To: Chair Maria Cantwell, Ranking Member Ted Cruz and Members of the Senate Commerce Committee
From: National Taxpayers Union
Date: March 9, 2022
Subject: NTU Policy Priorities
- Introduction and Key Taxpayer Considerations
On behalf of National Taxpayers Union (NTU), the nation’s oldest taxpayer advocacy organization, we write to inform you of a number of NTU’s top priorities before your committee in the 118th Congress for your consideration. As your committee plans for the 118th Congress, we hope that you will leave bad policy proposals from the 117th behind and instead consider advancing pro-taxpayer policies.
Oversight
Federal Trade Commission
Numerous issues with Federal Trade Commission (FTC) oversight have been coming to a head lately, culminating with Commissioner Christine Wilson announcing her resignation recently. Commissioner Lina Khan pared back the effective guardrails on Section 5 rulemaking, and now has even started working on a data privacy rule and a broad ban on noncompetition agreements. Further, the FTC has been chilling economic activity with overzealous enforcement and weak lawsuits that have been wasting taxpayer funds. The FTC’s wasteful enforcement strategy and overstepping on its statutory and Congressionally-mandated limits need to be examined thoroughly through the proper oversight channels and potentially restricted further through legislative action.
Broadband Implementation
NTU believes that prudent implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and reauthorizing spectrum authority for the Federal Communications Commission should be top priorities. In particular, oversight on federal spending through Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) programs should be carefully monitored and Congressional intervention may be needed.
The National Telecommunications and Information Association (NTIA) is charged with administering BEAD funding but NTU has serious concerns with their Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), as noted below.
- Extraneous Grant Criteria
Some of the most egregious grant criteria include the favoring of unionized workforces and project labor agreements for subgrantees. Many of the most remote areas for which this legislation seeks advanced broadband deployment will not have sufficient local or unionized workforces to implement these types of requirements. Negotiating with new unions could also significantly add to delays in implementation as well.
Congress should amend the law to state that no federal agency may specially weight criteria that is not part of the agency’s statutory duties when developing, publishing, or releasing NOFOs while awarding federal funds unless explicitly authorized by law and through the comprehensive listing of specific factors in said law.
Related to this idea, there should be a Congressionally mandated percentage limit on the amount of funding that can go to non-deployment expenditures for grantees and subgrantees. Without such a cap, there could be significant diversions of funds for purposes that will not bring quality broadband to more unserved and underserved communities.
- FOIA Exemption in BEAD Program
Furthermore, NTU believes that government transparency keeps the executive branch accountable to Congress and the American people. The IIJA statute as written exempts BEAD from Freedom of Information Act requests. Without this important ability to understand the reasoning or decision making process of bureaucrats and appointees, the public suffers a grave disservice in positive governance. Of crucial importance will be the ability to access information on how these NOFOs are being produced and whether they are written in consultation with groups that may be exercising undue or inappropriate influence over the criteria for awarding federal taxpayer funds.
Legislation
Spectrum Reauthorization
The United States is lagging in the 5G race, partially due to a substantial amount of spectrum that is reserved for the federal government, a policy hurdle not present for our rivals. Even an independent 2019 Defense Innovation Board paper stated, “DoD must bear in mind that the status quo of spectrum allocation is unsustainable.” The government, and the Pentagon in particular, must recognize the necessity for additional spectrum to be released for commercial use, as a 5G world led by our rivals threatens our national security.
Lawmakers should recognize that 5G will enable a multitude of technological efficiencies that were once only science fiction. It could help enable smart cities, build a more energy efficient power grid, and help create safer factories. NTU supports the enactment of the bipartisan and bicameral Spectrum Innovation Act in order to reauthorize the FCC’s spectrum auction authority (H.R. 7624, S. 4117). Unleashing government-held spectrum for private sector use will help American companies compete and win on the global technology market.
- Contact Information
We look forward to working with each of you in the new Congress and welcome the opportunity to meet with you or your staff on these priorities as the 118th Congress gets underway. Should you have any questions about the recommendations in this memo, please do not hesitate to reach out to Nicholas Johns at NJohns@ntu.org.