9/24. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division filed a civil complaint [12 pages in PDF] in the U.S. District Court (DC) against Adobe Systems, Apple, Google, Intel, Intuit, and Pixar alleging violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, which is codified at 15 U.S.C. § 1, in connection with their anticompetitive conduct in the hiring of highly skilled technical employees.

The DOJ and the six companies simultaneously submitted a proposed Final Judgment [12 pages in PDF] that provides that the companies will refraining "from soliciting, cold calling, recruiting, or otherwise competing for" each others' employees, subject to certain enumerated exceptions.

The complaint pertains to a series of bilateral "no cold call agreements" entered into by the six companies. It alleges that their "concerted behavior both reduced their ability to compete for employees and disrupted the normal price-setting mechanisms that apply in the labor setting."

It states that "cold calling another firm's employees is a particularly effective method of competing for computer engineers and computer scientists", particularly when such employees "may be unresponsive to other methods of recruiting".

The complaint further alleges that "These no cold call agreements are facially anticompetitive because they eliminated a significant form of competition to attract high tech employees, and, overall, substantially diminished competition to the detriment of the affected employees who were likely deprived of competitively important information and access to better job opportunities."

Molly Boast, a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the DOJ/AD, stated in a release that "The agreements challenged here restrained competition for affected employees without any procompetitive justification and distorted the competitive process".

This release adds that "Today's complaint arose out of a larger investigation by the Antitrust Division into employment practices by high tech firms. The division continues to investigate other similar no solicitation agreements."

The DOJ also filed a Competitive Impact Statement [22 pages in PDF] and released an Explanation of Consent Decree Procedures [6 pages in PDF].

Google stated in a release that it was "building partnerships with other technology companies".

It added that "In order to maintain a good working relationship with these companies, in 2005 we decided not to “cold call” employees at a few of our partner companies. Our policy only impacted cold calling, and we continued to recruit from these companies through LinkedIn, job fairs, employee referrals, or when candidates approached Google directly. In fact, we hired hundreds of employees from the companies involved during this time period."

Google also asserted that "there's no evidence that our policy hindered hiring or affected wages".

This case is U.S.A. v. Adobe Systems, Inc., et al., U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, D.C. No. 1:10-cv-01629, Judge Colleen Kotelly presiding.

9/23. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted and released a Second Memorandum Opinion and Order (2nd MOO) that addresses 17 petitions for reconsideration of the FCC's TV white space rules.

Background. The FCC adopted these rules in its Second Report and Order and Memorandum Opinion and Order [130 pages in PDF], numbered FCC 08-260, adopted on November 4, 2008, and released on November 14, 2008. See, story titled "FCC Adopts White Space Order" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,852, November 4, 2009.

See also, the October 15, 2008, the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) report [146 pages in PDF] titled "Evaluation of the Performance of Prototype TV-Band White Space Devices Phase II", and story titled "FCC Releases White Space Report" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,844, October 16, 2008. The FCC's report is OET Report FCC/OET 08-TR-1005.

The FCC received numerous petitions for reconsideration (PFR). See for example, PFR [144 pages in PDF] of the NCTA, PFR [10 pages in PDF] of Dell and Microsoft, PFR [46 pages in PDF] of Motorola, PFR [10 pages in PDF] of Sprint Nextel, Comptel, and the RTG, PFR [PDF] of Dish and Directv, PFR [PDF] of the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association, PFR [PDF] of the Wi-Fi Alliance, and PFR [28 pages in PDF] of the New America Foundation, Public Knowledge, Open Source Wireless Coalition, and others.

"When we last addressed white spaces on November 4, 2008, a momentous day in many ways, we left too many questions unresolved about the use of white spaces within the broadcasting spectrum", wrote FCC Commissioner Michael Copps in his statement. "Now we finally resolve the difficult questions and set ourselves on a course to unleash the tremendous potential of the white spaces."

2nd MOO. The just adopted item states that "We are upholding the majority of the Commission's prior decisions on the issues raised therein. In this regard, we continue to believe that the approach the Commission followed in the Second Report and Order is desirable and appropriate for this first step in allowing unlicensed operations in the TV bands. We do, however, find merit in a number of the requests for changes to the rules for TVBDs and are granting those requests by modifying and clarifying the rules in four areas."

These changes pertain to the operation of unlicensed transmitting devices in the television broadcast frequency bands, or TVBDs.

For example, this order eliminates "the requirement that TV bands devices that incorporate geo-location and database access must also listen (sense) to detect the signals of TV stations and low power auxiliary service stations (wireless microphones). As part of that change we are also revising and amending the rules in several aspects to reflect use of that method as the only means for determining channel availability. While we are eliminating the sensing requirement for TVBDs, we are encouraging continued development of this capability because we believe it holds promise to further improvements in spectrum efficiency in the TV spectrum in the future and will be a vital tool for providing opportunistic access to other spectrum bands." (Parentheses in original.)

It also reserves "two vacant UHF channels for wireless microphones and other low power auxiliary service devices in all areas of the country", among other things, to protect incumbent services from interference.

It also allows "operators of event and production/show venues that use large numbers of wireless microphones on an unlicensed basis that cannot be accommodated in the two reserved channels and any others available at that location to register the sites of those venues on TV bands databases to receive the same geographic spacing protections afforded licensed wireless microphones".

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski wrote in his statement that "U.S. companies have already invested in research and development of super Wi-Fi technologies. Now they can take this technology out of the labs and onto the market."

FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell wrote in his statement that "The white spaces formula -- unlicensed spectrum distribution, limitless potential applications and a path for continued development of advanced smart technologies -- illustrates another reason why neither open access nor net neutrality rules need be mandated. The ubiquitous availability of white spaces provides consumers a competitive alternative to existing broadband providers, an additional check against potential anti-competitive mischief, and a means to relieve spectrum congestion in licensed bands."

Furthermore, said McDowell (at left), "as with Wi-Fi, the unlicensed nature of white spaces use will accelerate its deployment and adoption much faster than if this spectrum was auctioned (if that were even practical to begin with). Our action thus helps to bring more broadband to consumers as quickly as innovation, rather than the government, will allow." (Parentheses in original.)

He also wrote that "as the use of mobile data increases, providers will need to increase their backhaul capacity, including microwave backhaul, to accommodate the expected exponential increase in traffic. Increasing the availability of microwave will serve as an additional choice for backhaul services."

The just adopted item is FCC 10-174 in ET Docket Nos. 04-186 and 02-380.

Reaction. Dennis Wharton of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) stated in a release that the "NAB's overriding goal in this proceeding has been to ensure America's continued interference-free access to high quality news, entertainment and sports provided by free and local television stations. We look forward to reviewing the details of today's ruling."

Michael Calabrese of the New America Foundation (NAF) stated in a release that "As technologies evolve and prove reliable, we fully expect the FCC to revisit some of the constraints in the rules that are intended to protect band incumbents, but which limit the potential of this TV spectrum to facilitate ubiquitous and affordable broadband deployments".

Harold Feld of the Public Knowledge stated in a release that "We understand that some details remain to be resolved with regard to the database, and that the incumbents may continue to press for further limits on this technology. We hope the FCC will give the technology the maximum flexibility to reach its potential and not burden the spectrum with requirements that would restrict its reach and usefulness. Any FCC rules should of course use caution, but not undue caution, in protecting incumbents."

Ed Black, head of the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), stated in a release that "This has been a long time coming and many companies and innovators will now be able to bring new applications and devices they have been researching and developing from the lab to the marketplace. We’re excited about what this will mean for rural broadband access, smart device technology, telemedicine and the next innovation that we cannot yet imagine."

He added that "The FCC has chosen a future of broadband abundance instead of broadband scarcity. It stood up to lobbying by incumbent business models for spectrum use that would have held the nation in the past".

The CCIA's Cathy Sloan also praised this order "for leaving the door open for the use of white spaces for licensed rural backhaul links, as more capacity and competition are sorely needed in that area".

Chris Riley of the Free Press stated in a release that this order "appears to leave plenty of room for devices to meaningfully and efficiently use spectrum, in both rural and urban areas. It preserves the real possibility that unlicensed use of this spectrum will lead to substantial consumer benefits, investment and economic growth through technological innovation".

The Consumer Electronic Association's (CEA) Julie Kearney praised this order in a release. She wrote that "Freeing up available spectrum continues to be crucial to our national competitiveness and the future of technology innovation."

Google's Rich Whitt stated in a release that "Today’s order finally sets the stage for the next generation of wireless technologies to emerge". He added that "We’re hopeful the FCC soon will name one or more administrators of the geolocation database, and establish the ground rules for its operation. Once the database is up and running, new white spaces devices and tools can begin to roll out to consumers."

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it approved by voice vote the nomination of Kathleen O'Malley to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. She is a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it approved the nomination of Goodwin Liu to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. It was a 12-7 party line vote. He is a law professor at the University of California at Berkeley. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), the ranking Republican on the SJC, stated that the 9th Circuit is "the most activist liberal court in the country", and that Liu has stated that he would not interpret the Constitution according to its original meaning, that it is acceptable for judges to use foreign law in interpreting the Constitution, and that he would expand positive Constitutional rights. See, statement.

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it approved by unanimous voice vote the nomination of Beryl Howell to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. She is a former SJC staffer for Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT). See, statement of Sen. Leahy, in which he reminded Republicans that both Judges Randall Rader and Sharon Prost are former Republican SJC staffers now on U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir). See also, statement of Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) criticizing many other pending nominees, but not Howell or O'Malley.

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it approved by unanimous voice vote the nomination of Robert Wilkins to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Wilkins is a partner in the Washington DC office of the law firm of Venable. He is a criminal defense attorney who has also worked on intellectual property cases.

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it approved the nomination of Edward Chen to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. See, statement of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA).

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it approved the nomination of John McConnell to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), the ranking Republican on the SJC, stated that McConnell "has pioneered the controversial practice of private attorneys representing State Attorneys General on contingency-fee contracts", and "has taken the unseemly step of contributing substantial amounts of money to the political campaigns of the very Attorneys General awarding those contingency-fee contracts to him -- arrangements that raise serious questions of pay-to-play". See, statement.

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it approved the nomination of Louis Butler to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. See, statement of Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI).

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it again held over consideration of the nomination of Robert Chatigny to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. He is again on the agenda for the meeting of September 30, 2010. He is a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut. He was appointed in 1994 by former President Clinton.

9/23. President Obama nominated Kurt Tong, a career Foreign Service officer, to hold the rank Ambassador during his tenure of service as U.S. Senior Official for the Asia-Pacific Economic Corporation (APEC) Forum. See, White House news office release and release.

9/27. The White House news office issue a release regarding "recruiting 10,000 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) teachers over the next two years"

9/23. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting at which it held over consideration of S 3804 [LOC | WW], the "Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act". See, story titled "Senators Introduce Bill to Enable DOJ to Shut Down Web Sites Dedicated to Infringement" and related stories in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,132, September 21, 2010. It is on the agenda for the September 30, 2010, meeting. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) stated that "I would hope that we can get to it. It is a bipartisan bill. ... We will bring it up. We will bring it to a vote next week."

9/23. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted, but did not release, a Report and Order (R&O) regarding the FCC's waste, fraud and abuse plagued e-rate tax and subsidy programs. The FCC issued a short release that describes this item, and each of the five Commissions wrote statements. The FCC adopted the relevant Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on May 20, 2010. See, story titled "FCC Adopts Another E-Rate NPRM" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,087, May 26, 2010. This item is FCC 10-175 in CC Docket No. 02-6 and GN Docket No. 09-51.

9/23. President Obama met with Japanese Prime Minister Kan. The White House news office stated in a release that the two "reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance".

9/17. The Copyright Office published a notice in the Federal Register that announces, describes, recites, and sets the effective date (September 17, 2010) for, it rules changes regarding statements of account for cable systems and satellite carriers in response to enactment of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act of 2010. See, Federal Register, September 17, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 180, at Pages 56868-56873.

9/9. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) published a notice in the Federal Register that announces, describes, recites, and sets the effective date (September 9, 2010) for, its final rule regarding updates to the version of the Manual of Regulations and Procedures for Federal Radio Frequency Management with which federal agencies must comply when requesting use of the radio frequency spectrum. See, Federal Register: September 9, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 174, at Pages 54790-54791.

9/9. Apple issued a statement regarding its approval of wireless applications for sale through its Apps Store. It announced that "we are making some important changes to our iOS Developer Program license in sections 3.3.1, 3.3.2 and 3.3.9 to relax some restrictions we put in place earlier this year. In particular, we are relaxing all restrictions on the development tools used to create iOS apps, as long as the resulting apps do not download any code. This should give developers the flexibility they want, while preserving the security we need. In addition, for the first time we are publishing the App Store Review Guidelines to help developers understand how we review submitted apps. We hope it will make us more transparent and help our developers create even more successful apps for the App Store."

9/7. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a complaint [16 pages in PDF] in the U.S. District Court (CDCal) against Lights of America, Inc., Usman Vakil, and Farooq Vakil alleging violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act in connection with their advertising and sale of light emitting diode (LED) bulbs. The FTC alleges that the defendants exaggerated the light output and life expectancy of LED bulbs that they sold. See also, FTC release. This case is FTC v. Lights of America, Inc., et al., U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, D.C. No. SACV10-1333 JVS (MLGx).

9/1. Elizabeth Duke, a member of the Federal Reserve Board (FRB), gave a speech in Washington DC. She discussed, among other things, the use of information technology in addressing problems associated with vacant and abandoned property. She said that "Data-based decisionmaking is not as easy as it sounds."

9/1. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a notice in the Federal Register requesting comments on how to conduct a survey on consumer fraud. Comments are due by November 1, 2010. See, Federal Register: September 1, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 169, at Pages 53697-53699.

8/27. Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board (FRB), gave a speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, titled "The Economic Outlook and Monetary Policy". He said that "the pace of recovery in output and employment has slowed somewhat in recent months, in part because of slower-than-expected growth in consumer spending, as well as continued weakness in residential and nonresidential construction. Despite this recent slowing, however, it is reasonable to expect some pickup in growth in 2011 and in subsequent years". He also said that "In many countries, including the United States and most other advanced industrial nations, growth during the past year has been too slow and joblessness remains too high. Financial conditions are generally much improved, but bank credit remains tight". Also, he stated that "In the business sector, real investment in equipment and software rose at an annual rate of more than 20 percent over the first half of the year. Some of these gains no doubt reflected spending that had been deferred during the crisis, including investments to replace or update existing equipment. Consequently, investment in equipment and software will almost certainly increase more slowly over the remainder of this year, though it should continue to advance at a solid pace."

8/24. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a notice in the Federal Register that announces, describes, recites, and sets the effective date (September 27, 2010) for, several minor changes to its Telemarketing Sales Rule. See, Federal Register, August 24, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 163, at Page 51934.

The House will not meet. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of September 27.

The Senate will meet at 2:00 PM. It will resume consideration of the motion to proceed on S 3816 [LOC | WW] , the "Creating American Jobs and Ending Offshoring Act".

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "The Future of Privacy Online". The speakers will be Rob Atkinson (ITIF), Daniel Castro (ITIF), Marc Eichorn (FTC), Fernando LaGuarda (Time Warner Cable), Tom Lenard (Technology Policy Institute), Tim Sparapini (Facebook), and Daniel Weitzner (NTIA). See, notice. This event is free and open to the public. Location: ITIF, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "Universal Service Reform Post Comcast: The Process, the Problems, the Prognostications". CLE credits. Prices vary. The FCBA bars reporters from some of its events. See, notice. Location: Bingham McCutcheon, 2020 K St.,  NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) regarding its further interim guidance for the patent examining corps to use when determining subject matter eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101 following the June 28, 2010, opinion [71 pages in PDF] of the Supreme Court in Bilski v. Kappos. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 27, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 143, at Pages 43922-43928. See also, story titled "USPTO Releases and Seeks Comment on Post Bilski Guidance for Examiners" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,113, July 28, 2010.

12:00 NOON. Deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) to assist it in preparing its annual report to the Congress on the People's Republic of China's compliance with the commitments made in connection with its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). The OUSTR seeks comments on, among other things, "intellectual property rights (including intellectual property rights enforcement)". See, notice in the Federal Register, August 3, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 148, at Pages 45693-45694.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding extending the electronic tariff filing requirement for incumbent local exchange carriers to all carriers that file tariffs and related documents. This NPRM is FCC 10-127 in WC Docket No. 10-141. See, FCC Public Notice and notice in the Federal Register, August 11, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 154, at Pages 48629-48641.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regarding the Agreement Containing Consent Order in the FTC's administrative action against Reverb Communications, Inc. and Tracie Snitker. See, story titled "Marketer's Posting of Product Comments in iTunes Store Violates FTC Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,129, September 9, 2010, and notice in the Federal Register, September 2, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 170, at Pages 53968-53969.

The House will meet at 10:30 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. The schedule for the week includes consideration of S 3304 [LOC | WW], the "Equal Access to 21st Century Communications Act" under suspension of the rules. The bill would expand existing FCC regulatory regimes regarding hearing aid compatibility and communications relay services. It would require the FCC to reinstate and expand its video description regulations. It would also create a vast new FCC based regulatory regime covering a wide range of software, computers, electronic devices, and services that are used for communications, including equipment and software that can be used for VOIP. It would also give the FCC broad new authority to regulate the design of electronic devices that could be used to receive or play video. The House passed its similar bill, HR 3101 [LOC | WW], also titled the "Equal Access to 21st Century Communications Act", on July 26, 2010. See, stories titled "Senate Passes Disability Access Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,120, August 6, 2010, and "Senate Commerce Committee Approves Disability Access Bill" Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of September 27 states that "no votes are expected in the House" on September 28.

Day one of a three day conference hosted by the New America Foundation (NAF) titled "The Broadband Act of 2011: Designing a Communications Act for the 21st Century". Location: NAF, 4th floor, 1899 L St., NW.

8:30 AM - 1:00 PM. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 27, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 166, at Page 52769-52770. Location: Carl Hayden Room, 8th floor, U.S. Government Printing Office, 732 North Capitol St., NW.

10:00 AM. The Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) will hold an on site and teleconferenced briefing on S 3804 [LOC | WW], the "Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act". See, story titled "Senators Introduce Bill to Enable DOJ to Shut Down Web Sites Dedicated to Infringement" and related stories in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,132, September 21, 2010. For more information, contact Brock Meeks at brock at cdt dot org or 202-407-8814. Location: CDT, 1634 I St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast and teleconferenced event titled "Intellectual Property Audits". Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.

6:00 - 8:30 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a presentation titled "Effectively Navigating The E-Discovery Process with a Government Agency". The speakers will be Tracy Greer (Department of Justice, Antitrust Division), Jeffrey Perry (Federal Trade Commission, Mergers IV), Antonia Chion (Securities and Exchange Commission), Patrick Oot (Electronic Discovery Institute). The price to attend ranges from $20 to $40. Reporters are barred from attending most DC Bar events. No CLE credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3463. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled titled "ECPA Reform -- Protecting Privacy and Security in the Digital Age". There will be one panel discussion titled "ECPA's Wild Ride: 1986 to 2010", and another titled "ECPA Reform: What We Need May Depend on Where You Sit". The speakers will include Marc Zwillinger (Zwillinger Genetski), Genie Barton (USTelecom), and John Heitmann (Kelley Drye & Warren). The speakers may also include Congressional staff and Department of Justice (DOJ) personnel. The price to attend ranges from $25 to $150. CLE credits. See, notice. For more information, contact Genie Barton at gbarton at ustelecom dot org or 202-326-7223. The FCBA excludes reporters from many of its events. Location: Dow Lohnes, 1200 New Hampshire Ave., NW.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative busines.. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of September 27.

Day two of a three day conference hosted by the New America Foundation (NAF) titled "The Broadband Act of 2011: Designing a Communications Act for the 21st Century". Location: NAF, 4th floor, 1899 L St., NW.

Day one of a three day event hosted by the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) titled "Radio Show". See, web site. Location: Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H St., NW.

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission to consider drafts of material for its 2010 Annual Report to the Congress. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 10, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 153, at Page 48412. Location: Room 233, Hall of States, 444 North Capitol St., NW.

2:00 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing on the nominations of James Graves (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit), Edward Davila (U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California), Paul Holmes (USDC/WDArk), Anthony Battaglia (USDC/SDCal), and Diana Saldana (USDC/SDTex). See, hearing notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The University of Colorado's Silicon Flatirons Center (SFC) will host an event titled "Dale Hatfield Scholars and Research Program Reception". The SFC requests donations of $100 to $250 from attendees. Location: Conference Center, 1400 16th St., NW.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of September 27

Day three of a three day conference hosted by the New America Foundation (NAF) titled "The Broadband Act of 2011: Designing a Communications Act for the 21st Century". Location: NAF, 4th floor, 1899 L St., NW.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) titled "Radio Show". See, web site. Location: Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H St., NW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda again includes consideration of Robert Chatigny to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, and S 3804 [LOC | WW], the "Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act". See, story titled "Senators Introduce Bill to Enable DOJ to Shut Down Web Sites Dedicated to Infringement" and related stories in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,132, September 21, 2010. See also, SJC meeting notice. The SJC will webcast this event. The SJC rarely follows its published agendas. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee's (SENRC) Subcommittee on Energy will hold a hearing on S 3521 [LOC | WW], the "Rare Earths Supply Technology and Resources Transformation Act of 2010" or RESTART Act. See, notice. Location: Room 366, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM. Day two of a two day meeting of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission to consider drafts of material for its 2010 Annual Report to the Congress. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 10, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 153, at Page 48412. Location: Room 233, Hall of States, 444 North Capitol St., NW.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The House Intelligence Committee's (HIC) Subcommittee on Intelligence Community Management will hold a public hearing titled "Update on Security Clearance Reform". See, notice. Location: Room 2118, Rayburn Building.

1:00 - 3:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB) will hold a webcast event regarding methods for combating the use of contraband cell phones in prisons. The deadline to register is September 28, 2010. See, notice. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About Antitrust Law". The speakers will be Michael Brockmeyer (Frommer Lawrence & Haug) and Michael Kelly. The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. Reporters are barred from attending most DC Bar events. This event qualifies for CLE credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3488. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

Final deadline to submit "white papers" to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding the NIST's Technology Innovation Program (TIP). See, notice in the Federal Register, September 4, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 171, at Pages 45823-45825.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Public Notice (PN) regarding disability access and wireless communications devices. The FCC released this PN on July 19, 2010. This PN is DA 10-1324 in CG Docket No. 10-145. See also, story titled "FCC Releases Two Public Notices Regarding Disability Access" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,108, July 20, 2010, and notice in the Federal Register, August 5, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 150, at Pages 47304-47305.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Notice of Inquiry (NPRM) [43 pages in PDF] regarding terrestrial broadband services within spectrum allocated to mobile satellite services (MSS). This NOI is FCC 10-126 in ET Docket No. 10-142. The FCC adopted and released this NOI on July 15, 2010. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 16, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 157, Pages 49871-49879. See also, story titled "FCC Adopts NPRM and NOI Regarding Use of MSS Spectrum for Mobile Broadband" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,105, July 15, 2010.

Rep. Hoyer's schedule for the week of September 27 states that "no votes are expected in the House".

Day three of a three day event hosted by the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) titled "Radio Show". See, web site. Location: Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H St., NW.

Day one of a three day event hosted by the Future of Music Coalition (FOMC) titled "Future of Music Coalition Policy Summit". See, notice. Location: Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets, NW.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the Future of Music Coalition (FOMC) titled "Future of Music Coalition Policy Summit". See, notice. Location: Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets, NW.

Extended deadline to file amendments with the Federal Communications Commission to pending waiver requests or renewal applications or to file requests for permanent waivers of the newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership rule. See, FCC Order adopted and released on June 29, 2010. It is DA 10-1181 in MB Docket No. 06-121, MB Docket No. 02-277, MM Docket No. 01-235, MM Docket No. 01-317, MM Docket No. 00-244, MB Docket No. 04-228, and MM Docket No. 99-360.

Deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to assist it in preparing its annual National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers. The OUSTR seeks comments on, among other things, lack of intellectual property protection, trade restrictions affecting electronic commerce, and investment barriers, and technology transfer requirements. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 6, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 151, at Pages 47675-47676. See also, story titled "OUSTR Seeks Comments on Foreign Trade Barriers" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,120, August 6, 2010.

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