Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 2472 - Authorization of Appropriations for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration

(House)
(Markey (D) Massachusetts and Rinaldo (R) New Jersey)

The administration supports legislation to authorize appropriations for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) but opposes enactment of H.R. 2472. The bill should not be considered under suspension of the rules and should instead be amended to delete section 2, which would require NTIA to establish goals for recruiting minority members and women and to report to the Congress on a semi-annual basis with respect to its success in achieving those goals.

Section 2 of H.R. 2472 would contravene the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which prohibits requirements to classify and in any way prefer employees or applicants for employment according to race or gender in the absence of clear evidence of unlawful discriminatory conduct. Section 2 is not premised on any unlawful discriminatory conduct based on race or gender attributable to NTIA. Even if it were, the imposition of hiring goals would not be the most narrowly tailored method of remedying that discrimination, as required by law.