4/9. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) held an executive business meeting at which it amended and approved S 1925 [LOC | WW], the "Driver Privacy Act", a bill that allows court and administrative authorities to authorize access to data stored in vehicle event data recorders (EDRs).

While this bill is described by its sponsors as a privacy bill, it does little to protect individual privacy. Rather, its main function is to provide for government access to data.

This bill does not address driver privacy generally. It only addressed the narrow subject of EDR crash related data.

Moreover, this bill does not begin to address the many issues raised by the deployment of new information technologies in motor vehicles, and the potential for collection and use of not only crash data, but also location, audio, video, communications and other data.

Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) introduced this bill on January 14, 2014. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) is the lead cosponsor. The two made remarks, which are published in the Congressional Record. The SCC has held no hearing on this bill. There was almost no discussion of the bill at the April 9 meeting.

Sen. John Thune (R-SD), the ranking Republican on the SCC, said that this bill, and some others, "may require some additional work before the full Senate considers them". He said that Sen. Hoeven and Sen. Klobuchar "are still in discussions about additional modifications that may have to be made".

The SCC approved by unanimous voice vote on April 9 an amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by Sen. Klobuchar.

Sen. Hoeven (at right) stated on January 14, 2014 that "This is all about protecting people's privacy in regard to their automobile." He continued that the data stored in these devices "should be the owner's information and that information should not be released without the owner's consent."

Sen Hoeven also noted that the Department of Transportation (DOT) "is requiring this year that every vehicle have an event data recorder in it."

The DOT's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) promulgated regulations that are now codified at 49 C.F.R. Part 563. EDRs are mandatory in most light vehicles manufactured on or after September 1, 2014.

The DOT issued its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in December of 2012. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 240, December 13, 2012, at Pages 74144-74159. That proceeding is Docket No. NHTSA–2012–0177.

The DOT received over one thousand comments, almost all from individuals telling the DOT not to impose a mandate for privacy and Constitutional reasons. However, the automobile and insurance industries commented that they like the idea of mandatory EDRs.

Bill Summary. This bill, as approved by the SCC on April 9, provides that "Any data retained by an event data recorder ... is the property of the owner, or ... the lessee ..."

It also provides that "Data recorded or transmitted by an event data recorder ... may not be accessed by a person other than an owner or a lessee of the motor vehicle in which the event data recorder is installed".

However, the bill then enumerates five exceptions.

First, data may be accessed if "a court or other judicial or administrative authority having jurisdiction (A) authorizes the retrieval of the data; and (B) to the extent that there is retrieved data, the data is subject to the standards for admission into evidence required by that court or other administrative authority".

Second, data may be accessed if "an owner or a lessee of the motor vehicle provides written or electronic consent to the retrieval of the data for any purpose, including the purpose of diagnosing, servicing, or repairing the motor vehicle".

Third, data may be accessed if "the data is retrieved pursuant to an investigation or inspection authorized under section 1131(a) or 30166 of title 49, United States Code, and the personally identifiable information of an owner or a lessee of the vehicle and the vehicle identification number is not disclosed in connection with the retrieved data, except that the vehicle identification number may be disclosed to the certifying manufacturer".

49 U.S.C. § 1131(a) and 49 U.S.C. § 30166 provide for NHTSA investigations of accidents.

Fourth, data may be accessed if "the data is retrieved for the purpose of determining the need for, or facilitating, emergency medical response in response to a motor vehicle crash".

Finally, data may be accessed if "the data is retrieved for traffic safety research, and the personally identifiable information of an owner or a lessee of the vehicle and the vehicle identification number is not disclosed in connection with the retrieved data".

The bill also requires that the NHTSA write rules "to establish the appropriate period during which event data recorders installed in passenger motor vehicles may capture and record for retrieval vehicle-related data to the time necessary to provide accident investigators with vehicle-related information pertinent to crashes involving such motor vehicles."

The would would also require that the NHTSA conduct a study of "the amount of time event data recorders installed in passenger motor vehicles should capture and record for retrieval vehicle-related data in conjunction with an event in order to provide sufficient information to investigate the cause of motor vehicle crashes."

More Documents from the DOT NHTSA Proceeding.

• NHTSA document titled "FMVSS No. 405: Event Data Recorders (EDRs)", November 2012.
• comment filed by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and others on February 11, 2013.
• comment filed with the DOT by the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
• comment filed by the Automotive Safety Council
• comment filed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

4/9. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) held an executive business meeting at which it amended and approved S 1925 [LOC | WW], the "Driver Privacy Act", a bill that allows government to access data on vehicle event data recorders (EDRs). See, amendment in the nature of a substitute approved on April 9.

This bill is, at bottom, about giving prosecutors, law enforcement agencies, litigators and others easy access to EDR data.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) is the lead cosponsor of the bill, and a former prosecutor. Her record in the Senate in drafting and sponsoring bills has demonstrated her support for the interests of prosecutors and law enforcement in gaining access to information, often at the expense of protecting individuals' interests in privacy and liberty. This bill is consistent with her prior record.

Sen. Klobuchar (at left) stated in the Senate on January 14, 2014 that "I have long supported improving safety on the roadways. Too many people die on our highways, and we need to do something about it. In 2010, there were more than 30,000 fatal crashes and more than 1.5 million crashes that resulted in injuries. This is unacceptable." See, Congressional Record, January 14, 2014 at Page S328.

"EDRs can be the only resource available to determine the cause of a crash by providing information about what a driver was doing in the seconds leading up to a crash, such as how fast the vehicle was going, whether the brake was activated in the seconds before the crash, if airbags were deployed, and whether the driver and passengers were wearing seatbelts."

"As a former prosecutor, I know how useful this data can be", said Sen. Klobuchar.

This bill does a few things that tend to protect individual privacy. It does much to diminish privacy. It fails to address many privacy related issues.

No Limits on Data Collection. First, while the Department of Transportation's (DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) EDR rules, which are codified at 49 C.F.R. Part 563, set minimum requirements for what data must be collected, they do not set any limits, or prohibit the collection of any data.

Nor does this bill do anything to limit what data EDRs collect, or what the DOT can require to be collected. Nor does it in any way limit what non-EDR data may be collected by vehicles. Nor does this bill address data retention or deletion.

Auto makers remain free to build cars that collect ever more data. The DOT remains free to mandate the collection of ever more data. Drivers are not allowed any choice or control in the matter.

Unconstrained Court and Administrative Authorizations. The bill's first exception to the owner consent requirement does much to diminish privacy. It provides that data may be accessed if "a court or other judicial or administrative authority ... authorizes the retrieval of the data ..."

When Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) introduced this bill he stated that "Law enforcement ... can't just take it; they have to have a court order". But, this is not what the bill states. Under this bill, law enforcement agencies could gain access by obtaining a court order. But, the bill requires neither court involvement, nor an order.

The Fourth Amendment uses the word "warrant". Judicial precedents use the words "warrant" and "order". This bill uses the word "authorization", which has little meaning, and therefore provides little protection to drivers.

Administrative authorization might be construed to mean nothing more than that a federal regulatory agency has adopted rules that authorize access. Such rules might be legislative in scope.

Most significantly, this exception imposes no requirements upon courts or administrative agencies. Basic notions of individual privacy include four basic requirements for government access to an individuals' records or data. First, government must obtain an order from a court. This bill does not require court involvement.

Second, that order must be directed at a specified individual or location. Nothing in this bill requires that the authorization name a particular person or vehicle. An order or authorization could cover, for example, all vehicles located in the Washington DC metropolitan area.

Third, that order must identify what records or data is to be accessed or seized. Nothing in this bill requires that an order or authorization identify what data can be accessed.

Fourth, government must meet a particular standard to obtain that order. The Fourth Amendment sets probable cause as the standard. This bill, however, sets no standard at all.

Expectation of Privacy. It is significant that the bill states "Any data retained by an event data recorder ... is the property of the owner, or ... the lessee ...". This is critical to Fourth Amendment analysis. See, the Supreme Court's landmark 1967 opinion in Katz v. U.S., 389 U.S. 347, and its progeny.

In the past, federal prosecutors and law enforcement agencies have succeeded in obtaining access to much data by aggressively asserting arguments that the data belongs to third party service providers, who typically have little incentive to protect the privacy of their customers. Prosecutors and law enforcement agencies then obtain the data under minimal standards, rather than a higher probable cause standard that might apply if the data were owned by the individual.

While the bill contains a data ownership provision, it does not also include other findings that would be relevant to Fourth Amendment analysis. For example, the bill does not contain any finding that people have a reasonable expectation of privacy in this data, and that this expectation is one that society is prepared to recognize as reasonable.

Exceptions to Driver Ownership of Data. While the bill does state that drivers own their data, the bill also has inherent loopholes.

The bill provides that "Any data retained by an event data recorder (as defined in section 563.5 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations), ... is the property of the owner ..." (Parentheses in original.)

Section 563.5 provides that "Event data recorder (EDR) means a device or function in a vehicle that records the vehicle's dynamic time-series data during the time period just prior to a crash event (e.g., vehicle speed vs. time) or during a crash event (e.g., delta-V vs. time), intended for retrieval after the crash event. For the purposes of this definition, the event data do not include audio and video data." (Parentheses in original.)

Hence, if a vehicle collects audio or video data, then that data is not subject to the bill's provision regarding ownership.

Also, EDR data only covers "in a vehicle" data. If data is automatically transmitted to a service providers' server, then it no longer falls under the bill's ownership provision. The DOT's rules further state, at Section 563.1, that they only apply to "the collection, storage, and retrievability of onboard motor vehicle crash event data". The key word here is "onboard".

Moreover, this bill appears to contemplate that the trajectory for this technology is automatic wireless transmission of certain data to service providers. For example, the fourth exception to the owner consent provision is that data may be accessed if "the data is retrieved for the purpose of determining the need for, or facilitating, emergency medical response in response to a motor vehicle crash". If data were only in the onboard EDR, then downloading data at the time of an accident would entail being present at the scene of the accident, in which case the officer's visual observations and conversations would enable him to determine the need for emergency medical response. This exception would have little if any purpose. However, if data were also automatically transmitted, then this exception would be meaningful. This exception would enable, for example, a service provider to report to a 911 call center that air bags have inflated, at a particular location, in the vehicle of one of its customers, without the customer first giving consent for disclosure of that information.

Future Technologies. Currently, the DOT's rules mandate only the collection of data relevant to crashes and safety, such as air bag deployment data, seat belt use, and speed. This data is very useful to the DOT in furthering automobile safety. It is also relevant in law enforcement investigations and prosecutions involving vehicular crimes. It is also relevant in determining civil liability for personal injuries and property damage resulting from auto accidents. Plaintiffs' personal injury lawyers, defense lawyers, and insurance company lawyers all have legitimate interests in accessing the currently mandated data.

The threats to individual privacy lie, not in what is currently mandated for EDRs, but in what vehicle based information technology will soon enable.

Sen. Hoeven stated when he introduced this bill that "The reality is this technology is evolving and developing. This technology is going to continue to develop with all kinds of other aspects -- obviously now we have GPS -- and all the different things that are being done with automobiles."

Collection and retention of location data implicates privacy interests. On the other hand, law enforcement and intelligence agencies (and marketers, parents, stalkers and others) have location surveillance interests unrelated to traffic safety. The threats to privacy, as well as the surveillance values to law enforcement and intelligence agencies, would increase if vehicle location data were also either automatically transmitted or remotely accessible.

Volkswagen Group of America submitted a comment to the NHTSA with more detail. It wrote that "the issues of privacy and security loom large not just for EDRs, but even more so for future technologies under research and development".

Volkswagen elaborated that "privacy concerns ... will be hugely magnified by future safety technologies, such as advanced automatic crash notification that would send vehicle data wirelessly to emergency responders; ``connected vehicle´´ technology using dedicated short range communications (DSRC), and automated vehicles (a.k.a., ``autonomous vehicles´´). These latter technologies introduce a new access and attack vector for vehicle data, namely wireless connectivity, which substantially increases the exposure to threat of privacy invasion and possible interference in vehicle  functional systems." (Parentheses in original.)

Collection and retention of vehicle based communications data would similarly implicate privacy interests.

Also, if vehicular data included vehicle, time, location, and speed, and if it were transmitted and made available to state and local government, then this data could be employed much like red light cameras are today, but on a much grander scale. Government information systems could correlate this data with vehicle registration data to automatically churn out not only red light running tickets, but also speeding tickets, and even parking tickets. Such as system might also be extended to collecting fines for distracted driving, and failure to wear seat belts. The state and local revenue raising potentials could be enormous.

4/9. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) held an executive business meeting at which it held over consideration of S 1379 [LOC | WW], the "Federal Communications Commission Consolidated Reporting Act of 2013".

Sen. Dean Heller (R-NV) introduced this bill on July 29, 2013.

The House passed its version of this bill, HR 2844 [LOC | WW], also titled the "Federal Communications Commission Consolidation Reporting Act of 2013", by a vote of 415-0, on September 9, 2014. See, Roll Call No. 449. See, story titled "House Passes Bill to Consolidate FCC Market Reports" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,598, September 10, 2014.

Sen. John Rockefeller (D-WV), the Chairman of the SCC, wrote in his opening statement that "I will note that we had planned to mark up an FCC reports bill sponsored by Senator Heller, but we still need some technical assistance from the FCC. That bill will require a few more modifications before it is ready for mark up."

But, when he read his statement, this is what he said. "I will note that we had planned to mark up an FCC reports bill sponsored by Senator Heller, but that bill will require modification. That is a dangerous word, isn't it? Before it is ready to move. But surely it will be."

Sen. John Thune (R-SD), the ranking Republican on the SCC, said that this bill has been postponed "until our next mark up".

4/21. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee (SFC), sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) complaining about it failure to address rampant tax return identity theft.

4/21. The National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) released its second draft of SP 800-90 A Rev. 1 [112 pages in PDF] titled "Recommendation for Random Number Generation Using Deterministic Random Bit Generators". The deadline to submit comments is May 23, 2014.

3/26.The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) that requests comments regarding transitioning its Internet Time Service (ITS) to the private sector. This notice requests information on its potential transition of time services from a NIST only service to private sector operation of an ensemble of time servers that will provide NIST traceable time information in a number of different formats over the internet. The deadline to submit comments is 11:59 PM ET on May 27, 2014. See, FR, Vol. 79, No. 58, March 26, 2014, at Pages 16772-16774.

3/18. The Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) that contains "guidance" regarding "energy code compliance software". See, FR, Vol. 79, No. 52, March 18, 2014, at Pages 15112-15113.

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Notices & Disclaimers
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The House will not meet the week of April 21-25. It will next meet at 2:00 PM on Monday, April 28. See, 2014 House calendar, and SConRes 35.

The Senate will not meet the week of April 21-25. It will next meet at 2:00 PM on Monday, April 28. See, SConRes 35.

Passover ends at sundown.

Day two of a two day partially closed event hosted by the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) titled "Cyber Division Forum". The DHS states that Jay Holcomb (DHS's NPPD's Office of Cybersecurity and Communications) will speak at 3:15 PM on a panel titled "DHS Enhanced Cyber Services Program Overview". The NDIA agenda places this panel at 10:00 AM. The NDIA agenda also lists a panel at 2:15 PM titled "Carrier/ISP Perspective". The NDIA states that the entire Tuesday session is "Unclassified -- U.S. Citizens Only". See, notice. Location: Lockheed Martin's Global Vision Center, 2121 Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA.

9:30 AM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Sensors and Instrumentation Technical Advisory Committee (SITAC) will hold a partially closed meeting. No webcast. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 66, April 7, 2014, at Page 19051. Location: Hoover Building, Room 3884, 14th Street between Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues, NW.

11:00 AM. The Supreme Court will hear oral argument in ABC v. Aereo, Sup. Ct. No. 13-461, an appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals (2ndCir) in a case involving whether a company publicly performs, within the meaning of 17 U.S.C. § 106 and 17 U.S.C. § 101, a copyrighted television program when it retransmits a broadcast of that program to paid subscribers over the internet. See, April 1, 2013 opinion of the Court of Appeals, and story titled "2nd Circuit Affirms in Aereo Copyright Cases" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,544, April 2, 2013. Location: 1 First St., NW.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast panel discussion titled "Pro Bono IP Litigation Across Borders". The speakers will be John Bisbikis (Mc Dermott Will & Emery), Julianne Hartzell (Marshall Gerstein & Borun), David Higer (Kirkland & Ellis), Elmo Shropshire, and Marci Rolnik. Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.

1:00 - 4:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host a webcast and telecast event titled "Webinar for State and Local Governments". There will be presentations titled "Modernizing the E-rate Program", "IP Transition Update", "Open Internet Rules", "Wireless Infrastructure Issues", "Facilities Siting Rulemaking", "Positive Train Control Historic Preservation Review", "FCC Speed Test App -- Measuring Broadband America", "Next Generation 911", and "Closed Captioning". For the telecast, call 1-888-858-2144. The Access Code is 8926297. See, notice.

8:30 AM - 2:00 PM. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's (USCC) Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) will host an event titled "2nd Annual IP Champions Conference". The speakers will include Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), David Hirschmann (head of the GIPC), Mark Crowell (University of Virginia), Anastasia Danias (National Football League), Alun Jones (United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime), David Lowery (University of Georgia), and Miriam Vogel (Department of Justice). Lev Kubiak (Director of the DHS ICE Intellectual Property Rights Center) will participate on a panel titled "recent successes in Information Protection theft enforcement". Location: USCC, 1615 H St., NW.

9:00 AM. Day one of a two day meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Information Systems Technical Advisory Committee (ISTAC). The April 23 session is open to the public. No webcast. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 66, April 7, 2014, at Pages 19051-19052. Location: Hoover Building, Room 3884, 14th Street between Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues, NW.

10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "Open Meeting". The agenda includes a huge universal service item and an NPRM regarding spectrum sharing in the 3550-3650 MHz band. Webcast. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 77, April 22, 2014, at Pages 22492-22493. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, Room TW-C305, 445 12th St., SW.

11:00 AM. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) will meet to consider two advisory opinions regarding application of the federal election campaign finance regulatory regime to Bitcoins. See, Draft A and Draft B. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 76, April 21, 2014, Page 22132, and FEC's meeting agenda. And see, story titled "FEC to Consider Bitcoin Advisory Opinions" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,642, April 18, 2014. Location: FEC, 999 E St., NW.

1:45 - 3:45 PM. The Copyright Office (CO) will host an event titled "Movies: A Global Passion". The speakers will be Francis Gurry (Director General of WIPO), Matthew Harrison (director), Robert Newman (actor), and Mike Mashon (Library of Congress). Free. No webcast. See, notice. Location: Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress, Jefferson Building, 10 First St., SE.

2:30 - 3:30 PM. The American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Antitrust Law will host a teleconferenced panel discussion titled "Privacy Roundtable". The topic will be recent California privacy legislation. The speakers will be Aryeh Friedman (Dun & Bradstreet) and Joanne McNabb (California Office of the Attorney General). Prices vary. No CLE credits. No reporters. See, notice.

5:30 - 7:00 PM. The Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) will host a reception in advance of its April 24 event titled "9th Annual World Intellectual Property Day Forum". The speaker will be Francis Gurry, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Free. Open to the public. See, notice. Location: Room 121, Cannon Building.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding extension of the freeze of jurisdictional separations category relationships and cost allocation factors for three years, through June 30, 2017. The FCC adopted this FNPRM on March 26, 2014, and released it on March 27. It is FCC 14-27 in CC Docket No. 80-286. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 63, April 2, 2014, at Pages 18498-18503.

Deadline to submit requests to make presentations at President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology's (PCAST) April 30 public conference call on the PCAST's big data and privacy report. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 73, April 16, 2014, at Pages 21453-21454.

8:00 AM - 4:15 PM. Informatica Corporation will host an event titled "2014 Informatica Government Summit". At 8:35 AM Mark Weatherford (Chertoff Group) will give a speech titled "Competing Priorities? Cloud Computing, Big Data, and Cyber Security. At 3:15 PM there will be a panel titled "Government Panel Presentation: Data Management Best Practices". The speakers will include Ann DiCamillo (DHS NPPD Office of Cybersecurity and Communications). See, notice. Location: Greater Washington Society of Association Executives Suite, Ronald Reagan Building, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

8:15 AM - 1:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) and the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) will host an event titled "FCC Bankruptcy Mini Conference: The Intersection of the FCC and Bankruptcy Law". The price to attend is $125. CLE credits. See, notice. (The ABI is holding its annual meeting on April 24-27.) Location: JW Marriot, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

9:00 AM. Day two of a two day meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Information Systems Technical Advisory Committee (ISTAC). The April 24 session is closed the public, and its agenda is secret. No webcast. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 66, April 7, 2014, at Pages 19051-19052. Location: Hoover Building, Room 3884, 14th Street between Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues, NW.

9:00 AM - 1:00 PM. The Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) will host an event titled "9th Annual World Intellectual Property Day Forum". The speakers will include Geoffrey Manne (International Center for Law and Economics), Sandra Aistars (Copyright Alliance), Grant Aldonas (Center for Strategic & International Studies), Joe Damond (Biotech Industry Organization), Dana Colarulli (USPTO), and Stevan Mitchell (Globalview Strategies). Free. Open to the public. Lunch wil be served. See, notice. Location: Reserve Officers Association, One Constitution Ave., NE.

9:00 AM - 12:30 PM. The Brookings Institution (BI) will host an event titled "How China's Youth are Transforming Chinese Society: New Research Findings from the PRC". See, notice. Location: BI, 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

9:30 AM - 3:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (ONC/HIT) HIT Standards Committee will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 243, December 18, 2013, at Page 76627-76628.

2:00 - 3:30 PM. The Heritage Foundation (HF) will host a panel discussion titled "Protecting American Interests in the South China Sea". The speakers will be Ely Ratner (Center for a New American Security), Steven Groves (HF), Dean Cheng (HF), Jonathan Odom (U.S. Navy), and Walter Lohman (HF). Free. Open to the public. Webcast. See, notice. Location: HF, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host an event titled "Happy Hour". For more information, contact Lindsey Tonsager at ltonsager at cov dot com or Justin Faulb at jfaulb at nab dot org. Location: Co Co Sala, 929 F St., NW.

Supreme Court conference day. See, October Term 2013 calendar.

9:00 AM - 1:15 PM. The U.S. China Economic Security and Review Commission (USCESRC) will hold a hearing. This is one of a series of hearings to assist the USCESRC in preparing its 2014 report to the Congress. This hearing is titled "U.S.-China Clean Energy Cooperation: Status, Challenges, and Opportunities". See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 73, April 16, 2014, at Pages 21516-21517. Location: Room 608, Dirksen Building.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. The Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics' (RTCA) Special Committee 222, Inmarsat AMS(R)S, will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 68, April 9, 2014, at Page 19706. Location: RTCA, Suite 910, 1150 18th St., NW.

10:00 AM - 3:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will host an event titled "Meeting for Software Developers on the Common Formats for Patient Safety Data Collection and Event Reporting". See, original notice in the Federal Register (FR), Vol. 79, No. 15, January 23, 2014, at Pages 3815-3816, and update notice in the FR, Vol. 79, No. 67, April 8, 2014, at Pages 19335-19336. Location: Eisenberg Conference Center, DHHS Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 540 Gaither Road, Rockville, MD.

10:30 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Heritage Foundation (HF) will host a panel discussion titled "U.S.-Japan Cooperation in Southeast Asia". The speakers will be Shigeo Yamada (Embassy of Japan), Satu Limaye (East-West Center in Washington), Yuki Tatsumi (Stimson Center), and Walter Lohman (HF). Free. Open to the public. Webcast. See, notice. Location: HF, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

12:00 NOON - 1:15 PM. The Internet Caucus will host a panel discussion titled "Revising The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA): Should Congress Require a Warrant?". The speakers will include James Dempsey ( Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, and Center for Democracy & Technology), Richard Downing (DOJ's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section), and Katie McAuliffe (Americans for Tax Reform). Box lunches will be served. Location: Room 2226, Rayburn Building.

1:00 - 2:00 PM. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) First Responder Network Authority Finance Committee will hold an event titled "Special Meeting". The Committee will meet by teleconference. The call in number is 1-800-369-1868; the passcode is FirstNet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 77, April 22, 2014, at Pages 22479-22480.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Intellectual Property Law will host a webcast panel discussion titled "What's the Use? A Comparative View of Trademark Use Requirements". The speakers will be Sharra Brockman, Matthew Hintz (Servilla Whitney), Chrissie Scelsi (Scelsi Entertainment and New Media Law), David Postolski (Day Pitney), and Krystle Brown (RKO Pictures). Prices vary. CLE credits. See, notice.

Deadline to submit requests to speak at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) May 9, 2014 hearing on its memorandum titled "Guidance For Determining Subject Matter Eligibility of Claims Reciting or Involving Laws of Nature, Natural Phenomena, and Natural Products (Laws of Nature/Natural Products Guidance)'', released on March 4, 2014. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 74, April 17, 2014, at Pages 21736-21738. See also, story titled "USPTO to Hold Hearing on Subject Matter Eligibility of Claims Reciting Laws of Nature" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,640, April 16, 2014.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) in response to its Public Notice (PN) regarding the FCC's attributable material relationship rule. This PN is DA 14-414 in GN Docket Nos. 12-268 and 13-185 and WT Docket No. 05-211. The FCC released it on March 27, 2014. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 71, April 14, 2014, at Pages 20854-20855.

Deadline to register to attend the Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) event titled "Annual Seminar" at the Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia. See, registration form and agenda.

World Intellectual Property Day. See, World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) notice.

The House will meet the week of April 28-May 2. The House will meet at 2:00 PM. See, 2014 House calendar, and SConRes 35.

10:00 AM. The Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Nautilus v. Biosig Instruments, Sup. Ct. No. 13-369, an appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) . The questions presented are "Does the Federal Circuit's acceptance of ambiguous patent claims with multiple reasonable interpretations -- so long as the ambiguity is not ``insoluble´´ by a court -- defeat the statutory requirement of particular and distinct patent claiming?" and "Does the presumption of validity dilute the requirement of particular and distinct patent claiming?". See also, April 26, 2013, opinion of the Court of Appeals. Location: 1 First St., NW.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Intellectual Property Committee will host a panel discussion titled "Patent Reform Legislation". The speakers may include Alexandra Givens (Senior Counsel, Senate Judiciary Committee), Russ Merbeth (General Counsel, Intellectual Ventures), and Ken Salomon (Thompson Coburn). Free. Bring your own lunch. Location: Wilkinson Barker Knauer, Suite 700, 2300 N St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the General Services Administration (GSA) regarding "how to implement" the "recommendations" contained in the GSA and Department of Defense (DOD) document titled "Final Report of the Joint Working Group on Improving Cybersecurity and Resilience Through Acquisition". This document pertains to both cyber security in products and services procured by the federal government, and leverage of the federal government procurement process to regulate private sector cyber security practices. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 48, March 12, 2014, Page 14042.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to Part VI(A) of its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding closed captioning of video programming. Part VI(A) pertains to "Responsibilities for Meeting the Closed Captioning Obligations". The FCC adopted this FNPRM on February 20, 2014, and released it on February 24, 2014. It is FCC 14-12 in CG Docket No. 05-231. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 59, March 27, 2014, at Pages 17093-17106.

Deadline to submit written comments in advance of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology's (PCAST) April 30 public conference call on the PCAST's big data and privacy report. Although, other written comments will be accepted through April 30. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 73, April 16, 2014, at Pages 21453-21454.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Public Notice (PN) that requests comments to refresh the record regarding the ability of non-English speakers to access emergency information. This PN is DA 14-336 in EB Docket No. 04-296. The FCC released it on March 11, 2014. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 79, No. 60, March 28, 2014, at Pages 17490-17493.

10:00 AM. The Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Riley v. California, Sup. Ct. No. 13-132, an appeal from the Court of Appeal of California in a case involving whether or under what circumstances the Fourth Amendment permits police officers to conduct a warrantless search of the digital contents of an individual's cell phone seized from the person at the time of arrest. See also, February 8, 2013, opinion of the lower court. Location: 1 First St., NW.

11:00 AM. The Supreme Court will hear oral argument in U.S. v. Wurie, Sup. Ct. No. 13-212, an appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals (1stCir) in a case involving whether the Fourth Amendment permits the police, without obtaining a warrant, to review the call log of a cell phone found on a person who has been lawfully arrested. See also, May 17, 2013, opinion of the Court of Appeals. Location: 1 First St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host a panel discussion regarding "what it means to be a legal advisor at the FCC". The speakers will be Daniel Alvarez and Renee Gregory (Legal Advisors to Chairman Tom Wheeler), Amy Bender (Commissioner Michael O'Rielly), David Goldman (Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel), and Louis Peraertz (Commissioner Mignon Clyburn). Justin Faulb (National Association of Broadcasters) will moderate. For more information, contact Lindsey Tonsager at ltonsager at cov dot com or Justin Faulb at jfaulb at nab dot org. Bring your own lunch. Free. The FCBA states that this is an event of its Young Lawyers Committee. Location: FCC, 7 South, 445 12th St., SW.

12:15 - 2:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "Protection of Pre-1972 Sound Recordings: The Sirius/XM Lawsuits and Other Issues". The speakers will be Gary Greenstein (WSGR), Kenneth Kaufman (Manatt Phelps & Phillips), John Simson (American University), and Lita Rosario. Free. No CLE credits. No webcast. Bring your own lunch. For more information, call 202-626-3463. The DC Bar has a history of barring reporters from its events. See, notice. Location: SoundExchange, 10th floor, 733 10th St., NW.

1:00 - 5:00 PM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will host one of its series of meetings regarding privacy and facial recognition technology. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 78, No. 235, December 6, 2013, at Pages 73502-73503. Location: American Institute of Architects, 1735 New York Ave., NW.

5:30 - 7:00 PM. The Brookings Institution (BI) will host a panel discussion titled "The Future of Longform Publishing". The speakers will be Sarah Sampsel (Washington Post, Director of Digital Strategy), Hannah Wallander (New York Times), John Dickerson (Slate), Chad Millman (ESPN The Magazine), and David Nassar (BI). See, notice. Location: BI, 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

6:30 PM. The National Press Club (NPC) will host an event titled "Copyright and Social Media". The speaker will be Mickey Osterreicher, General Counsel of the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA). The NPC notice states this: "How can photographers protect the millions of images and recordings produced every day and posted on traditional websites and social media such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram?" Free. Tickets required. No webcast. Location: NPC, First Amendment Lounge, 13th Floor, 529 14th St., NW.