications Commission". The speakers will include Erin Dozier (Special Advisor for Media Ownership in the FCC's Media Bureau), Jerianne Timmerman (National Association of Broadcasters), Anita Wallgren (Sidley Austin), Brian Madden (Leventhal Senter & Lerman), and Greg Schmidt (LIN Television). Prices to attend vary. See, notice. Location: Dow Lohnes & Albertson, 8th Floor, 1200 New Hampshire Ave., NW.

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