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ACM WASHINGTON UPDATE
U.S. Office of Public Policy of the
Association for Computing Machinery
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August 27, 1998
Volume 2.6
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ACM WASHINGTON UPDATE
U.S. Office of Public Policy of the
Association for Computing Machinery
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August 27, 1998
Volume 2.6
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CONTENTS
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INTRODUCTION
USACM ACTIVITIES:
Security Researchers Urge Congress to Reconsider Pending Copyright
Legislation
POLICY BRIEFS
NSF Authorization Bill Signed By President Clinton
PTIC Recommends Increased Federal Spending On Information Technologies
NTIA Requests Comments on .US Domain Name Management
Free Trade Area of the Americas' Committee on Electronic Commerce
Federal Funding of Civilian R&D
Neal Lane Confirmed as Director of OSTP
NIST Budget Reduced But Advanced Technology Program Saved
Communications of the ACM
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INTRODUCTION
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The Association for Computing Machinery is an international professional
society whose 75,000 members (60,000 in the U.S.) represent a critical mass
of computer scientists in education, industry, and government. The USACM
provides a means for promoting dialogue on technology policy issues with
United States policy makers and the general public. The WASHINGTON UPDATE
will report on activities in Washington which may be of interest to those
in the computing and information policy communities and will highlight
USACM's involvement in many of these issues.
To subscribe to the ACM WASHINGTON UPDATE send an e-mail to
listserv@acm.org with "subscribe WASHINGTON-UPDATE" (no quotes) in the body
of the message. Back issues are available at http://www.acm.org/usacm
For information about joining the Association for Computing, see:
http://www.acm.org/membership/join.html
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USACM ACTIVITIES
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SECURITY RESEARCHERS URGE CONGRESS TO RECONSIDER PENDING COPYRIGHT LEGISLATION
On August 1, a group of the nation's top security researchers and
practitioners delivered a letter to Congressional leaders urging them to
reconsider provisions of controversial legislation concerning copyright
protection. H.R. 2281 (the "Digital Millennium Act") has already been
approved by the House, and one version has already passed the Senate. The
bill would make it illegal to circumvent "technological protection
measures" that could be used to protect digital works on the Internet.
However, those same technologies are also employed to protect users against
computer viruses, perform security tests of commercial network
installations, and conduct basic security education and research in
universities and government labs. The experts assert that if the bill is
passed in its current form, many vital forms of security testing may be
rendered illegal. USACM assisted in the drafting of the letter
Realizing that scientists need to circumvent systems to conduct effective
research, the House Commerce Committee recently amended the bill to permit
circumvention for the purposes of encryption research. However, according
to security experts, such a provision simply does not go far enough. "[The
Commerce Committee bill] fails to further recognize that encryption
research is simply one aspect of security research, and that research is
different from actual practice. While [the bill] may exempt encryption
research, it still criminalizes other crucial techniques used in security
research and practice," wrote USACM member Eugene Spafford, the author of
the letter, and a world-leading expert in information security. "If passed
in anything similar to its present form, [the Digital Millennium Copyright
Act] has the potential to imperil computer systems and networks throughout
the United States, criminalize many current university courses and research
in information security, and severely disrupt a growing American industry
in information security technology. The result would be grave damage to the
U.S. economy and to national security."
Spafford drafted the letter after becoming aware of the full import of the
pending legislation. Within hours, 48 experts agreed to act as co-signers.
Spafford noted "If we had more time to solicit supporters, we might have
doubled the number of prominent names on the letter. The community is
gravely concerned that this legislation will endanger information security
in the U.S. Although we are against violation of valid copyrights, we
believe that legislation should be designed to punish the violators rather
than criminalize tools that are also necessary to the protectors."
An electronic copy of the security researchers' letter is available at:
http://www.cs.purdue.edu/homes/spaf/WIPO/.
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POLICY BRIEFS
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NSF AUTHORIZATION BILL SIGNED BY PRESIDENT CLINTON
On July, 29, President Clinton signed into law H.R. 1273, the "National
Science Foundation Authorization Act of 1998." The President said,
"Science, engineering, and technology are potent forces for progress and
achievement. Over the past century, advances in science and technology
have driven much of our economic growth and shaped the lives of every
generation of Americans in previously unimaginable ways. As we approach
the 21st Century, many of our society's expectations for a better future
are dependent upon advances in science and technology."
According to President Clinton, "This Act will enable the NSF to continue
to play an important leadership role in sustaining scientific and
technological progress. I am pleased to note that the appropriation
authorization levels in H.R. 1273 are the same as proposed in my FY 1999
Budget, and I urge that these amounts be appropriated. The proposed
funding for the NSF is part of my Administration's broader, aggressive
agenda for science and technology investments throughout the Federal
Government, which includes the NSF's participation in the Global
Observations to Benefit the Environment Initiative, the Partnership for a
New Generation of Vehicles Program, and the Education and Training
Technology Initiative. I especially commend the Congress for authorizing
the NSF's participation in the Next Generation Internet Program. This
multi-agency program will push the frontiers of computation and
communications and help fuel the revolution in information technology."
For more information, please see:
http://www.pub.whitehouse.gov/uri-res/I2R?urn:pdi://oma.eop.gov.us/1998/7/30/10.text.1
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PTIC RECOMMENDS INCREASED FEDERAL SPENDING ON INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES
On August 10, the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee
(PITAC), whose membership includes many of the nation's top computing and
communications experts, released a report which recommends expanded
government investments in long-term research and development in
technologies such as computers, networks, and software. The PITAC report
notes that the growth in today's information technology sector is leading
the growth of all other sectors of the economy. The Federal Reserve
reports that during the past five years production in computers,
semiconductors, and communications equipment quadrupled at a time when
total industrial production grew by 28 percent. These three industries
account for one-third of the total growth in production since 1992.
President Clinton thanked the Committee in a letter for their work in
developing a research agenda for the Nation, and renewed his commitment to
make significant increases in computing and communications research in the
years ahead. "Our nation's economic future and the welfare of our citizens
depend on continued advances and innovation in the information technologies
which have produced so many remarkable developments in science,
engineering, medicine, business, and education," the President said.
The Committee stressed the importance of Clinton Administration initiatives
in computing and communications such as the Next Generation Internet, the
Department of Energy's DOE 2000 distributed computing program, and the
National Science Foundation's Knowledge and Distributed Intelligence
emphasis. This year, President Clinton has proposed record increases for
civilian research and development to keep America at the cutting-edge of
science and technology. The Committee argued for sharply increased support
for basic research, giving highest priority to research on computer
software. They also stressed the importance of allowing the research
community to "live in the future" and tackle long-term high-risk research
challenges.
Specifically, the Committee recommend emphasis be placed on: (1) Techniques
for developing software that is more dependable and reliable; (2)
Communication systems which will be able to support billions of users and
devices that are attached to the network; (3) High-speed computers and
software that can deliver useful performance that is a thousand times
faster than today's most powerful super computers; and (4) Research that
ensures that America's workforce is properly prepared for the challenges
and opportunities of the Information Age.
A copy of the Committee's report is available on the World Wide Web at
http://www.ccic.gov.
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NTIA REQUESTS COMMENTS ON .US DOMAIN NAME MANAGEMENT
The Commerce Department has issued a call for comments and suggestions
regarding the management and use of the .us domain name space. The .us
domain is the top-level domain assigned to the United States for
locality-based domain name registration. The National Telecommunications
and Information Administration (NTIA) is receiving comments at
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/usrfc/dotusrfc.htm. The NTIA
is seeking comments that answer specified questions surrounding the issue,
including how domain names should be assigned under .us, the type of entity
that should administer .us, and the role of the states and localities in
domain name registration. Comments are due October 5th.
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FREE TRADE AREA OF THE AMERICAS' COMMITTEE ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
On April 18-19, 1998, President Clinton and his 33 counterparts in the
Western Hemisphere initiated negotiations to create the Free Trade Area of
the Americas (FTAA) by the year 2005 and to achieve concrete progress
toward that objective by the end of the century. The leaders established a
general framework for the negotiations, including a Trade Negotiations
Committee (TNC), composed of the 34 vice ministers responsible for trade
to oversee the negotiations. They agreed to nine initial negotiating
groups, a consultative group and two committees, one of which is a joint
public-private sector Experts Committee on Electronic Commerce. At its June
1998 meeting in Buenos Aires, the TNC agreed that the Experts Committee
will be chaired by Mr. Dale Marshall of Barbados.
The objective of the Experts Committee is to make recommendations to trade
ministers on how to increase and broaden the benefits of electronic
commerce and how electronic commerce should be dealt with in the context of
the FTAA negotiations. The Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) invites
public comment on the work plan of the Experts Committee. In addition, the
TPSC seeks to identify U.S. private sector experts on electronic commerce
who may be interested in participating in the work of the Experts Committee
and comments on how to maximize the effectiveness of private sector
participation. Interested members of the public are invited to submit
written notice of their interest and their qualifications. Written comments
on the Experts Committee and expressions of interest in participating in
the work of the Committee should be submitted no later than September 8,
1998.
For procedural questions concerning public comments, contact Gloria Blue,
Executive Secretary, Trade Policy Staff Committee, Office of the United
States Trade Representative, (202) 395-3475. All questions concerning the
Experts Committee should be directed to Regina Vargo, Deputy Assistant
Secretary for the Western Hemisphere, U.S.Department of Commerce (202)
482-5324, Rvargo@USITA.GOV.
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FEDERAL FUNDING OF CIVILIAN R&D
The movement to increase federal spending on non-military R&D continues to
gain both force and advocates on the Hill. Almost two years ago, Senator
Phil Gramm introduced legislation to double R&D funding over ten years.
His Bill only had 4 co-sponsors. In February, the Administration proposed
large increases in future federal research in its budget submission and the
legislation currently has 26 co-sponsors. On June 25, Senator Bill Frist
(R-TN) introduced S. 2217, the Federal Research Investment Act. This bill
does not actually appropriate money but would authorize a doubling of
civilian research spending over a 12-year period. Other legislation to
increase R&D funding has been introduced by Senators Joseph Lieberman
(D-CT), Pete Domenici (R-NM), and Jeff Bingaman (D-NM).
A number of scientific societies including the ACM have urged the
scientific community to continue to inform Congress that R&D spending is
important to the country's future and to applaud their efforts to increase
civilian R&D.
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NEAL LANE CONFIRMED AS DIRECTOR OF OSTP
On Friday, July 31, 1998, the United States Senate unanimously confirmed
Dr. Neal F. Lane to be Director of the Office of Science and Technology
Policy. Dr. Lane will also serve as Assistant to the President for Science
and Technology and will be responsible for providing the President with
advice in all areas of science and technology policy and works to
coordinate science, space, and technology policy and programs across the
federal government. The Director also co-chairs the President's Committee
of Advisors on Science and Technology and serves on the National Science
and Technology Council.
Dr. Neal Lane was the Director of the National Science Foundation, an
independent agency of the federal government that provides support for
research and education in science, mathematics, engineering and technology.
From 1966 to 1993, he served at Rice University as Provost and Professor of
Physics. From 1984 to 1986, he left Rice to serve as Chancellor of the
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado. From 1979 to 1980,
Dr. Lane was Director of the Division of Physics for the National Science
Foundation. Dr Lane was a Member of CSSP until his appointment to be
Director of NSF. Dr. Lane has authored or co-authored over 90 scientific
papers and received numerous awards and honors, including an Alfred P.
Sloan Foundation Fellowship. He is a Fellow of the American Physical
Union, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the AAAS.
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NIST BUDGET REDUCED BUT ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM SAVED
The House of Representatives passed H.R. 4276, the FY 1999 Commerce,
Justice and State bill, which funds the National Institute of Standards in
Technology. The bill avoided amendments by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) and Rep.
Charles Bass (R-NH), offered during the house debate, which would have
reduced or cut completely the funding for NIST's Advanced Technology
Program. However, H.R. 4276, as passed, grants a total budget of $624
million, almost $90 million less than requested for FY 99. The Senate
version of the bill, passed July 23, grants NIST a total budget of $646
million.
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COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM
The August issue of Communications of the ACM focuses on Information
Systems and Economics. There are also number of articles on Computer and
Internet policy including:
"Spam!" Lorrie Faith Cranor and Brian A. LaMacchia
"Log on Education Using Technology to Address Old Problems in New Ways"
Elliot Soloway and Cathie Norris
"From Washington: Shaping Public Policy in the Information Age" Diane
Crawford
"Viewpoint: Did Chuck Babbage Predict Software Piracy?" Roger A. Coldwell
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Washington Update is a biweekly publication of the U.S. Public
Policy Office of the Association for Computing http://www.acm.org/usacm
666 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 302B, Washington, DC 20003.
202/544-4859 (tel), 202/547-5482 (fax).
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