WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., chairman and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today released the following statements after the Committee approved S. 3969, the Aircraft Safety and Certification Reform Act of 2020. This bipartisan legislation would implement provisions to improve aviation safety based on lessons learned from the tragic Boeing 737 MAX crashes, including addressing human factors to accurately assess pilot responses to cockpit alerts.

“The Committee’s approval of the bipartisan aviation safety bill is progress toward improving the certification process and enhancing accountability, especially as it relates to the manufacturing of passenger aircraft,” said Wicker. “As the FAA prepares to unground the 737 MAX, this legislation contains numerous provisions that would ensure that the agency performs its safety oversight to the highest standards. I thank Ranking Member Cantwell for working with me on these important reforms to enhance safety for the flying public.”

“When it comes to aviation, safety has to be the top priority. This legislation implements new safety reforms that both the FAA and the manufacturers must follow,” said Cantwell. “It moves the FAA back to a more direct supervisory role and requires more robust product analysis from the manufacturers. It also requires the FAA to upgrade and retain technical expertise to do proper oversight and protects company engineers and whistleblowers who see flaws early in the design process. I want to thank everyone that took time to work with us on these reforms, especially the victims’ families, who have shared their experience and their efforts to protect others.”

The Aircraft Safety and Certification Reform Act of 2020 would:

·         Mandate Safety Management Systems (SMS) for large aircraft and engine manufacturers. SMSs provide systematic approaches to safety policy, assurance, and risk-management;

·         Require the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to approve the appointment of Organization Designation Authorization (ODA) unit members and require the FAA to develop guidance for technical qualifications for such members;

·         Require the development of best practices for ODAs, including those that would ensure any reports of undue pressure or regulatory coziness are addressed; 

·         Prohibit limitations on direct communications between ODA unit members and FAA inspectors;

·         Require the FAA to review and reassess assumptions related to “human factors” – the interface between human and machine – when certifying aircraft, particularly those situations involving multiple cockpit alerts and automation;

·         Require the FAA to conduct more research into human factors with respect to the design and certification of aircraft;

·         Establish an FAA center of excellence that would examine human factors and automation within aviation;

·         Require flight testing by a representative sample of international and domestic airline pilots;

·         Direct the FAA to establish an Office of Continuing Education to assist the FAA’s certification engineers and inspectors to keep current with new technologies and concepts;

·         Provide funding authorization for the FAA to hire specialized technical staff with expertise in new and emerging technologies to assist in development of technical standards in certification;

·         Prohibit FAA employees from receiving financial incentives or awards that relate to certification schedules or quotas;

·         Direct the FAA to maintain a voluntary and confidential safety reporting program for FAA employees to convey concerns about aircraft designs during the certification process;

·         Extend existing whistleblower protections for airline employees to employees and contractors of aircraft, engine, and propeller manufacturers;

·         Repeal unused certification authorities that would permit the FAA to further delegate responsibilities to manufacturers;

·         Require the FAA to review its own expertise and capability to understand the safety implications of new or innovative technologies, materials, and procedures that designers and manufacturers of passenger aircraft may adopt or introduce.

The following are new provisions based on amendments offered that would:

·         Require a Transportation Research Board (TRB) study of the Transport Airplane Risk Assessment Methodology (TARAM) process used by the FAA;

·         Authorize appropriations to support international efforts to improve safety;

·         Create a National Air Grant Fellowship Program;

·         Require the FAA to review and revise the aviation regulation commonly known as the “changed product rule”; 

·         Require the FAA to establish a Technical Certification Board to review new or novel technologies related to the certification of certain airplanes;

·         Establish a TRB annual report that identifies, categorizes, and analyzes emerging safety trends in air transportation;

·         Include a modified version of Chairman Wicker’s “Federal Aviation Administration Accountability Enhancement Act” (S. 4565);

·         Require the FAA to develop guidance for procedures for document traceability and clarity of explanations for system safety assessment certification documents and changes to aircraft type designs; 

·         Authorize appropriations for the FAA’s Advanced Materials Center of Excellence;

·         Include the “Promote Aviation Regulations for Technical Training (PARTT) 147 Act of 2019” (S. 3043);

·         Prohibit the FAA from delegating any finding of compliance or system safety assessment for any critical system design feature of a transport category airplane required for any certificate until the FAA has reviewed and validated any underlying assumptions related to human factors;

·         Require a TRB report on (1) the placement of time or other limits on type certificates and (2) requiring the FAA, when issuing an amended or supplemental type certificate for a design not in compliance with latest applicable airworthiness standards, to document any exemption or finding of equivalent level of safety.

Click here to read the bill. 

The reforms in the Aircraft Safety and Certification Reform Act of 2020 are based on evidence from accident reports, solicited recommendations from aviation experts, insight from the victims’ families, witnesses, and stakeholders, and a series of hearings on aviation safety. The Committee exercises jurisdiction over the FAA.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene an executive session on Wednesday, November 18, 2020, at 9:30 a.m. in Dirksen Senate Office Building G50 to consider the following measures:

Agenda:

1. S. 1031, Duck Boat Safety Enhancement Act of 2019, Sponsors: Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Roy Blunt, R-Mo., Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill.
2. S. 1166, Internet Exchange Act of 2019, Sponsors: Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
3. S. 3730, Registered Traveler Act of 2020, Sponsors: Sens. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
4. S. 3824, Protecting Seniors from Emergency Scams Act, Sponsors: Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Jerry Moran, R-Kan.

5. S. 3969, Aircraft Safety and Certification Reform Act of 2020, Sponsors: Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.  

6. S. 4472, Ensuring Network Security Act, Sponsors: Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., Ron Johnson, R-Wis., Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
7. S. 4577, TSA PreCheck Mobile Enrollment Act, Sponsors: Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., John Thune., R-S.D.
8. S. 4613, Contact Lens Rule Modernization Act, Sponsors: Sens. John Boozman, R-Ark., Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Jerry Moran, R-Kan.
9. S. 4719, Helping Manufacturers Respond to COVID-19 Act of 2020, Sponsors: Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., Cory Gardner, R-Colo.
10. S. 4803, Beat China by Harnessing Important, National Airwaves (CHINA) for 5G Act of 2020, Sponsors: Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., John Thune, R-S.D.
11. S. 4827, Space Preservation And Conjunction Emergency (SPACE) Act of 2020, Sponsor: Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss.
12. S. 4847, Protecting Tourism in the United States Act, Sponsors: Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
13. S. 4884, COVID-19 Home Safety Act, Sponsors: Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Jerry Moran, R-Kan.
14. Coast Guard Promotions

*Agenda subject to change

Executive Session Details:

November 18, 2020
9:30 a.m.
Full Committee
Dirksen Senate Office Building G50 

A live video of the markup and additional information will be available at www.commerce.senate.gov.

*In order to maintain physical distancing as advised by the Office of the Attending Physician, seating for credentialed press will be limited throughout the course of the hearing. Due to current limited access to the Capitol complex, the general public is encouraged to view this hearing via the live stream.

**Note: Agenda updated 11/12
***Note: Time change 11/16

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today introduced the Space Preservation and Conjunction Emergency (SPACE) Act. The legislation would authorize the Department of Commerce (DOC) to provide space situational awareness (SSA) services to civil, commercial, and international space operators. 

“Over the past two decades, space debris has created a more dangerous environment for our astronauts and satellites in orbit,” said Wicker. “The SPACE Act would empower the Department of Commerce to track this debris and issue collision warnings by leveraging its technical expertise and partnerships with the private sector. This legislation is critical to keeping low Earth orbit safe for exploration and protecting our satellite infrastructure.”

The SPACE Act would:

• Codify Space Policy Directive-3 (SPD-3) by transferring authority for civil, commercial, and international SSA notification from the Department of Defense (DoD) to DOC;
• Elevate the Office of Space Commerce from an office within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to a Bureau led by an assistant secretary reporting directly to the Secretary of Commerce;
• Authorize $15 million for the Bureau for FY 2021. This level of funding would be sufficient to start building the data repository, hire the appropriate staff, and begin an initial operational capability. 

Click here to read the bill.

On June 18, 2018, President Trump signed SPD-3, the National Space Traffic Management Policy. SPD-3 shifts responsibility for providing SSA data to satellite operators from DoD to DOC. SSA data is used to inform satellite operators of potential conjunctions or collisions with another passing satellite or piece of debris, allowing operators to maneuver if possible. DoD currently provides SSA services and issues collision warnings to satellite operators around the world. Under this directive, these responsibilities would be transferred to DOC.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a hearing titled, “Does Section 230’s Sweeping Immunity Enable Big Tech Bad Behavior?,”at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, October 28. The hearing will examine whether Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act has outlived its usefulness in today’s digital age. It will also examine legislative proposals to modernize the decades-old law, increase transparency and accountability among big technology companies for their content moderation practices, and explore the impact of large ad-tech platforms on local journalism and consumer privacy. The hearing will provide an opportunity to discuss the unintended consequences of Section 230’s liability shield and how best to preserve the internet as a forum for open discourse. 

Witnesses:

• Mr. Jack Dorsey, Chief Executive Officer, Twitter
• Mr. Sundar Pichai, Chief Executive Officer, Alphabet Inc., Google
• Mr. Mark Zuckerberg, Chief Executive Officer, Facebook

Hearing Details:

Wednesday, October 28, 2020
10:00 a.m.
Full Committee Hearing

This hearing will take place in the Russell Senate Office Building 253. Witness testimony, opening statements, and a live video of the hearing will be available on www.commerce.senate.gov.

In order to maintain physical distancing as advised by the Office of the Attending Physician, seating for credentialed press will be limited throughout the course of the hearing. Due to current limited access to the Capitol complex, the general public is encouraged to view this hearing via the live stream. 

*Note: All witnesses will participate remotely.

Click here to watch Sen. Wicker’s floor speech.

Excerpt from Chairman Wicker’s remarks, as delivered, below:

…

Michael Collins wrote during that lonely flight, while his two colleagues were walking on the face of the Moon, “I am absolutely isolated from any known life. I am it. If a count were taken, the score would be three billion plus two over the other side of the Moon, and one plus God knows what on this side…”

These three men were separated from the rest of humanity, but they certainly were not alone. Hundreds of millions of people watched and prayed and gave them their best wishes. It is hard to believe – I still have to pinch myself – to think that I was a freshman in college for this Moon walk and that was 50 years ago; how could 50 years pass by so quickly?

You know, Mr. President, men and women have always looked up at the night sky and seen their heroes in the constellations. Now we still look up at the sky and we see our heroes, but among them are astronauts who go to the stars and return, and will go to the Moon and to Mars and return. I want to salute the people who have done it before and the people who are making plans to put a man and woman on the face of the Moon within five years.

…

And so as we celebrate the 50th anniversary, we look toward the future – to all the missions that will come and go. And we remind ourselves of this country’s common purpose and potential. The Moon landing was not the end of an age of discovery, it was only the beginning.

Excerpt from Chairman Wicker’s opening statement, as delivered, below:

....

The bar has indeed been set high.  This committee accomplished a great deal last congress, and I look forward to similar successes this congress.  

In particular, I see this committee focusing on a number of primary objectives across the committee’s broad jurisdiction.

Broadband connectivity is the digital engine driving investment, innovation, and productivity in virtually every economic sector in the United States. 

Although we have made significant progress on wireline, wireless, and satellite broadband deployments over the years, more needs to be done to close the digital divide, particularly in rural America.  

This process should start with collecting standardized and accurate data about where reliable fixed and mobile broadband already exists and where it does not – both in my state of Mississippi and around the country.  

Data is critical to delivering broadband to rural communities that lack service.

We will also continue the committee’s efforts to maintain U.S. leadership in 5G, the next-generation of broadband services. 

To that end, modernizing outdated rules that delay and add unnecessary costs to broadband infrastructure deployment and making more spectrum available for commercial use will be critical to our nation’s success in developing a reliable, resilient, and secure 5G network.

Robust and reliable broadband connections underpin the internet marketplace where innovative applications and services are taking on more significant and vital roles in our lives.

Maintaining consumer trust and confidence in this marketplace is critical to preserving a prosperous and thriving digital economy in the United States. 

A priority of this committee will be to protect the privacy of consumers’ data in a way that promotes industry transparency, consumer choice, and innovation.

We will continue our efforts to keep the skies safe and foster American leadership in outer space.  These efforts will include oversight of the Federal Aviation Administration and the safe integration of unmanned aerial systems into the national airspace.  They will also, I hope, include a commercial space bill and a National Aeronautics and Space Administration reauthorization. 

With creation of a new security subcommittee, we will be able to focus on supporting the organizations — such as the Coast Guard, Maritime Administration, and Transportation Security Administration — whose efforts strengthen the nation’s economic prosperity and security. 

I hope these efforts will include Coast Guard and Maritime Administration reauthorizations, support for the American maritime industry, and a focus on the national security dimensions of agencies and issues under the committee’s jurisdiction.   

I look forward to the committee continuing its work on improving the nation’s infrastructure and safety. Work this congress will likely include a pipeline safety reauthorization as well as the reauthorization of the ‘FAST Act.’  

We will also focus on motor carrier safety, multimodal freight, as well as our nation’s rail and Amtrak and look forward to working with the administration on shoring up the highway trust fund, as well as meeting the nation’s ever-increasing infrastructure needs.  

This is by no means a complete list, although it has been a lengthy one — there are many other high priorities the committee will consider.

I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle on a range of issues important to their states and to all Americans. 

I thank my colleagues again for giving me the opportunity to lead this great committee.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today spoke on the Senate floor about the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.  

Excerpt of Thune’s remarks (as prepared for delivery):

“Mr. President, every few years, Congress has to pass legislation to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration, the government agency responsible for everything from overseeing the safety of the national airspace to providing grants for critical infrastructure needs at airports.

“And passing that reauthorization bill gives us the opportunity to take a look at aviation as a whole and hear from manufacturers, airport administrators, airlines, and the flying public.

“And that’s exactly what we did with the reauthorization bill before the Senate today.

“In the lead-up to this bill, we spent months conducting research, holding hearings in the Commerce Committee, which I chair, and listening to the aviation community and to airline passengers.

“And then we took that information and used it to develop legislation that will strengthen aviation, promote economic growth, enhance transportation safety and security, and improve the flying experience for the traveling public.

“I’m proud of the bill before us today and grateful for the hard work done by members of both parties in both the House and the Senate.”

Click here for Sen. Thune’s full Senate floor remarks.

Highlights of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018

Modernizing airport infrastructure 

• Provides funding for airport development.
• Increases flexibility to finance projects.
• Requires TSA to make available, in airports and online, real-time information on security line waits.

Improving service for the flying public

• Prohibits involuntary bumping of passengers who have already boarded.
• Directs FAA to set minimum standards for airline seat sizes.
• Requires private rooms for nursing mothers in large and medium airports.
• Ensures airlines promptly return fees for services (seat assignments, early boarding, etc.) not received.

Enhancing safety and security

• Strengthens aviation training, reporting, tracking, and cybersecurity.
• Provides new risk-mitigation authorities for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).
• Authorizes more canine security teams and, to meet demand, expands ways to test and certify dogs.

Boosting innovation

• Streamlines certifications for design and delivery of aircraft to boost competitiveness of aviation manufacturing. 
• Furthers efforts to safely integrate unmanned aircraft into the airspace through traffic management system advancements and research.
• Creates an Office of Spaceports to support licensing and promote infrastructure improvements.
• Authorizes approval for civil supersonic aircraft that reduce sonic booms.

Disaster assistance

• Provides $1.68 billion in supplemental appropriations for disaster relief in the wake of Hurricane Florence.
• Reforms Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) programs to help communities better prepare for and respond to disasters of all types.

To view the section by section of H.R. 302, click here.

To view the joint Senate/House highlights summary, click here. 

To view the full text of H.R. 302, click here.

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, took to the senate floor to discuss the importance of the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA) and call on his colleagues to pass H.R. 1865, which includes both SESTA and the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Trafficking Act (FOSTA), without delay.

Sen. Thune’s remarks, as prepared, below:

“Mr. President, for more than two decades, the commercial internet has been an undeniable force for good.

It has delivered economic opportunity to people who would not otherwise have had it.

It has empowered marginalized citizens around the world to fight back against oppressors.

It has expanded educational opportunities, and made news and information more accessible.

And more.

But like any tool, the internet can be used for evil as well as for good.

And right now, certain corners of the internet are being exploited to facilitate sex trafficking, including the widespread trafficking of children.

Mr. President, each year, thousands of children are sexually trafficked within the United States.

That’s right, Mr. President.

Thousands of children are trafficked each year in the United States.

Not in some faraway country, but right here at home, in our communities.

And more and more every day, this trafficking is being facilitated via the internet.

A Google executive reports that, and I quote, “three out of four child sex trafficking victims in the U.S. have been exploited online.”

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported an 846 percent increase in reports of suspected child sex trafficking from 2010 to 2015.

The increase, the National Center reports, is “directly correlated to the increased use of the internet to sell children for sex.”

Now obviously, Mr. President, dedicated prosecutors and law enforcement around the country are working every day to combat the proliferation of sex trafficking on the internet.

But some of their efforts have been stymied by a provision of a 1996 law called the Communications Decency Act.

The provision in question – Section 230 – was meant to protect websites from being held accountable for material that people create and post on their sites.  

It’s thanks in part to this provision that such popular sites as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter have been able to flourish.

But at least one website known to have facilitated sex trafficking has repeatedly used this provision to defend itself in court cases dealing with sex trafficking on its site.

Now needless to say, Congress never intended this provision to be used to protect websites that knowingly facilitate trafficking.

But courts have generally held that this provision does not permit them to hold websites accountable for facilitating sex trafficking.

And courts have also made it clear that if Congress wants to ensure that these trafficking accomplices can be prosecuted, it needs to provide some clarity on this provision.

And that’s what we’re here to do today.

Senator Rob Portman, of Ohio, has been a leading voice in the Senate in the fight against human trafficking.

And the legislation before us today includes his legislation, the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, which will prevent Section 230 from being used as a defense by those who are knowingly cooperating with sex traffickers.

Under the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, state law enforcement officials will be able to prosecute websites that knowingly assist in or facilitate sex trafficking.

And victims will be allowed to seek justice when websites violate the federal sex trafficking statute.

State attorneys general will also now be allowed to file civil suits against websites that knowingly facilitate trafficking.

The Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act is an outstanding bill, Mr. President.

It addresses a hole in our laws that is allowing sex traffickers to exploit the internet to facilitate their trafficking, but it ensures that only bad actors are targeted and maintains the key freedoms that have allowed the internet to flourish.

Under this legislation, websites can only be prosecuted if they knowingly facilitate or support trafficking.

This bill is strongly supported by members of both parties.

In fact, 68 out of 100 senators are co-sponsors of this bill.

This bill is supported by the White House.

It is supported by law enforcement organizations.

It is supported by organizations that fight sex trafficking.

It is supported by faith-based organizations.

And it is supported by a number of major technology companies.

I was proud to help facilitate conversations with a number of technology companies that resulted in solid support for this bill among members of the technology community.

Mr. President, the process of getting this bill to the Senate floor today has been characterized by a wonderful degree of bipartisanship.

I am hoping that continues as we debate this bill over the next couple of days.

I encourage my colleagues to reject any attempts to slow this bill down with amendments.

We have a remarkable degree of consensus on the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act both within and without Congress, and we should not disturb this momentum.

We need to get this bill over the finish line.

Every day we wait for this bill to be enacted into law is another day in which websites in the dark corners of the internet can facilitate the heinous practice of sexually exploiting vulnerable human beings.

Mr. President, during the Commerce Committee hearing I chaired on this bill, we heard testimony from Yvonne Ambrose, whose daughter, Desiree Robinson, was sexually trafficked repeatedly before being murdered.

Desiree was just 16, a bright and loving girl who dreamed of becoming a doctor in the Air Force.

Instead, she was raped and murdered by a man twice her age who had sought her for sex after seeing her advertised on an internet site.

Mr. President, every day across this country, there’s another Desiree being trafficked.

Some of these children are not yet teenagers.

They should be going to basketball games and birthday parties.

Instead, they are being taken to homes and hotels to be violated by strangers.

Some, like Desiree, will die there.

Mr. President, fighting trafficking has to be a priority for all of us.

I’m proud to have helped draft two bills that became law to address human trafficking in commercial vehicles.

But while we’ve passed some good legislation over the past few years, there is a lot more work to be done.

There are many more Desirees out there in danger, and we have an obligation to do everything we can to protect them.

The Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act will strike an important blow against the new wave of traffickers exploiting the internet to sell children.

And the bill it’s now a part of, the bill we’re considering today – the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act – will further boost SESTA’s impact by strengthening criminal penalties for facilitating sex trafficking.

I urge my colleagues to pass this bill and get it to the president as soon as possible.

There are a lot of children out there who are waiting for our help.”

You have probably seen an error 508 message on the internet. When browsing a website or clicking a link, these 508 messages pop up when you cannot get where you want to go. 

It seems Congress hits an error 508 message every time it tries to address net neutrality. Common-sense proposals for a compromise on net neutrality to protect Americans are met with fear mongering, political rhetoric and demands for ideological purity — on both sides of the aisle.

The Federal Communications Commission and the federal courts also have been caught in an infinite loop, where the rules for internet providers and consumers constantly change.  Each new administration changes the rules, then the opposing sides argue in federal court for a couple of years before the next administration changes the rules again.

The DC Circuit Court's recent decision to uphold the FCC’s 2018 rollback of net neutrality rules is the most recent example of a process that results in uncertainty, confusion and more litigation. Meanwhile, Americans just want and expect a government that’s watching out for their interests and protecting both their privacy and freedom.

As senators from different parties and different parts of the country, we think Americans deserve certainty and fair treatment. We have created a working group to address the internet’s most pressing policy challenges. We hope to encourage a fact-based, bipartisan dialogue and develop a compromise that will finally resolve this infinite loop on net neutrality. 

There is more agreement on this issue than you might guess. Most people believe telecommunications proposals should protect consumers, increase transparency, promote broader access to internet services, and ensure internet providers treat content from different sources fairly, all while spurring innovation and investment. We have started with these principles as the base for our work.

FCC relied on outdated rules

Because Congress chose to spend time fighting rather than fixing this challenge, the FCC attempted to use outdated rules from the Communications Act of 1934 to regulate the internet. These laws do not work with our 21st century digital technology and did not benefit consumers when applied to today’s internet.

For example, the 2015 FCC rules unfortunately increased costs for Americans and American businesses. In fact, investment in broadband actually decreased by $4 billion in the year after these rules went into effect — a bad sign when the rest of the economy was growing at the same time.

In 2018, the FCC changed its rules again. While many were worried these changes would hurt Americans’ access to the internet, more Americans have been connected to fiber and investment has increased. Still, there is a lot of room for improvement. 

Americans know more about the opportunities and challenges provided by the internet than we did in 1996, and they expect meaningful protections and deserve to know how internet providers are operating. Providers also need clear rules that promote future investment and prevent blocking, throttling and paid prioritization of lawful Internet traffic. 

These goals require concrete laws that set the rules of the internet road, and that fit the innovative world we live in today. We believe this legislation should empower consumers and foster market transparency, choice and innovation.

Step back from partisanship

We cannot yet imagine the next-generation internet products and services that will come to market in America’s future. But as innovation continues to leap forward, the dynamic and creative nature of the internet should be encouraged, not inhibited by regulations. The internet is one of the greatest forces for entrepreneurship in history. We need to update it with a framework for the future.

We urge our colleagues in Congress, as well as all the stakeholders who have contributed to this national discussion, to step away from partisan corners or entrenched positions and join our working group’s goal of a bipartisan path forward. 

Imagine the benefits for all Americans if both parties can come together, fix this challenge and break the endless error 508 loop.

This op-ed was orginally ran in USA Today. 

Last January, during the longest government shutdown in American history, the 170 Coast Guardsmen aboard the cutter Bertholf departed Alameda, California, on an assignment to the South China Sea. They did so having not seen a paycheck since before Christmas and without knowing how long they would have to go without one.

All government shutdowns are policy failures. They waste taxpayer dollars and cause financial hardships for millions of federal workers and their families. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that the five-week partial shutdown cost the American economy $8 billion in the first quarter.  I have cosponsored the End Government Shutdowns Act, which would prevent this senseless situation from happening again. While this legislation works its way through Congress, I urge my fellow members to make sure that what happened to the Coast Guard during the last shutdown does not happen again if another budget impasse should occur.

The Coast Guard was not funded and its members went without pay during the partial shutdown because it operates in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS was one of the agencies that did not receive an appropriation, forcing a partial shutdown. The other four branches of America’s armed forces – the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force – were funded because their resources come from a Department of Defense appropriation. No one – regardless of service branch – who leaves home to defend the United States by serving in our military should be asked to do so without pay. The Coast Guard deserves to be treated as an equal branch of our armed forces.

The Coast Guard’s 48,000 active-duty and reserve members are parts of a long blue line of service dating back to Alexander Hamilton’s purchase of ten ships for the Revenue Cutter Service in 1790. They protect the American people and promote security in a complex and ever-changing world. The Bertholf is just one example of the vital defense work done by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Today’s Coast Guard has unique authorities, capabilities, and partnerships that secure more than 4.5 million square miles of ocean, 95,000 miles of U.S. shoreline, and a marine transportation system that collectively supports $5.4 trillion of annual economic activity. This activity supports over 23 million American jobs – many in my home state of Mississippi. On a typical day, 11 Coast Guard cutters, two patrol aircraft, five helicopters, two specialized law enforcement teams, and a Port Security Unit support Pentagon commanders on all seven continents. The Coast Guard lives up to its motto, “Semper Paratus” (Always Ready).

Three months ago I visited Alaska with the Vice Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, Admiral Charles Ray. We met with some of the Coast Guard men and women hit hardest by the shutdown. My colleague Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) told me a story of one Coast Guard family that illustrates what many went through. The husband, a member of the Coast Guard, had been out at sea for months and came back during the shutdown. While he was gone, his family struggled to get by. Instead of returning home joyfully to his wife and one-month old baby, the family members wondered if they could afford to stay in their house any longer. They almost had to abandon the home the husband had been deployed to defend.

This problem is solvable. The “Pay Our Coast Guard” provision in the Senate version of the 2019 Coast Guard Authorization Act is an obvious step. It would mandate that, in the event of another partial shutdown, members of the Coast Guard would be paid by the same legislation that would provide for the other branches of our armed forces. Families of the fallen and retirees would continue to receive their benefits regardless of whether or not Congress is able to resolve partisan differences. This legislation would enshrine parity across the military.

The unequal treatment of the U.S. Coast Guard was a betrayal of our nation’s armed forces. Along with honoring our veterans this November 11th, passage of this simple legislation would show that when Americans say “thank you for your service” we actually mean it.

Roger Wicker represents Mississippi in the United States Senate. He is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

This op-ed originally ran in The Hill.