Fight for the Future had amassed by our deadline Monday nearly 42,000 signatures from people opposing potential “Title X” net neutrality legislation. The group, formed in 2011 as a digital advocacy nonprofit, attacked the bill, which has not been in any way officially released or announced. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., is helping put together the bill, which he has framed as an alternative to Communications Act Title II reclassification (see 1501070049). Thune worked with committee ranking member Bill Nelson, D-Fla., on this bill but indicated that he and Democrats differ on when to advance it -- Thune wants to move before the FCC votes on net neutrality Feb. 26. Nelson first hinted at such legislation to us in mid-November (see 1411130049). “Congress leaders are planning on starting 2015 with a bill called ‘Title X’ that would compromise the World Wide Web by taking away the FCC’s ability to protect the open Internet and giving cable companies the power to charge for less access,” the Fight for the Future petition said. “This bill would be a huge betrayal to the millions of Internet users that demanded that Congress support real net neutrality.” The petition warned against Congress' acting before the FCC, saying that “if Congress introduces ‘Title X’ first, it could hijack the entire process and reverse any progress for net neutrality.” It has a goal of 50,000 signatures. Free Press also criticized the Title X idea, in a blog post Monday. "Congressional attempts to undermine these long-established principles with bad legislation -- or to strip away the FCC’s ability to enforce them -- wouldn’t just gut Net Neutrality," Government Relations Manager Sandra Fulton said. "They would endanger our basic rights to communicate and express ourselves freely -- values that are a cornerstone to our democracy and a free society." No new laws are required on this front, she said.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., reintroduced his Secure Data Act (S-135) Thursday. It has no co-sponsors and was referred to the Commerce Committee. The legislation is intended to end what Wyden considers searches into government-mandated “back doors” in devices. He introduced the bill in the 113th Congress last month. “This bill sends a message to leaders of those [intelligence] agencies to stop recklessly pushing for new ways to vacuum up Americans’ private information, and instead put that effort into rebuilding public trust,” Wyden said in his news release last month.

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., is officially the chairman of the Commerce Committee, ratified by the Senate, he said in a news release Thursday. Thune was ranking member in the last Congress and was widely expected to take over as chairman. He said there will be six subcommittees, including the Communications and Consumer Protection subcommittees. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., as expected, will lead the Communications Subcommittee. "My chief focus will continue to be the deployment and adoption of broadband in rural America, particularly in Mississippi," Wicker said in a statement Friday. "Broadband has become a true economic engine, and we need to ensure that all Americans reap the benefits of it. To that end, we should focus on fostering innovation and investment in the broadband marketplace, by promoting wireless spectrum availability and reexamining laws on the books to ensure that the dynamic growth Americans have enjoyed continues unimpeded." Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., is a new member of Commerce and will chair the Consumer Protection and Data Security Subcommittee. Subcommittee members weren't announced. Also, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, was officially voted Judiciary Committee chairman, as expected, Grassley said in a release.

Sen. David Vitter, R-La., introduced legislation again to dismantle parts of the Lifeline program. He offered S-56 Wednesday, which would “prohibit universal service support of commercial mobile service through the Lifeline program,” its longer title said. Vitter is a new member of the Commerce Committee and has attacked elements of the Lifeline program in the past. The legislation has no co-sponsors and was referred to Commerce. The bill text wasn't posted online.

Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., introduced a bill Wednesday “to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the excise tax on telephone and other communications services,” its longer title said. The text of the legislation wasn't online. It has no co-sponsors and was referred to the Finance Committee, where Heller is a member. He's also a member of the Commerce Committee.

Reps. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., Randy Forbes, R-Va., Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Mimi Walters, R-Calif., are to be the new Republican members on the House Judiciary IP Subcommittee, said a House Judiciary Committee news release Thursday. The new committee assignments will be confirmed when the full committee has its first organizational meeting in the 114th Congress, said the release. Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., announced last month that all copyright matters will be heard at the full committee level (see 1412050057). Reps. Tom Marino, R-Pa., and Blake Farenthold, R-Texas, will remain members of the IP subcommittee, but Marino will be the new chairman of the House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee. Farenthold will remain vice chairman of that subcommittee. Reps. Mike Bishop, R-Mich., John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, Dave Trott, R-Mich., and Walters will be the new Republican members of the antitrust subcommittee.

House lawmakers Wednesday reintroduced the Regulatory Accountability Act (HR-185), which would force “federal bureaucrats to adopt the least costly method to effectively implement the law,” a news release said. They posted the bill text, which includes provisions on how agencies conduct rulemakings and what must occur when they issue major or high-impact rules. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., and Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., are the bill’s primary backers. It “addresses the problem of escalating, excessive federal regulatory costs in a clear, commonsense way that we can all support,” Goodlatte said in a statement. “This legislation directs the Executive Branch to fulfill its statutory goals set by Congress and requires simply that they reach those goals in the least costly way with better public input to find the most efficient regulatory solutions.” The House passed the legislation in the 113th Congress but it never made it through the Senate.

The Communications Act overhaul will be on the agenda Friday as the House Commerce Committee convenes for an organizational meeting at 9 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn. The agenda includes adoption of committee rules, subcommittee jurisdictions, subcommittee members and leaders of both parties, and the committee’s 114th Congress oversight plan. The 11-page oversight plan includes multiple items Commerce will focus on -- a telecom law rewrite; the operations of the FCC, FTC and FirstNet; Internet governance; cybersecurity; privacy and data security; spectrum management; and broadband availability. “The Committee will pay particular attention to whether the FCC conducts cost-benefit and market analyses before imposing regulations,” the plan said. “The Committee will also conduct oversight to ensure compliance with existing processes, improve FCC procedures, and promote transparency.” Republicans already have named their subcommittee members and leaders. Commerce Democrats plan an organizational meeting Thursday (see 1501050039).

Overhauling the Communications Act is a key priority for House Republicans of the Commerce Committee in the 114th Congress, Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., said in a 12-page report released Tuesday. “The panel has already collected stakeholder input and convened a series of expert witnesses via hearings to set the stage for an update to the Communications Act -- a law written in the telegraph era and last updated when Palm Pilots were at the cutting edge,” the report said. Another priority is “protecting consumers and commerce in the Internet age,” it said. “Today, that commerce increasingly occurs in cyberspace, which is why the committee and the [Trade] subcommittee in particular will be focused on data security and the implications of cyber threats to American commerce.” The report included what it considered accomplishments of the 113th Congress, such as keeping a “watchful eye” on the FCC and keeping “up the bipartisan pressure to protect the multi-stakeholder approach to Internet governance that has fostered freedom and innovation around the world."

CTIA said federal law should prevent the FCC from regulating wireless as a Communications Act Title II service. “The Congressional framework for regulating wireless services -- specifically Section 332 of the Communications Act -- prohibits the application of Title II common carrier regulation to mobile broadband,” Vice President-Regulatory Affairs Scott Bergmann said in a post Tuesday. “Yet again, when it comes to Net Neutrality, wireless is different.” CTIA submitted a legal white paper to the FCC making the same argument last month.