110th Congress Faces Internet Policy Decisions

In the summary of its Congressional Agenda for the 110th Congress, the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) says this Congress will face many Internet policy decisions "that will have a lasting impact on commerce, national security and civil liberties."

Among those concerns, CDT lays out the policy framework that contributed to the Internet's growth, and delves into the issues of:

• Free Expression
• Consumer Privacy
• Security and Freedom
• Digital Copyright
• Internet Neutrality
• Digital Democracy

"The Internet today is a technology of freedom and innovation," said CDT in a Web site posting. "In only about two decades, it has become a powerful, global platform for commerce, human development and democratic participation. This growth did not happen in a legal vacuum. From the outset, the Internet has been enabled by a policy framework designed specifically for its unique technical architecture. Without that framework, the extraordinary developments we've witnessed in the past two decades may never have come to pass. Increasingly, however, despite the Internet's success, the policy principles that supported its growth are being challenged."