The Senate voted 86-8 Tuesday to pass the compromise FY National Defense Authorization Act. S-1790 includes language targeting Chinese telecom equipment manufacturers Huawei and ZTE. The House approved the measure last week 377-48 (see 1912120061). President Donald Trump tweeted last week he intends to sign. The conference version includes a modified text of House-side anti-Huawei language originally sought by Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., to modify conditions for the Commerce Department to lift Bureau of Industry and Security addition of Huawei to its entity list (see 1906190054). It includes Gallagher’s proposal to direct the president report to Congress on ZTE compliance with a 2018 agreement that lifted Commerce's ban on U.S. companies selling to ZTE (see 1807130048). The measure includes a Senate-cleared proposal from Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Vice Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., for the director of national intelligence report on how much "global and regional adoption” of foreign-made 5G technology affects U.S. national security. The NDAA includes language from the Authenticating Local Emergencies and Real Threats (Alert) Act to give the federal government sole missile threat alert issuance authority (see 1802070052).

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., set a Monday cloture vote on the FY 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (S-1790), which includes language targeting Chinese telecom equipment manufacturers Huawei and ZTE. The House approved the measure Wednesday 377-48. The House and Senate Armed Services committees released the conference text earlier this week after months of work to blend (see 1907220053) the Senate and House-passed (HR-2500) measures. The conference NDAA includes a modified version of House-side anti-Huawei language originally sought by Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., that would modify conditions for the Commerce Department to lift the Bureau of Industry and Security’s addition of Huawei to its entity list (see 1906190054). It would require Huawei to prove it “sufficiently resolved or settled” supply chain security issues that led to its inclusion on the BIS entity list (see 1905160081). Commerce has since approved export licenses (see 1911210027) for U.S. companies to have their products included in Huawei's equipment. The bill also includes Gallagher’s proposal to direct the president to report to Congress on ZTE's compliance with a 2018 agreement that lifted Commerce's ban on U.S. companies selling telecom software and equipment to ZTE (see 1807130048). The measure includes a Senate-cleared proposal from Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Vice Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., that would require the director of national intelligence report the extent “global and regional adoption” of foreign-made 5G technology affects U.S. national security. The study would look at how the nation's “strategy to reduce foreign influence and political pressure in international standard-setting bodies” could help mitigate the threat. The NDAA includes language from the Authenticating Local Emergencies and Real Threats (Alert) Act, which would give the federal government sole authority to issue missile threat alerts and preempt state and local governments' role (see 1802070052). Senate Communications Subcommittee ranking member Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, filed the bill in response to the January 2018 false missile emergency alert in Hawaii (see 1801160054). NDAA conferees agreed to remove Senate-cleared language telling DOD to work with the FCC and NTIA to establish a spectrum sharing R&D program. House Commerce Committee ranking member Greg Walden, R-Ore., and others raised concerns about the language because they believe it could undermine NTIA’s role in making spectrum allocation decisions for the federal government (see 1909180048). The conference text also doesn’t include House-cleared language from the 911 Supporting Accurate Views of Emergency Services (Saves) Act. HR-1629/S-1015 would change the federal government's classification of public safety call-takers and dispatchers to "protective service occupations" (see 1904050054).

The Senate Intellectual Property Subcommittee plans a hearing on oversight of Copyright Office modernization at 2 p.m. Dec. 11 in 226 Dirksen, the subcommittee announced. Witnesses are CO Director Karyn Temple, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and LOC Chief Information Officer Bernard Barton.

The FCC received about 450 informal consumer complaints over the past year about ISPs charging what they consider to be abusive or unwarranted broadband equipment rental fees, but only the FTC and other agencies are able to “regulate the fees charged” because of FCC rescission of 2015 net neutrality rules. That's what Chairman Ajit Pai wrote House Appropriations Financial Services Subcommittee Chairman Mike Quigley, D-Ill. Quigley, whose subcommittee has jurisdiction over FCC funding, wrote Pai in August to raise concerns. The FCC has referred informal complaints about “potentially unfair or deceptive billing practices by” ISPs to the FTC and “does not have information about the procedural posture or substantive resolution of any matters referred to the FTC” Pai replied, released Friday. “That agency would be better positioned to convey that information.” He noted the FCC “does require broadband Internet access providers to disclose their commercial terms of service, including prices for services.”

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe, R-Okla., and Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., wrote President Donald Trump Wednesday about Chinese telecom equipment manufacturers' “ongoing refusal to pay lawfully owed licensing fees to U.S. developers of standards-based wireless technology.” Chinese manufacturers Huawei and ZTE, neither of which is identified in the letter, are under FCC and Capitol Hill scrutiny (see 1909270063). A draft FCC proposal would bar USF funding for the purchase of telecom equipment from companies “posing a national security threat to the integrity of communications networks or the communications supply chain.” The order is seen as targeted at Huawei and ZTE (see 1910300036). Inhofe and Wicker urged Trump to address “this flagrant and willful decision by Chinese companies to ignore the intellectual property rights of the U.S.” and other countries “as a part of your ongoing trade negotiations with China.” The Chinese manufacturers' decision not to “adhere to” licensing laws “not only undermines faith in a world-recognized system of license fee payments, it also exposes the ambition of certain Chinese companies to unfairly seek an advantage over other law-abiding companies,” Inhofe and Wicker said. “We must change the ability of Chinese companies to access the U.S. market while simultaneously eroding the ability of the U.S. and other Western market-based companies to maintain their leading role in the research and development of advanced wireless technology.” The White House didn't comment.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., pressed the FCC Wednesday to “act to secure” U.S. 5G networks by requiring wireless carriers to enable 5G cybersecurity technologies. “It simply isn't feasible to secure current phone networks due to the flaws in the 2G, 3G and 4G technology,” Wyden wrote FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. “Cybersecurity protections [in 5G technology] that address many of the known vulnerabilities that have been exploited for years by hackers and foreign governments” are only optional, “leaving it up to each wireless carrier to turn them on.” The FCC “must act to ensure” those encryption and authentication features “are enabled by AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile as they upgrade their networks,” Wyden said. He wants information by Dec. 6 on several matters, including whether the FCC supports encrypting all text messages and phone calls and whether the commission would support a third-party assessment of wireless carriers' security measures. Wyden recently pressed AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile on location data breaches, but they didn't provide specifics (see 1904180056). The commission has “received the letter” and is “reviewing it,” a spokesperson said Wednesday.

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., is “pretty close” to finalizing a draft Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act reauthorization bill, with an eye to bringing it up for a November committee markup. “I would hope we'd move very quickly” to bring a STELA bill up for Senate Commerce consideration, Wicker told us, confirming others' expectations (see 1910220058). The committee examined STELA last week, its hearing focused partly on whether there's an appetite to renew the statute for a term shorter than the traditional five years (see 1910230053). Wicker said his Tuesday meeting with Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass. (see 1910290064) increased his interest in inserting language from the Truth-in-Billing, Remedies and User Empowerment over Fees (True Fees) Act in a recertification package. S-510/HR-1220 would let customers end contracts with providers without early termination fees if the provider increases prices, and would prevent equipment fee increases unless providers improve the devices (see 1902140045). “We all want to get to the same result” to increase “transparency and the most information possible to the consumer,” Wicker said.

Facebook’s digital currency will help the U.S. stay ahead of China and extend democratic values globally, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is to testify Wednesday (see 1910210067) before the House Financial Services Committee: “While we debate these issues, the rest of the world isn’t waiting. China is moving quickly to launch similar ideas in the coming months. Libra will be backed mostly by dollars and I believe it will extend America’s financial leadership as well as our democratic values and oversight around the world.” Facebook won’t launch Project Libra until U.S. regulators approve, he says.

Facebook and Amazon reported increases in Q3 lobbying spending over the same period in 2018 amid ongoing Capitol Hill antitrust interest in the tech sector. Disney, USTelecom and NetChoice were among those that said earlier Monday they increased spending (see 1910210077). Google reported a 50 percent drop to $2.98 million. Comcast, AT&T and NAB also had declines. Facebook said it spent $4.8 million, up nearly 70 percent. Amazon reported just over $4 million, an 11 percent increase. AT&T laid out $3.24 million, down almost 16 percent. Comcast reported just over $3 million, down more than 11 percent. NAB's dropped more than 12 percent to $2.98 million. NCTA increased expenditures more than 5 percent to $2.94 million. Verizon's spending increased 4 percent to $2.43 million. Charter's decreased 2 percent to $2.23 million. T-Mobile's increased more than 7 percent to $2.21 million. CBS' spending stayed level at $900,000. Fox upped expenditures almost 22 percent to $780,000. Dish Network increased 13 percent to $590,000.

The House should reject legislation for a voluntary small claims board within the Copyright Office (see 1909110030) when it votes Tuesday, Public Knowledge said Monday. The Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement (CASE) Act (HR-2426/S-1273) passed the House Judiciary Committee by voice vote in September and unanimously passed the Senate Judiciary Committee in July, despite opposition from PK and the Center for Democracy & Technology. “The ‘court’ created by CASE relies on a constitutionally suspect opt-out provision, in which a failure to respond waives the respondent’s constitutional right to a jury trial,” PK Policy Counsel Meredith Rose said. “Respondents with any modicum of sophistication -- including tech platforms, which the bill has been widely reported as targeting -- will simply opt out of the court’s jurisdiction.” The Re:Create Coalition also urged the House to reject the bill. Executive Director Joshua Lamel said it’s reckless that Congress held only one hearing on the legislation at the end of last session. The bill “will expose ordinary Americans to tens of thousands of dollars in damages for things most of us do every day,” he said.