These introductory remarks presented at the plenary session of the 1989 Telecommunications Policy Research Conference outline major areas of concern to state regulators, including alternatives to rate of return legislation; open network architecture; content issues; technical standards and compatibility; optimal pricing; cross subsidies and…

This examination of the open network architecture (ONA) concept and what can be expected as it is currently being implemented begins by defining the open architecture concept as the term is used in the communications and data processing fields. The marketplace benefits that flow from an open architecture are then summarized and the additional…

This paper discusses technical considerations surrounding open network architecture (ONA), specifically: (1) the technical characteristics of the Public Networks (Local Exchange Carriers LATA Networks); (2) the impact of ONA success on the Public Network and some concerns that will have to be addressed in the early implementation stages; and (3)…

This analysis of First Amendment rights for the electronic media recounts the stories of the broadcasting/cable industry must-carry compromise of 1986 and the failed codification of the Fairness Doctrine in 1987. It is noted that these cases were peculiar because, in each instance, the most powerful media in the country willingly sought abridgment…

This paper opens with a brief discussion of what some have seen as an unusual threshold decision by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to establish a broadcast high definition television (HDTV) system. It then identifies the spectrum and standards tradeoffs which are posed by the establishment of a HDTV broadcast transmission standard,…

Reasons for delays in the U.S. Department of Education's issues of regulations related to three federal laws are reviewed in this briefing report. Eighty-three regulations issued under the Education of the Handicapped Act amendments of 1986 and 1988, Higher Education amendments of 1986 and 1987, and Hawkins-Stafford Elementary and Secondary…

The General Accounting Office (GAO) reviewed a grant awarded to the National Partnership To Prevent Drug and Alcohol Abuse by the Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). The GAO interviewed current and former agency and Partnership officials and reviewed applicable laws, policies, regulations, and…

A theory of policy implementation, as opposed to policy results, would allow analysts to estimate how government programs would actually work. To help achieve such a theory, a general framework is presented along with testable propositions about the implementation of federal programs. Implementation is defined as including two components: the…

The rationale for broadcast regulation has undergone some changes over the years. At first, the rationale for such regulation was based on the concept that the airwaves are owned by the public and that the regulatory bodies act as agents for the public in controlling what is transmitted. In 1943, the United States Supreme Court built a rationale…

Though the government only regulates religious broadcasting directly by issuing licenses for stations owned by religious groups or operated for religious purposes, it indirectly affects a large number of religious programers who do not own stations. Also, the courts and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have seldom dealt with cases as…

This publication is a compilation of keynote addresses and workshop presentations given at a national conference on the Child Development Associate (CDA) program held in conjunction with the 1979 annual meeting of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). The document is divided into eleven sections. Each section…

In a study of the effect of crossownerships of newspapers and television stations on citizen access to mass media for the discussion of public issues, information was analyzed about television circulation, advertising costs, and market sizes for 208 crossownership market areas. Results were as follows: crossownerships are all located in the larger…

This paper presents an overview of Canadian immigration policy and summarizes the main features of the Immigration Act of 1976. It is argued that the role and status of non-White groups, particularly East Indians, will be jeopardized by the new immigration policy. (EB)

The apparent lack of concern school boards evidenced in the past over school bus safety has precipitated the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration regulations that have angered board members and bus manufacturers alike. It is argued that the new regulations are not based on research. (Author/IRT)

Experience in the health care industry indicates that increased federal aid results in a regulatory morass. (IRT)