At 19:28 5/13/2000, Adam Puzerewski wrote:
>This is all phony.  It is the stuff of Urban Legend.

Fraid you jumped too quick on this one, Adam -- here's the text of the Bill
as reported out of committee yesterday...

>May 12, 2000
>Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House
>on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
>[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in
>italic]
>
>A BILL
>To prohibit the imposition of access charges on Internet service
>providers, and for other purposes.
>Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
>States of America in Congress assembled,
>[Struck out->] SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. [<-Struck out]
>[Struck out->] This Act may be cited as the `Internet Access Charge
>Prohibition Act of 1999'. [<-Struck out]
>[Struck out->] SEC. 2. PURPOSE. [<-Struck out]
>[Struck out->] It is the purpose of this Act to ensure that Internet
>information services will continue to be deployed as rapidly and
>efficiently to as many Americans as possible by preventing the Federal
>Communications Commission from applying interstate access charges to
>providers of Internet services. [<-Struck out]
>[Struck out->] SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF ACCESS CHARGES ON INTERNET SERVICE
>PROVIDERS. [<-Struck out]
>[Struck out->] Section 254 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.
>254) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
>[<-Struck out]
>[Struck out->] `(l) PROHIBITION OF ACCESS CHARGES ON INTERNET SERVICE
>PROVIDERS- Notwithstanding subsection (b)(4) or (d) or any other provision
>of this section, the Commission shall not impose on any interactive
>computer service (as such term is defined in section 230(e)) or other
>information service provider any access charge for the support of
>universal service that is based on a measure of the time that
>telecommunications services are used in the provision of such interactive
>computer service or information service.'. [<-Struck out]
>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
>This Act may be cited as the `Internet Access Charge Prohibition Act of 2000'.
>SEC. 2. PROHIBITION OF CHARGES ON PROVIDERS OF INTERNET ACCESS SERVICE.
>Section 254 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254) is amended
>by adding at the end the following new subsection:
>`(l) PROHIBITION OF CHARGES ON INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS-
>`(1) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding subsection (b)(4) or (d) or any other
>provision of this title, the Commission shall not impose on any provider
>of Internet access service (as such term is defined in section 231(e)) any
>contribution for the support of universal service that is based on a
>measure of the time that telecommunications services are used in the
>provision of such Internet access service.
>`(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION- Nothing in this subsection shall preclude the
>Commission from imposing access charges on the providers of Internet
>telephone services, irrespective of the type of customer premises
>equipment used in connection with such services.'.
>Union Calendar No. 335
>106th CONGRESS
>2d Session
>H. R. 1291
>[Report No. 106-615]
>A BILL
>To prohibit the imposition of access charges on Internet service
>providers, and for other purposes.
>
>May 12, 2000
>Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House
>on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed

David Beierl - Providence, RI
  http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/
'84 Westy "Dutiful Passage"
'85 GL "Poor Relation"