Joe Barton: “today Commerce Committee Chairman Tom Bliley, and Telecommunications Subcommittee Chairman Jack Fields, introduced the…”

“today Commerce Committee Chairman Tom Bliley, and Telecommunications Subcommittee Chairman Jack Fields, introduced the largest telecommunications reform bill ever to go through Congress. I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this historic legislation. The Communications Act of 1995 will be the biggest job creation bill to pass this Congress. This legislation moves a number of currently heavily regulated industries into true market competition with each other, thus ensuring consumers real choices as to who to place their local telephone, cable television, and electronic data business with. The bill, when it becomes law, puts the consumer in the driver seat for all of his or her communications needs. It is the most comprehensive, promarket and procompetition bill introduced for these services in the history of the Congress. The current telecommunications laws were passed over half a century ago when there were few radios, television existed only in the laboratory, and computers had not even been thought of. Today, telecommunications services are expanding daily and our laws should be expanded accordingly. Congress should quickly move ahead with this reform effort to meet the new challenges facing us today. I support this deregulatory approach that will promote growth and competition in the telecommunications industry.”