Statement on Signing Communications Legislation

Statement on Signing Communications Legislation

December 23, 2004

Today, I have signed into law H.R. 5419, a bill consisting of three
titles. Title I is the ``ENHANCE 911 Act of 2004,'' which strengthens
the ability of Americans to use the 911 telephone number to seek
emergency assistance. Title II is the ``Commercial Spectrum Enhancement
Act,'' which facilitates the spectrum relocation of Federal entities so
that certain spectrum can be reallocated to commercial users. Title III
is the ``Universal Service Antideficiency Temporary Suspension Act,''
which makes the Antideficiency Act temporarily inapplicable to certain
collections, receipts, expenditures and obligations relating to
universal communications service.
Section 104 amends section 158(a)(2) of the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to
call for executive branch officials to submit to congressional
committees funding profiles for a specified 5-year program. The
executive branch shall construe the provision in a manner consistent
with the constitutional authority of the President to recommend for the
consideration of the Congress such measures, including proposals for
appropriations, as he judges necessary and expedient.
Sections 202 and 204 enact sections 113(g)(5) and 118(d) of the
National Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization
Act, which purport to condition the execution of a law upon notification
to congressional committees coupled with either approval by the
committees or the absence of disapproval by the committees within a
specified time. The executive branch shall construe the provisions to
legally require only notification to the committees, as any other
construction would be inconsistent with the principles enunciated by the
Supreme Court of the United States in INS v. Chadha. The Secretary of
Commerce will continue as a matter of comity to work with the committees
on matters addressed by these provisions.
As is consistent with the principle of statutory construction of
giving effect to each of two statutes addressing the same subject
whenever they can co-exist, the executive branch shall construe section
302 of the Act in a manner consistent with section 254 of the
Communications Act of 1934, which provides the Federal Communications
Commission with the authority to maintain funding caps for Universal
Service Fund programs.
George W. Bush
The White House,
December 23, 2004.