Thank you, Madam Chair.

The commitment that broadcasters have had to emergency alerts and local reporting in times of emergency is commendable.

I believe emergency alerts are a critical issue for our country and our constituents, and I look forward to the hearing today.

We ran through legislation under the Congressional Review Act--a blunt, draconian instrument--to smash these rules.

Those were the three basic things that this rule said.

To somehow say these rules were heavy-handed or they were going to stifle innovation--is just not a true statement.

Recent public polling has shown that 74 percent of all Americans oppose this legislation.

I couldn't find a single person who supported this bill or eroding our privacy rights. Not one.

I believe it is incumbent upon Congress to support unlicensed spectrum and continue to create space for innovation.

Last week Congress rolled back critical regulatory protections that prohibited ISPs from selling individuals' browsing histories without their consent.

I am disappointed that we are sitting here today without a clear idea of how much upgrading our nation's 911 infrastructure will cost.

The state and future of 911 systems in this country is a critical issue.

America's 911 systems need another kickstart, the kickstart that can start right here in the Congress of the United States.

We need national solutions because citizens will not adopt these new technologies if they are not uniformly deployed and uniformly functional on a national basis.

We need to ensure that they have a strong partner in the federal government that is able to direct funding, expertise, and scale at this challenge.

The expectation is by you, me, and us that that 911 fee or tax is going to go to funding and improving the 911 systems.

Access to affordable broadband remains one of the great challenges faced by people in this country, and far too many people in this country either have no access, limited access, or overpriced access.

Technology plays a role in nearly every sector of our economy. Yet, across our country too many families face a digital divide.

In order to ensure our families are equipped with tools they need to participate in today's digital economy, we need to make real, sustained federal investments in broadband deployment.

The challenge we face as a nation is that servicing rural America will require greater sustained investment if we hope to prevent communities from being left behind.

Broadband is an essential tool for participation in modern life.

The draft bills offered by the majority today are fine bills that address a number of challenges to deploying broadband, but they don't get at the real problem, which is that there isn't a business case for investing in these regions.

We must act to prevent the development of a new digital divide by helping communities of all sizes adopt smart infrastructure solutions.

I believe that this committee and this Congress has a responsibility to work together to ensure that every corner of America benefits from the infrastructure of tomorrow.

This is a program that should be expanded and we hope the new administration will do that.