What's New @ IEEE-USA - Eye On Washington

1) CAPITOL HILL WATCH

• Senate Clears Deficit Reduction Bill, Approves H-1B Visa Increase

• Latest Draft of Telecom Bill Gives Bells More of What They Want

• House Energy & Commerce Committee Cites Abuses in E-Rate Program, Vows Crackdown

• House Recognized October as National Cyber Security Awareness Month

• Digital Switchover Date is Subject to Pop Culture as Well as Political Wishes

• House Passed Iran Nonproliferation Act To help U.S. Space Program

• Senate Bill Would Create Venture Capital Program Under The SBA

2) WHITE HOUSE & EXECUTIVE AGENCY WATCH

• NSF Director Congratulates 2005 Nobel Prize Winners

• If NASA Were Bound by Sarbanes-Oxley, CFO Would Not Certify the Agency's Finances

3) REPORTS, SPEECHES & DOCUMENTS OF NOTE

• New GAO Reports

• USTR Report Says Japan's Tech Sectors Are More Open

4) U.S. COURTS ACTIVITY

None at this time.

5) AWARDS & GRANTS

6) CONFERENCES, FELLOWSHIPS, PROGRAMS & INTERNSHIPS FOR ENGINEERS, and STUDENTS and SCHOLARS OF ENGINEERING

• 2007 Government Fellowships

• IEEE Student Members Encouraged to Apply for 2006 WISE Program

• WISE Program Seeks Senior Science & Technology Public Policy Advisor to Engineering Students (Nine Week Summer Position)

7) U.S. STATES WATCH

• Telecom Regulation Updates - TX, NJ, MI

• Rhode Island Action Plan Calls for Improvements in Science and Math Education

• Louisiana Negotiating For E-Voting System

• New Virginia E-Recycling Plant Will Add Jobs to the Area

• Massachusetts Lawmakers Concerned About Proposed Implementation of IT Standards

8) LATEST IEEE-USA ACTIVITIES

• Track IEEE-USA's Progress

9) U.S. COMPETITIVENESS: WHO'S DOING WHAT TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE?

• IEEE-USA Resource Web Page - U.S. Competitiveness: The Innovation Challenge

10) OTHER ITEMS OF POSSIBLE INTEREST

None at this time.

1) CAPITOL HILL WATCH

• Senate Clears Deficit Reduction Bill, Approves H-1B Visa Increase

3 NOV: The Senate passed a sweeping five year, $35 billion deficit reduction package, but its fate remains unclear as the House prepares to open debate on a vastly different $54 billion version. Republican leaders hope to adjourn for the year at the end of November and are reluctant to prolong the session to resolve differences over budget details that face no hard deadline this year.

The Senate bill (S 1932), approved on a 52 to 47 vote, finds its savings through cuts in Medicare and Medicaid, farm aid program and student lender subsidies. It adds revenues by, among other things, increasing pension insurance premiums, radio spectrum sales and  employment-based visa fees.

Of special interest to IEEE-USA members, the Senate bill boosts revenues by raising the numbers of foreign professionals who can be admitted to work in the United States on certain employment-based visas. In any year in which the annual 65,000 H-1B cap is reached, for example, the bill will allow employers to petition for an additional 30,000 H-1B temporary visas in exchange for an extra $500 per visa fee. The current 140,000 annual cap on immigrant (legal permanent resident) visas available to extra-ordinary ability professionals, advanced degree professionals and baccalaureate degree professionals would also be boosted by up to 90,000 visas a year with an extra $500 per visa fee. Multi-national corporations that wish to transfer foreign employees to work temporarily in the United States on L (Intra-company transfer) visas will have to pay an additional $750 fee.

An IEEE-USA backed amendment introduced by Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) and supported by Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) was defeated 84 to 14. The Byrd amendment would have substituted a simple House Judiciary Committee proposal calling for a $1,500 increase in L visa fees for the more complex EB/H-1B/ L visa proposal included in S 1932 as passed by the Senate.

If you would like to read the record of the floor debate, please visit our web site.

• Latest Draft of Telecom Bill Gives Bells More of What They Want

The Bells appear to be getting what they want in the latest draft of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's legislation – circulated by the committee after they collected industry comments - aimed at updating telecommunications laws for the Internet era.

The initial draft streamlined the regional Bell phone companies' entry into video by expediting the process for them to obtain the local franchises under which cable companies operate. The Bells would have had to comply with the same requirements that other video providers have, such as obligations to carry educational and public interest programming and ownership rules.

But the latest revision yields even more benefits for the Bells, who are getting ready to offer their own TV programming. Additionally, the Bells could end up paying less in "franchise fees" to municipalities under the draft because of a new fee formula. The bill also gives the Federal Communications Commission a year to implement the streamlined regulations and requires the agency to review the relevance of the rules every four years.

Other key changes concern the definition of "broadband video provider" — the entities that would technically qualify for the streamlined video franchises under the bill; language relaxing the rules on "net neutrality" — a requirement that Internet service providers do not block consumers from visiting certain Web sites or interfere with surfing; clarification that Internet service providers (ISPs) could offer packages to consumers with varied Internet speeds, or add-on features such as e-mail spam control; and allowances for ISPs to take any actions necessary to protect the security of their networks. The subcommittee plans to hold a hearing on the latest draft on it 9 November.

• House Energy & Commerce Committee Cites Abuses in E-Rate Program, Vows Crackdown

18 OCT: The House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee unanimously approved a bipartisan staff report chronicling waste, fraud and abuse in a federal program that funds Internet access in schools and libraries. The report on the E-Rate program outlined a pattern of mismanagement, lax oversight and vendor greed in a program intended to make Internet access universally available.

"While E-Rate has arguably benefited the nation's children, the program falls far short as an example of efficiency, effectiveness, or integrity," the staff report concluded.

Full Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-Tex.) and Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.), plan to craft legislation to address the problems outlined in the report.

The E-Rate program, created by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (PL 104-104), is part of the federal Universal Service Fund, which subsidizes telephone service in rural and low-income communities through a tax on phone bills. The program is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), a non-profit established by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

• House Recognized October as National Cyber Security Awareness Month

17 OCT: The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.Res. 491, a resolution recognizing October as National Cyber Security Awareness Month. The resolution praised public and private efforts to raise U.S. cyber security awareness and empower people to improve their cyber security preparedness.

H. Res 491 states that Congress "supports the goals and ideals of National Cyber Security Awareness Month" and "will work with Federal agencies, national organizations, businesses, and educational institutions to encourage the development and implementation of existing and future computer security voluntary consensus standards, practices, and technologies in order to enhance the state of computer security in the United States."

National Cyber Security Awareness Month is sponsored by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), a non-profit, public-private partnership that includes computer companies and groups representing computer users.  The initiative will include weekly events across the country on specific cyber security topics aimed at consumers, students, children, parents, small businesses, and educational institutions. The NCSA Web site, www.staysafeonline.info, provides useful tools and resources to promote safe and responsible computer use, including cyber safety tips, alerts, and checklists.

• Digital Switchover Date is Subject to Pop Culture as Well as Political Wishes

Wariness, the Superbowl, indecisiveness, ... whatever is preventing it, Congress can't put it off forever.  Ultimately, the House and Senate must agree on a specific date for the digital TV switchover.

According to drafts approved 20 October, the House wants a hard cutoff date of 31 December 2008, while the Senate bill gives broadcasters until 7 April 2009. The Senate's first choice was January 1st, but someone worried that sudden blackouts could cause party folks to miss Regis Philbin's "New Year's Rockin' Eve" countdown in Times Square; or even more importantly, they'd miss those all important college bowl games on New Year's Day. OK, so how about February. Nope. The Superbowl is February 5th. March?  Nope. March Madness. Maybe April; its boring.  Senator John McCain (R-Az.) attempted to amend the bill by asking for a transition date in 2007, but his amendment was defeated.

Whenever it happens, the promise of all those extra funds coming from spectrum sales, and the promise of a big payoff for emergency first-responders, are causing lawmakers to speed up the process. As we previously told you, Hurricanes Rita and Katrina exposed continuing problems in the emergency communications systems – problems that were first brutally exposed on September 11th. And by allowing the Federal Communications Commission to auction off a large swath of the returned TV spectrum, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the federal government could raise an estimated $10 billion over five years.

In addition to differing on the switchover date, the House and Senate versions of the draft legislation differ on issues related to how each Chamber is going to spend the $10 billion.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee's draft would have the federal government set aside $990 million – into the "Digital Television Conversion Fund" that would help consumers buy the boxes needed to convert the signals from analog to digital – to ensure the digital TV transition does not adversely affect consumers with analog TV sets. That's about a third of the consumer subsidy provided in the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee's version. The Senate bill includes approximately $3 billion for the boxes but does not spell out the details of how that money would be distributed, other than to say it would be managed by the U.S. Commerce Department.

The Senate bill directs at least $5 billion of the spectrum sale proceeds toward deficit reduction, and $1.9 billion toward a range of communications priorities, including first-responder communications equipment, 911 call center upgrades, and assistance for coastal states affected by hurricanes. The House bill does not provide funds for any of those programs.

The House bill includes a number of other provisions aimed at enhancing consumer awareness of the transition, and ensuring that more digital TV sets are bought before analog signals are turned off. The Senate measure does not address any of those issues. Next step, the full chambers where the bills can still be changed before the two chambers are forced into a conference to work out differences.

• House Passed Iran Nonproliferation Act To help U.S. Space Program

The House passed a bill amending the Iran Nonproliferation Act to allow the U.S. to continue to use Russian vehicles to get crew and cargo to and from the International Space Station. Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert (R-Calif.) and former Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Chairman Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) co-sponsored the bill. The Senate is expected to pass the House version of the bill and send it to the President for signature.

The INA in its current form would prevent future U.S. payments to the Russians for space services. The U.S. relies on Russian Soyuz vehicles for use as crew rescue vehicles, without which Americans are not allowed to be aboard the ISS.  (The Space Shuttle cannot remain docked at the Station for more than about two weeks at a time, preventing its use as an emergency vehicle.)  While the Shuttle has been out of service, the U.S. has also relied on the Russians to deliver crew and cargo to and from the Station.

The House bill allows the U.S. to continue paying the Russians for services necessary to operate the Space Station until 2012.  The Administration had originally sought language that would have, in effect, eliminated all limitations on payments to the Russians.  The Senate version of the bill would have prevented payments after 2012, but would have allowed the U.S. to pay before 2012 for services that would be rendered after that date. The House bill also adds Syria to the list of nations that cannot receive help from the Russians in the development of nuclear weapons under the Act. 

• Senate Bill Would Create Venture Capital Program Under The SBA

Senators Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), Jim Talent (R-Missouri), and Kit Bond (R-Missouri) introduced a bill to create a venture capital program for small businesses. The Small Business Investment and Growth Act of 2005 creates a VC program within the Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA). Under the bill, the SBA would get a bigger chunk of an SBIC's profits. Also, the SBA's authority to declare that an SBIC has defaulted on its repayment obligations would be better established.

Senator Snowe, chair of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, said the legislation would improve the access for entrepreneurs to venture capital and credit markets. "Small businesses employ more than half of the total private-sector workforce, and are responsible for the creation of more than two-thirds of all new jobs. Clearly, increasing investment in small businesses is crucial to our on-going economic success," she said.

2) WHITE HOUSE & EXECUTIVE AGENCY WATCH

• NSF Director Congratulates 2005 Nobel Prize Winners

17 OCT: National Science Foundation Director Ardent Bement congratulated the 2005 Nobel laureates in science.

"The National Science Foundation (NSF) is especially proud that six of the 10 Nobelists in science this year have been supported by NSF grants at some time in their careers. Their remarkable achievements exemplify the foundation's mandate to explore the endless frontier of science, even as they remind us of how richly that quest can pay off for the nation as a whole," said Bement in a press release.

Recipients included:

Chemistry -The 2005 Nobel Prize in chemistry goes to Robert H. Grubbs of Caltech, Richard R. Schrock of MIT, and Yves Chauvin of the Institut Français du Pétrole, Rueil-Malmaison, France, for their pioneering work on metathesis.

Physics - Half of the 2005 Nobel Prize in physics honors the advances in laser-based precision spectroscopy made by two scientists: John L. Hall of JILA (a research laboratory in Boulder, Colo., that is jointly operated by the University of Colorado and the National Institute of Standards and Technology) and Theodor W. Hänsch of the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics in Garching, Germany, and the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich. Their work has made it possible to measure frequencies with an accuracy of fifteen digits.

The other half of the physics award goes to Harvard University's Roy J. Glauber, whose analysis of quantum effects in laser optics laid the foundations for modern applications such as quantum cryptography.

• If NASA Were Bound by Sarbanes-Oxley, CFO Would Not Certify the Agency's Finances

According to a new GAO report, NASA has made very little progress in reforming its troubled financial management system. NASA's Chief Financial Officer, Gwendolyn Sykes, testified before a joint hearing of the House Science Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics, and the Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Management, Finance, and Accountability, that she would not certify the agency's financial statements if she were bound by Sarbanes-Oxley, the federal law that provides severe penalties to private sector officials for financial misstatements.

The GAO report, requested by the Science Committee, examined NASA's implementation of 45 recommendations GAO issued to the Agency in four reports in 2003.  GAO found that of the 45 recommendations, only three had been closed out by NASA; 13 were found to be partially implemented.

Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert (R-Calif.) said, "I want NASA to be successful.  However, as a businessman, I also know that without sound financial management, NASA will not be able to achieve the goals set for its programs. I am concerned that in three of the past four years, independent auditors have been unable to give NASA's financial records a passing grade."

Gregory Kutz, GAO's Managing Director of Forensic Audits and Special Investigations, testified that, "Our report today shows some progress, however overall progress to date has been slow."

"In summary, NASA currently lacks the systems, processes, and human capital needed to produce credible cost estimates, oversee its contractors and their financial and program performance, control program costs, and produce timely, reliable financial information and auditable annual financial statements," Kutz explained, adding, "NASA has fundamental problems with its financial management operations that not only affect its ability to externally report reliable information, but more importantly, hamper its ability to effectively manage and oversee its major programs, such as the space station and shuttle program."

GAO added that while most federal agencies have obtained unqualified (passing) audits, "NASA's financial statements remain unauditable." Read the Science Committee's full press release on this hearing at http://www.house.gov/science/press/109/109-149.htm.

On a related note, Michael Griffin, NASA Administrator testified this week before the House Science Committee on the status of NASA's plans and programs.  He said that NASA needs $3-5 billion more than is currently budgeted to fund the Space Shuttle through 2010, but he added that NASA is looking for ways to close that gap. Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) expressed concern that NASA may be trying to do more than its budget can support.

When Administrator Griffin last testified before the Committee four months ago he described several reviews he had recently initiated, including:

• The Exploration Systems Architecture Study (ESAS) to define NASA's plans for returning to the Moon;
• The Shuttle/Station Configuration Options Team (S/SCOT) to examine the range of options for completing the Space Station and retiring the Space Shuttle by 2010;
• A review of the goals and plans for Project Prometheus, NASA's nuclear power and propulsion program; and
• Plans for managing the recent $1 billion cost overrun on the James Webb Space Telescope. 

Since that hearing, NASA has completed and released the results of the ESAS study, it has released preliminary results of the S/SCOT study, it has decided to significantly scale back Prometheus to a technology research program, and it has decided to postpone launch of the Webb telescope by two years.  As a result of these decisions, NASA has begun reprogramming fiscal year 2005 funds and modifying its request for fiscal year 2006 appropriations.

The Committee plans to explore the following overarching questions at the hearing:

• How can NASA afford to maintain a balanced portfolio of science and aeronautics programs, while also completing the International Space Station and accelerating the human exploration programs, especially given the agency's projected funding shortfalls?
• What is the status of NASA's plans to define the final configuration of and research agenda for the International Space Station?
• What is the status of NASA's plans for returning the Space Shuttle to flight and for retiring it at the end of the decade?
• What is the guiding philosophy NASA intends to use in developing new priorities for its aeronautics research program?
• How does NASA intend to ensure the agency has the appropriate size and skill mix in its workforce, as well as the facilities and infrastructure necessary to support the agency's goals?

3) REPORTS, SPEECHES & DOCUMENTS OF NOTE

• New GAO Reports

Elections: Federal Efforts to Improve Security and Reliability of Electronic Voting Systems Are Underway, but Key Activities Need to Be Completed (GAO-05-956) 21September 2005
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-05-956
Highlights - http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d05956high.pdf

Higher Education: Federal Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Programs and Related Trends (GAO-06-114) 12 October 2005

http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-114

Highlights - http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d06114high.pdf

• USTR Report Says Japan's Tech Sectors Are More Open

2 NOV: The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative issued a report today saying that reforms in Japan continue to expand market access for foreign U.S. firms that offer telecommunications services and e-commerce, and the reforms are improving U.S.-Japanese cooperation on intellectual property rights, according to a new report.

"This year's report shows we continue to make important progress in our work with Japan to cut away the web of regulations that have hampered the ability of U.S. companies to do business in key sectors in the Japanese market," U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman said in a statement.

President Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi launched a regulatory reform initiative in 2001. Each year, the two governments exchange reform recommendations that serve as the basis for the annual report. Read the USTR press release here.

4) U.S. COURTS ACTIVITY

None at this time.

5) AWARDS & GRANTS

• AAAS Grant Site

The American Association for the Advancement of Science has a service called GrantsNet Express.  Each week GrantsNet will provide a listing of science funding opportunities from private foundations and organizations, and new U.S. government grant announcements in the sciences. AAAS will send GrantsNet by e-mail to AAAS member subscribers. The weekly emails will include: — New science funding programs, divided into opportunities for postdocs/graduate students and undergraduates — Submission deadlines for funding opportunities scheduled in the upcoming week — New listings of funding for science-related grant programs from U.S. government agencies To register, visit http://www2.sciencecareers.org/promos/grantsubmit.asp

6) CONFERENCES, FELLOWSHIPS, PROGRAMS & INTERNSHIPS FOR ENGINEERS, and STUDENTS & SCHOLARS OF ENGINEERING

• 2007 Congressional & State Department Fellowships

An engineer once changed careers to serve as Calvin Coolidge's Vice President. As vice president, Charles Dawes influenced the public policy process and won a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. Dawes might be an extreme example, but that doesn't mean engineers can't influence the public policy process in other ways.  If you don't want to run for office but would like to take a year off from your regular job, IEEE-USA is now accepting applications for the 2007 government fellowship program that links engineers with government.  Our 2005 fellows are working on issues such as homeland security and R&D funding. For more information on what past fellows have learned and experienced, see http://ieeeusa.com/policy/govfel/cfalumni.html.  The deadline is 20 February 2006 and application materials are available at:http://www.ieeeusa.org/policy/govfel/default.asp

• IEEE Student Members Encouraged to Apply for 2006 WISE Program

Next summer, the IEEE will sponsor three outstanding student members to participate in the 2006 Washington Internships for Students of Engineering (WISE) Program. The select candidates will spend nine weeks in Washington, D.C., learning how engineers contribute to the legislative the decision-making process. For more information, visit www.wise-intern.org, or contact Sharon Richardson at s.richardson@ieee.org. The application deadline is December 16, 2005.

• WISE Program Seeks Senior Science & Technology Public Policy Advisor to Engineering Students (Nine Week Summer Position)

An outstanding individual capable of teaching and mentoring engineering students on the interaction between engineering, technology, and public policy is sought to serve as Advisor-In-Residence (AIR) for the 2006 WISE Program (Washington Internships for Students of Engineering).

For more information, please visit: http://www.wise-intern.org/advisor.html

View a PDF of the announcement, here:  http://www.wise-intern.org/FMR/WISEAdvisor.pdf

7) US STATES WATCH

• Telecom Regulation Updates - TX, NJ, MI

21 OCT: Earlier this year, the Texas legislature passed a telecom bill during one of their special sessions, allowing statewide rather than local video franchises. The final law also allows for gradual deregulation of telephone rates and high-speed Internet service over power lines. The Texas Public Utility Commission has now approved Verizon Communications' application for statewide video franchising. Verizon, which already has video franchise agreements with the Texas cities of Keller, Sachse, Westlake and Wylie, will expand that coverage to offer its FiOS (fiber-over-broadband system) TV service to 21 communities in the Dallas and Forth Worth areas. The company intends to reach 400,000 north Texas households with the service by the end of 2006. The award is a victory for Verizon, which, along with SBC Communications, lobbied heavily for deregulation after spending millions to build out a fiber-optic cable system. SBC also has applied for statewide franchising authority.

Next up for Verizon?  New Jersey. Last year, NJ legislators introduced at least three bills to alter the cable-television franchise fee, but none saw significant movement. Massachusetts could also debate the issue at some point. Verizon Chairman and CEO Ivan Seidenberg was in Boston last month, where he told the Chief Executives of Boston that "the benefits of video competition could come quicker if we could find a state or even a national solution to this franchise issue."

In Michigan this week, lawmakers voted to approve a rewrite of telecommunications law that would limit the state's regulatory authority. Governor Jennifer Granholm is expected to sign the bill that will limit the Michigan Public Service Commission's rate-setting authority for telephone service to a basic plan that provides 100 outgoing calls a month, 12,000 outgoing minutes per month and unlimited incoming calls. Phone companies will be able to set prices for all other plans and services. The law is designed to encourage competition and give consumers more choices. Critics hold that the plan would not do enough to protect customers from high prices.

• Rhode Island Action Plan Calls for Improvements in Science and Math Education

To improve the way students learn and teachers teach in the areas of science and mathematics, Rhode Island Governor Donald Carcieri launched the "Making the Grade" initiative in January by creating The Blue Ribbon Panel on Mathematics and Science Education composed of education and business leaders from around the state. The panel heard suggestions from students, teachers, parents, administrators, and business and community leaders and issued a report indicating that while Rhode Island students have made some progress in mathematics, the state continues to trail the region and the country in mathematics and science test scores. An international comparison also reveals that the U.S. lags in these areas.

Daniel Smith, president of Raytheon Integrated Defense Systems and co-chair of the panel, said the report is a response to a "national crisis" in education. The panel recommends 12 specific strategies in four key areas including governance and culture; teacher recruitment; teacher quality; and learning opportunities for students. The panel also addresses the growing shortage of math and science teachers at the middle and high school level. According to the findings, the number of emergency certificates issued for math and science teachers between 2001 and 2004 increased significantly.

Carcieri said that he plans to address the challenge of recruiting more math and science teachers in his fiscal year 2007 budget proposal and that he will charge the Board of Regents with reexamining the current alternative certification process to encourage more professionals to become teachers. In addition, Carcieri announced that he will submit legislation to create a statewide science curriculum. The report, Project Making the Grade: The Governor's Blue Ribbon Panel on Mathematics and Science Education, is available at: http://www.governor.ri.gov/documents/TEC_M&S_FA_LR.pdf

• Louisiana Negotiating For E-Voting System

31 OCT: Louisiana Secretary of State Al Ater announced that his state will begin negotiations with Sequoia Voting Systems for a statewide e-voting system.

LA held a public e-voting showcase earlier this year and requested proposals in July. Five companies submitted proposals which were evaluated by a nine-member committee consisting of six officials from the Louisiana Department of State, one from the state's Justice Department, and election representatives from West Baton Rouge and St. Tammany Parish. The committee recommended Sequoia after a three-month evaluation of proposals. "It is my intention to negotiate and execute a uniform, statewide voting system in Louisiana," Ater said. "Once implemented, all parishes will vote in exactly the same manner."

Bids were evaluated on experience, staffing, training, equipment accessibility, security, maintainability, dependability and customer service, Ater said. The initiative will be funded via federal grants.

• New Virginia E-Recycling Plant Will Add Jobs to the Area

Newmarket Trading Group, a Texas-based company that specializes in information technology recovery solutions, announced that it will invest $600,000 to build an e-recycling plant in Hanover County, VA. Governor Mark Warner praised the arrangement as one that "can help bridge the digital divide."

The initiative is expected to add 100 new technician jobs to the company over the next two years. Newmarket chose Hanover County because of its close proximity to East Coast clients and access to shipping and transportation hubs, President Jeff Zeigler said. "We expect rapid growth in the near future and should be processing several thousand computers a day in early 2006," he said.

• Massachusetts Lawmakers Concerned About Proposed Implementation of IT Standards

Citing concern about an apparent lack of due process within the Massachusetts' Chief Information Office, state Senate lawmakers have developed legislation that calls for an IT oversight committee to evaluate all proposed implementations of standards. The committee, a four-member executive task force, would oversee any proposed state policies concerning the standardization of IT equipment, including hardware, software, cellular phones and other electronic devices.

In September, MA's Information Technology Division issued the Enterprise Technical Reference Model which mandates that state offices use an open standardized format called OpenDocument for office productivity applications. The senate bill is a reaction to the ITD report.

"There was considerable frustration in the Legislature about the way the process was unfolding," said state Senator Marc Pacheco, chairman of the Senate Post Audit and Oversight Committee. "There was a concern about whether or not the actual law was being followed."

Pacheco mentioned a number of concerns raised in a hearing, including lack of consultation with the state disabilities office. That office had voiced a number of concerns as to whether products that support the Open Document format are Section 508-compliant.  Members were also concerned about costs of implementing the new standards. Microsoft Office, the common application system on state computers, does not support the Open Document format.

Peter Quinn, Massachusetts' CIO, has stated that his intention for choosing this format, which is managed by the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards, is to assure that the documents will be preserved for the centuries to come. By having the specifications of how an electronic document is rendered, future generations will know how to reproduce that document even if the software that originally produced it no longer is available.

Pacheco said he does not object to Quinn's goals but he questions the method by which the ITD office introduced the policy.

"I am not putting forth a position about the technology," Pacheco said. "We have standards and laws that a state agency has to be following."

8) LATEST IEEE-USA ACTIVITIES

• Track IEEE-USA's Progress

Review IEEE-USA's year-to-date progress in working for the IEEE's U.S. members at the new IEEE-USA Year-in-Review Web page. Check out what IEEE-USA activities and programs helped the IEEE's U.S. members in 2004 at the new IEEE-USA Annual Report online. And find out what's on IEEE-USA's agenda through 2009, with the new, online IEEE-USA Strategic & Operational Plan.

For the IEEE-USA Year-in-Review, go to: http://www.ieeeusa.org/about/yearinreview.asp

For the IEEE-USA Annual Report, go to: http://www.ieeeusa.org/about/Annual_Report/2004.pdf  

For the IEEE-USA Strategic & Operational Plan, go to:

http://www.ieeeusa.org/volunteers/strategicplan/index.html

Also, full listing of IEEE-USA lobbying activities can be found on our web site at: http://ieeeusa.com/policy/policy/index.html

9) U.S. COMPETITIVENESS: WHO'S DOING WHAT TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE?

• New IEEE-USA Resource  Web Page

U.S. Competitiveness: The Innovation Challenge http://ieeeusa.org/policy/issues/innovation/index.html

10) OTHER ITEMS OF POSSIBLE INTEREST

None at this time.

Top of Page | What's New@IEEE | EyeOnWash Archive | IEEE-USA

What's New @ IEEE-USA's Eye on Washington highlights important federal legislative and regulatory developments that affect U.S. engineers and their careers. In addition to this biweekly newsletter, subscribers receive legislative bulletins and action alerts on IEEE-USA priority issues, including: retirement security, employment benefits, research & development funding, computers and information policy, immigration reform, intellectual property protection and privacy of health/medical information. EDITOR: Erica Wissolik, IEEE-USA, 2001 L Street, N.W., Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036-5104 You can change your IEEE-USA Eye on Washington subscription status by using the forms at http://whatsnew.ieee.org/ or at http://www.ieeeusa.org/emailupdates/. Copyright © 2005, The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.  Permission granted to copy for personal use or for non-commercial republication with appropriate attribution.

Updated: 04 November 2005
Contact: e . wissolik @ ieee . org