4/10. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) held a closed meeting at which it amended and approved HR 634 [LOC | WW], the "Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act" or CISPA.

The HIC met in secret in the bowels of the Capitol Building on short notice. It did release the text of any of the amendments approved or rejected at this meeting until April 11.

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), the Chairman and ranking Democrat on the HIC, offered characterizations of some of these amendments at a news conference on April 8. See, story titled "House Intelligence Committee to Mark Up CISPA" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,548, April 9, 2013.

Rep. Janice Schakowsky (D-IL), who offered three amendments that were rejected by the HIC, and who voted against the bill, released a statement.

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who offered an amendment that was rejected by the HIC, and who voted against passage of the bill, also released a statement.

He wrote that "I call upon on the House Leadership to ensure that we have a full and open debate and that my amendment, and others to make a real difference in protecting privacy and civil liberties, receives an up or down vote on the House floor."

The HIC is mischaracterizing the nature of its process as open and transparent when in fact it is closed and secretive.

Its web site stated before the meeting that this would be an "open" meeting. The HIC web site still stated as of publication of this article that the meeting was "open". In fact, the meeting was closed. The author of this article was present outside the meeting room, but denied access.

The HIC web site also contains a link that purports to access a webcast of the meeting. In fact, there was no webcast.

There are opponents of the CISPA. By keeping secret the proposed legislative language, the HIC prevented opponents from criticizing the proposed language. This makes the task of lobbying against legislative proposals, and generating grass roots lobbying by members' constituents, much more difficult.

There is a logic to the HIC's secrecy. Several of the opposition groups have online followings, and have demonstrated in prior legislative battles that they are adept at informing voters, and incenting them to contact their Representatives and Senators.

While the HIC does conduct hearings on the activities and operations of federal intelligence agencies, and their work product, that should be conducted in secret, there is no legitimate rationale for withholding amendments to bills that are destined to become public law.

The purpose served by the April 10 closed mark up, and the withholding of amendments, was to frustrate public understanding of, and participation in, the legislative process.

Also, while the HIC has successfully circumvented the organization of opposition, it has also limited participation by the businesses that the bill seeks to incent to share cyber security information. This closed process may thus have the affect of limiting public support for the bill. Also, without the input and participation from the businesses targeted by the bill that would transpire in an open legislative process, the bill, if enacted into law, may lack provisions that would maximize the incentives to share cyber security information.

4/11. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) released the amendments to HR 634 [LOC | WW], the "Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act" or CISPA considered at its closed meeting on April 10, 2013.

The HIC approved by voice vote a managers' amendment [3 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), the Chairman and ranking Democrat on the HIC.

The HIC approved by voice vote an amendment [2 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA). See also, Rep. Thompson's release.

The HIC approved by voice vote an amendment [1 page in PDF] offered by Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI).

The HIC approved by voice vote an amendment offered by Rep. Joe Heck (R-NV) and Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT).

The HIC approved by voice vote an amendment offered by Rep. Himes.

The HIC approved by voice vote an amendment offered by Rep. Terri Sewell (D-AL).

The HIC rejected an amendment offered by Rep. Janice Schakowsky (D-IL) by a vote of 5-14. Rep. Schakowsky, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), Rep. Pastor, Rep. Himes, and Rep. Sewell voted yes.

The HIC rejected a second amendment offered by Rep. Schakowsky by a vote of 3-16. Rep. Schakowsky, Rep. Schiff, and Rep. Pastor voted yes.

The HIC rejected a third amendment offered by Rep. Schakowsky by a vote of 4-16. Rep. Schakowsky, Rep. Schiff, Rep. Pastor, and Rep. Himes voted yes.

The HIC rejected an amendment offered by Rep. Schiff by a vote of 4-16. Rep. Schakowsky, Rep. Schiff, Rep. Pastor, and Rep. Himes voted yes.

Finally, the HIC approved the bill as amended by a vote of 18-2. Rep. Schakowsky and Rep. Schiff voted no.

This 128 page bill addresses numerous cyber security related matters. Title I would incent the sharing of cyber threat information, from private sector entities to government, and between private sector entities.

Title II would revise the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA).

Title III would amend the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), which is codified at 18 U.S.C. § 1030. It would also create a new section, to be codified at 18 U.S.C. § 1030A, titled "Aggravated damage to a critical infrastructure computer".

Title IV would address cyber security research and development.

Title V would set information security requirements, and create a federal data breach notification regime.

Rep. Blackburn (at right) stated in a release that her bill "is a conservative, incentive-based framework that opens up collaboration between the government and the private sector while also providing safeguards to citizens when their sensitive data is compromised." See also, her bill summary [2 pages in PDF].

She added that "President Obama's heavy-handed Executive Order" is "a losing proposition".

On February 13, 2013, President Obama signed an Executive Order (EO) that begins the process of creating a federal cyber security regulatory regime. See, story titled "Obama Signs Cyber Security Order and Policy Directive" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,525, February 19, 2013.

She concluded that "Instead of playing politics and pushing top-down mandates on the victims of cyber attacks, I’m focused on creating a consensus approach that balances the interests of American citizens and businesses while holding the federal government more accountable."

Rep. Blackburn cosponsored a related bill in the 112th Congress, HR 4263 [LOC | WW], also titled the "SECURE IT Act". See, story titled "Rep. Mack and Rep. Blackburn Introduce SECURE IT Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,367, April 10, 2012.

4/10. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report [45 pages in PDF] titled "Communications Networks: Outcome-Based Measures Would Assist DHS in Assessing Effectiveness of Cybersecurity Efforts". It finds that network operators are not reporting cyber incidents to federal agencies.

This report states that while both the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have reporting mechanisms, "No cyber incidents affecting the core and access networks have been reported by communications networks owners and operators through three established reporting mechanisms from January 2010 to October 2012." (Footnote omitted.)

It also states that "of the over 35,000 outages reported to FCC during this time period, none were related to traditional cyber threats (e.g., botnets, spyware, viruses, and worms)." (Parentheses in original.)

It adds that "Officials within FCC and the private sector attributed the lack of incidents to the fact that the communications networks provide the medium for direct attacks on consumer, business, and government systems -- and thus these networks are less likely to be targeted by a cyber attack themselves."

4/10. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications and Technology began its mark up of HR __ [LOC | WW | PDF], a yet to be introduced bill that states that "It is the policy of the United States to promote a global Internet free from government control and to preserve and advance the successful multistakeholder model that governs the Internet." This mark up will continue on April 11 at 2:15 PM.

This resolution recites in its findings that "it is essential that the Internet remain stable, secure, and free from government control."

It references "international regulatory bodies", and states that "The proposals would attempt to justify increased government control over the Internet and could undermine the current multistakeholder model that has enabled the Internet to flourish and under which the private sector, civil society, academia, and individual users play an important role in charting its direction."

The Congress passed a similar resolution late in the 112th Congress, SConRes 50. See, stories titled "House Passes Internet Governance Resolution" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,483, December 5, 2013, "Senate Foreign Relations Committee Approves Internet Governance Resolution" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,452, September 20, 2012, and "House Approves Resolution Opposing International Internet Regulation" and "Ambassador Kramer Addresses Upcoming WCIT" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,420, August 4, 2012.

However, that resolution was passed with reference to the proposals being considered at the World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT), held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in December of 2012.

In contrast, the present bill is relevant not only to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), but also to open proceedings at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), such those related to the network management practices of broadband internet access service providers (also known as the open internet and network neutrality proceeding), and AT&T's internet protocol (IP) transition proceeding. See, story titled "AT&T Files Petition for Rulemaking Regarding Trial Replacement of TDM with IP" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,470, November 6, 2012.

Also, SConRes 50 was a sense of the Congress resolution, while the present item is a bill that states "the policy of the United States".

Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR) said in his opening statement that last year's "resolution emboldened more than 50 nations to join the United States in opposing proposals to drag the Internet within the ambit of the International Telecommunication Union, a U.N. agency. Unfortunately, that was the start, not the end, of international efforts to regulate the Internet. And just as international opponents of an Internet free from government control are redoubling their efforts so, too, must we."

Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) wrote in his opening statement that "we are taking the language from last year that unanimously passed the House twice and the Senate once and converting it from a sense of Congress about a specific treaty negotiation to a general statement of U.S. policy. This is an important step in showing our nation’s resolve and it will send an important signal to the international community. If we really meant what we said last year, there’s no reason not to enshrine it in law. We were all in agreement last year, and we should continue to stand in agreement today."

In contrast, Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA) (at right) stated that "This bill has nothing to do with ITU, but is about questioning the FCC's Net Neutrality Rules and authority to implement IP transition. By changing a Sense of Congress resolution into an official policy statement of the United States, this bill will have many unintended consequences on domestic telecom policy, including undermining the laudable efforts of the FCC to transition and reform the Universal Service Fund from telephone service to broadband, among others."

The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) sent a letter to the HCC in which it stated that the "CCIA is steadfast in support of the multi-stakeholder model of global Internet governance", but that "we are concerned that legislation in this area may be vulnerable to misuse and misinterpretation in the domestic context, and potentially counterproductive to our united front and constructive approach in international debates".

The CCIA added that "Pending legislation could cause fracturing of our current posture because it would be seen by some as compromising existing statutory mandates on universal access to advanced communications services. We and many others believe FCC authority over end user access to the open Internet is critical for empowerment of our own citizens and businesses. We also understand the desire for other nations to adopt similar protections for their people, and should be wary of proscribing domestic policy for other sovereign nations."

The New America Foundation (NAF) and Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) sent a letter to the HCC "to express our serious concerns with the proposed bill to affirm the policy of the United States on Internet governance"

They wrote that the Congress "should not curtail its own ability to address domestic issues through well-considered national legislation developed by a democratically elected Congress and subject to review by courts"

4/8. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Robert McDowell released a statement regarding Margaret Thatcher. "The passing of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher marks a sad loss not only for the United Kingdom, but for the United States and everyone who cherishes freedom across the globe. She rose from humble but proud roots to become not only one of the most influential women in world history, but one of the greatest global leaders of all time. Through her steely resolve, unparalleled intellect and inexhaustible energy, she stared down sexism, skepticism, statism and Communism. At the same time, she promoted freedom and prosperity while strengthening the sovereignty of the individual. It was a profound honor to have met her. She set a standard of statesmanship I hope is emulated for centuries to come."

4/10. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Rep. Robert Andrews (D-NJ) introduced HConRes 29, a concurrent resolution regarding Taiwan. It expresses the sense of Congress that "the President should abandon the fundamentally flawed `One China Policy´ in favor of a more realistic `One China, One Taiwan Policy´ that recognizes Taiwan as a sovereign and independent country, separate from the undemocratic Government of the People's Republic of China in Beijing", that "the President should begin the process of resuming normal diplomatic relations with Taiwan", and that "the President, the Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations, and other relevant United States officials should aggressively support Taiwan's full participation in the United Nations and any other international organization of which the United States is a member, and for which statehood is a requirement for membership". It was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

4/9. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) and others introduced S 676 [LOC | WW], a bill regarding tax related identity theft and tax fraud. It was referred to the Senate Finance Committee (SFC).

4/9. The Cato Institute released a paper [28 pages in PDF] titled "Regulatory Protectionism: A Hidden Threat to Free Trade". The authors are the Cato's William Watson and Sallie James. The paper states that "domestic industries continue to find ways to use the power of government to protect themselves from foreign competition. The practice of using domestic environmental or consumer safety regulation as a way to disguise protectionist policy has become a serious and growing problem in the United States. This regulatory protectionism harms the U.S. economy and violates our trade obligations." This paper cites numerous examples. However, none involve information or communications technologies. The Cato Institute will host a panel discussion on this topic on April 18 at 12:00 NOON. See, notice.

4/8. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Ajit Pai gave a speech in Las Vegas regarding AM radio revitalization.

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The House will meet at 10:00 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. It will consider HR 678 [LOC | WW], the "Bureau of Reclamation Small Conduit Hydropower Development and Rural Jobs Act". See, Rep. Cantor's schedule.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM.

Day one of a three day event hosted by the American Bar Association (ABA) titled "Antitrust Law 2013 Spring Meeting". See, notice. Location: JW Marriott Hotel, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

POSTPONED TO APRIL 18. 10:00 AM. The House Appropriations Committee's (HAC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing on the Department of Justice (DOJ). Attorney General Eric Holder will testify. See, notice. Location: Room 2359, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host an event titled "The Social and Economic Case for Autonomous Vehicles". The speakers will be Robert Atkinson (ITIF), Bill Krenik (Texas Instruments), and Jason Schultz (Toyota). See, notice. Location: Room B-338, Rayburn Building, Capitol Hill.

1:00 PM. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and other House Democrats will hold an event titled "Press Conference on Make It In America Legislation". Location: House Radio TV Gallery, HVC 117.

2:00 PM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will meet to mark up HR 634 [LOC | WW], the "Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act" or CISPA. See, HIC notice and story titled "House Intelligence Committee to Mark Up CISPA" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,548, April 9, 2013. Location: Room HVC-304, Capitol Visitor Center.

2:30 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing on the nomination of Srikanth Srinivasan to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir). Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

4:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications and Technology to mark up HR __ [LOC | WW | PDF], a yet to be introduced bill that states that "It is the policy of the United States to promote a global Internet free from government control and to preserve and advance the successful multistakeholder model that governs the Internet." See, notice. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) will host an event to promote the book [Amazon] by Gary Shapiro titled "Ninja Innovation: The Ten Killer Strategies of the World's Most Successful Businesses". There will be a reception from 6:00 until 8:00. There will be speeches at 6:30. Location: 1776 Campus, 12th floor, 1133 15th St., NW.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the American Bar Association (ABA) titled "Antitrust Law 2013 Spring Meeting". See, notice. Location: JW Marriott Hotel, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a discussion of the book [88 pages, Amazon] titled "The Need for Speed: A New Framework for Telecommunications Policy in the 21st Century". The speakers will be the two authors, Robert Litan (Kauffman Foundation) and Hal Singer (Navigant Economics), and Robert Atkinson (ITIF) and Blair Levin (Aspen Institute). See, notice. Location: ITIF/ITIC, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee (HJC) will meet to markup HR 367 [LOC | WW], the "Regulations From the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2013". See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Small Business Committee's (HSBC) Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations will hold a hearing titled "JOBS Act Implementation Update". The witnesses will be Lona Nallengara (acting Director of the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance), John Ramsey (acting Director of the SEC's Division of Trading and Markets), Kevin Rustagi (SBE Council), and Jean Peteres (Angel Capital Association). See, HSBC notice. The 112th Congress enacted the JOBS Act one year ago, but has not written key implementing rules. See, story titled "Walter Addresses SEC's Failure to Write Crowd Funding Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,544, April 2, 2013. Location: Room 2360, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will hold a partially closed hearing titled "Worldwide Threats". See, notice. Location: the open portion of this hearing will be in Room HVC-210, House Visitor Center; the closed portion will be in Room HVC-304.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of the nominations of Kenneth Gonzales (USDC/DNMex) and Gregory Phillips (USCA/10thCir). See, notice. Webcast. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC) will hold a hearing on FY 2014 appropriations for the Department of Commerce (DOC). Acting Secretary of Commerce Rebecca Blank will testify. See, notice. Location: Room 192, Dirksen Building.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The National Economists Club will host a lunch. Keith Hall, who was Director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics from 2008 through 2012, will give a speech to the titled "How has the Measured Unemployment Rate Performed during the Great Recession?".Prices vary. Open to the public. Register by 12:00 NOON on April 10. See, notice and registration page. Location: Chinatown Garden Restaurant, 618 H St., NW.

1:30 PM. The House Appropriations Committee's (HAC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing on the Department of Commerce (DOC). See, notice. Location: Room 2359, Rayburn Building.

2:15 PM. Day two of a two day meeting of the House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications and Technology to mark up HR __ [LOC | WW | PDF], a yet to be introduced bill that states that "It is the policy of the United States to promote a global Internet free from government control and to preserve and advance the successful multistakeholder model that governs the Internet." See, notice. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Intelligence Committee (SIC) will hold a closed hearing on undisclosed matters. See, notice. Location: Room 219, Hart Building.

3:00 - 4:30 PM. The Heritage Foundation (HF) will host a panel discussion titled "Asia 2013: the View from Capitol Hill". The speakers will be Carolyn Leddy (Senate Foreign Relations Committee Republican staff), Eric Sayers (office of Rep. Randy Forbes (R-VA)), Victor Cervino (office of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL)), and Walter Lohman (HF). Free. Open to the public. Webcast. See, notice. Location: HF, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

4:00 PM. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will host an event titled "Patents for Humanity Awards Ceremony". The speakers will include Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Teresa Rea (acting Director of the USPTO). See, notice. See also, story titled "Sen. Leahy Introduces a Bill to Make USPTO Acceleration Certificates Alienable" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,487, December 10, 2012. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule.

Supreme Court conference day. See, Supreme Court calendar.

Day three of a three day event hosted by the American Bar Association (ABA) titled "Antitrust Law 2013 Spring Meeting". See, notice. Location: JW Marriott Hotel, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) regarding competitive need limitations (CNLs) under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 53, March 19, 2013, at Pages 16908-16910.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) in response to its Public Notice (PN) regarding implementation of its Connect America Phase II subsidy program. This PN is DA 13-284 in WC Docket No. 10-90. The WCB released it on February 26, 2013. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 51, March 15, 2013, at Pages 16456-16460.

9:00 - 10:00 AM. The New America Foundation (NAF) will host a discussion of the book [Amazon] titled "To Save Everything, Click Here". The speakers will be Evgeny Morozov (author) and Christine Rosen (NAF). See, notice. Location: NAF, Suite 400, 1899 L St., NW.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in Conference Group v. FCC, App. Ct. No. 12-1124. See also, FCC brief filed on __. Judges Garland, Rogers and Silberman will preside. This is the first item on the Court's agenda. Location: Courtroom 11, 4th floor, Prettyman Courthouse, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

4:30 PM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will hold a closed hearing titled "Ongoing Intelligence Activities". See, notice. Location: Room HVC-304, Capitol Visitor Center.

Deadline to submit to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) oppositions to petitions to deny AT&T's acquisition of Atlantic Tele-Network's U.S. retail wireless operations. See, AT&T release of January 22, 2013, and FCC Public Notice [5 pages in PDF], DA 13-352 in WT Docket No. 13-54.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Media Bureau (MB) in response to its Public Notice, DA 13-281 in MB Docket No. 13-50, released on February 26, 2013, regarding the August 31, 2012 letter from the Coalition for Broadcast Investment regarding FCC restrictions on foreign ownership and voting interests. See, notice in the Federal Register Vol. 78, No. 55, March 21, 2013, at Pages 17395-17403.

Extended deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in response to its notice in the Federal Register (FR) regarding potential practices that patent applicants can employ at the drafting stage of a patent application in order to facilitate examination and bring more certainty to the scope of issued patents. See, FR, Vol. 78, No. 10, January 15, 2013, at Pages 2960-2961. See also, story titled "USPTO Seeks Comments on Preparation of Patent Applications" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,512, January 20, 2013. And see, extension notice in the FR,  Vol. 78, No. 51, March 15, 2013, at Pages 16474-16475.

8:00 - 10:00 AM. Broadband Census News LLC will host a panel discussion titled "Mobile Health: Will Wireless Devices Help Solve the Nation's Health Crises?". The speakers will be Jacob Reider (Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology), Robert Jarrin (Qualcomm), Deven McGraw (Center for Democracy and Technology), and Paul Kirby (TRDaily). Breakfast will be served. This event is open to the public. The price to attend is $47.12. See, notice and registration page. This event is also sponsored by Comcast, Google, ICF Intl., NCTA TIA, and US Telecom. Location: Clyde's of Gallery Place, 707 7th St., NW.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee (HJC) will hold a hearing titled "Mismanagement at the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice". The witnesses will be __. See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Finance Committee (SFC) will hold a hearing titled "Tax Fraud and Tax ID Theft: Moving Forward with Solutions". See, notice. Location: Room 215, Dirksen Building.

10:00 - 11:00 PM. The Heritage Foundation (HF) will host a panel discussion titled "A Congressional Guide to Cybersecurity: Seven Steps to U.S. Security, Prosperity, and Freedom". The speakers will be Paul Rosenzweig (HF), Steven Bucci (HF), Kiersten Todt (Liberty Group Ventures), and Michael Franc (HF). Free. Open to the public. Webcast. See, notice. Location: HF, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Apps: The Legal and Business Landscape". For more nformation, contact Elvis Stumbergs at estumbergs at cinnamonmueller dot com, Rachael Bender at RBender at mobilefuture dot org, or Brendan Carr at Brendan dot Carr at fcc dot gov. Location: Hogan Lovells, Room 12 West - 600, 555 13th St., NW.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast and teleconferenced panel discussion titled "10 in 2013: Top Ten Privacy and Data Protection Issues to Watch This Year". The speakers will be Allison Dolan (Massachusetts General Hospital), Ann Killilea (McDermott Will & Emery), Web Hull (Iron Mountain), James Shreve (Buckley Sandler), and Agnes Scanlan (Treliant Risk Advisors). Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast panel discussion titled "Litigation Joinder Requirements Under the America Invents Act". The speakers will be Heather Faltin (Comcast Cable) and George Medlock (Alston & Bird). Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.

2:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Court, Intellectual Property and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "Abusive Patent Litigation: The Issues Impacting American Competitiveness and Job Creation at the International Trade Commission and Beyond". The witnesses will be __. See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

2:00 PM. The House Foreign Affairs Committee's (HFAC) Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia and Emerging Threats will hold a hearing titled "China's Rapid Political and Economic Advances in Central Asia and Russia". The witnesses will be John Tkacik (International Assessment and Strategy Center), Rensselaer Lee (Foreign Policy Research Institute) and Dmitry Shlapentokh (Indiana University South Bend). See, notice. Location: Room 2200, Rayburn Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee's (SJC) Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights will hold a hearing titled "Oversight of the Enforcement of the Antitrust Laws". The witnesses will be William Baer (Assistant Attorney General in charge of the DOJ's Antitrust Division) and Edith Ramirez (Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission). See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) will host an event titled "CES on the Hill". The exhibitors will include AT&T, Blackberry, Google, HTC, Intel, LG Electronics, Microsoft, Panasonic, Pandora, Qualcomm, Samsung, Verizon and others. Location: Cafeteria, Room B-357, Rayburn Building.

TIME? The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host an event titled "Annual Open House" to allow vendors to show "how libraries use electronic or digital content to provide 24/7 cyberspace access for a wide array of personal use devices". For more information, contact Lisa dot Leyser at fcc dot gov or 202-418-0450. See, FCC release. Location: __.

9:00 AM - 12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau will host an event titled "Workshop: Bill Shock and Cramming". Free. Open to the public. See, notice. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host an on site and webcast panel discussion titled "Flying Eyes in the Domestic Skies: Balancing Security, Surveillance, and Privacy with the Amazing New Technologies for Unmanned Aerial Systems". The speakers will be Missy Cummings (MIT), Gretchen West (Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International), Kirk Shaffer (Crowell & Moring), and Mark Borowski. The price is $15. Lunch will be served. No CLE credits. See, notice. Location: Crowell & Moring, 1001 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

2:00 PM. The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet to discuss preparation for the ITU World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC 2014). See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 57, March 25, 2013, at Pages 17992-17993. Location: DOS.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Transactional Practice Committee will host an event titled "Nuts and Bolts of Applications for Approval of Assignments or Transfers of Wireline Authorizations and Wireless Licenses". Registrations and cancellations are due by 12:00 NOON on April 16. Prices vary. CLE credits. No webcast. See, notice. Location: Mayer Brown, 1999 K St., NW.

6:30 PM. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) will host an event titled "Digital Patriots Dinner". The speakers will include Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO). The reception will begin at 6:30 PM. Dinner will begin at 7:30 PM. Location: Mayflower Renaissance Hotel, 1127 Connecticut Ave., NW.