VOIP legislation runs into opposition

U.S. Senate legislation that would except voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) service from most state and federal regulation ran into objections from several groups, including the Department of Justice (DOJ), which says the bill could allow terrorists and criminals to circumvent wiretaps.

The VOIP Regulatory Freedom Act of 2004, sponsored by Senator John Sununu, would exempt VOIP service from a wire-tapping regulation called the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, or CALEA, commonly used to listen in on traditional telephone calls, said Laura Parsky, deputy assistant attorney general for the DOJ's criminal division.

"I am here to underscore how very important it is that this type of telephone service not become a haven for criminals, terrorists and spies," Parsky told the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Wednesday. "If any particular technology is singled out for special exemption from these requirements, that technology will quickly attract criminals and create a hole in law enforcement's ability to protect the public and national security."

A bill defining VOIP as an unregulated information service instead of a heavily regulated telecommunications service is needed before dozens of state regulators begin to tax and regulate the promising technology, Sununu said. Heavy regulation would "stifle innovation and discourage investment" in VOIP services, Sununu added.

Sununu and other supporters of his bill said the DOJ and other law enforcement agencies have other methods of tracking communications over the Internet, including court orders requiring Internet companies to release communications to police. The DOJ's current CALEA petition to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) doesn't ask for CALEA access to such technologies as instant messaging, e-mail and peer-to-peer (P-to-P) services, Sununu noted.

"Do you think the terrorists are not smart enough to read the petition?" Sununu said to Parsky. "Do you think the terrorists are not smart enough to use e-mail?"

The DOJ has attempted to single out VOIP as an Internet technology that has to comply with the CALEA rules, Sununu told Parsky. Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, asked Parsky for examples of criminals now using VOIP to avoid wiretaps, but she couldn't provide one. "It seems to me you are looking for a remedy for a problem that has not yet been documented," Wyden said.

The DOJ supports most of Sununu's bill, Parsky answered, but it doesn't want to lose law-enforcement powers it has now as more traditional telephone traffic is likely to move to VOIP in coming years.

Sununu and other supporters pushed for the committee to act on the bill this year, despite opposition from the DOJ and other groups.

"Government must not be tempted to treat IP-based communications like traditional telecommunications and must not attempt to squeeze IP-based communications into legacy telecommunications regulations," said Jeff Pulver, chief executive officer of Pulver.com, provider of the Free World Dialup VOIP service. "We, the IP-based communications pioneers, need room to innovate and experiment in a regulation-free zone for the Internet."