Digital Opportunity Investment Trust
Encyclopedia
Digital Opportunity Investment Trust (DOIT) is a proposal to create a United States
federal trust to distribute, for education
al purposes, funds to be raised by public auction
s of license
s to use radio frequency
bands.
lease revenues and distribute them through competitive grants
for projects to (1) apply information technologies in education and skills training
; (2) digitize collections of libraries, museums, universities and public television stations; and (3) develop tools for education and digital technology.
and the National Endowment for the Arts
, created by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 (P.L. 89-209), currently have the largest shares of United States
government funding for programs in humanities
and arts
. The FY 2006 appropriations
for these two agencies are US$140.9 million and US$124.4 million. Appropriations in recent years (in US$ millions) are shown in the following table:
Potential funding for DOIT as described above, although relatively small as compared to United States government support for education (US$71,545 million in FY 2006), would represent a major increase above the funding levels historically provided for humanities and arts.
from the United States
government to demonstrate the potential of a Digital Opportunity Investment Trust. US$1.34 million in funding was provided through three Congressional
earmarks
. These funds were used to write a report describing DOIT goals and organization and to supplement $0.58 million from four competitive grants in carrying out three prototype projects:
The interactive projects were first demonstrated to the public at a briefing organized by New America Foundation, held in the meeting room at 188 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., on May 3, 2006.
. H.R. 1396 "Spectrum Commons and Digital Dividends Act of 2003" was sponsored in March, 2003, by Rep. Edward J. Markey
(D-MA) with cosponsors John B. Larson
(D-CT) and Karen McCarthy
(D-MO). S. 1854 "Digital Opportunity Investment Trust Act" was sponsored in November, 2003, by Sen. Christopher J. Dodd
(D-CT) with cosponsors Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Olympia J. Snowe
(R-ME). Critics said H.R. 1396 was "really just old wine in a new bottle...the fusion of the National Endowment for the Arts, PBS, and the 'E-Rate' program...which is a federally mandated hidden tax on telephone bills." Although they helped introduce the concepts, the bills in the 108th Congress made little progress and expired at the close of the Congress.
S. 1023 "Digital Opportunity Investment Trust Act" was sponsored in May, 2005, by Sen. Christopher J. Dodd
(D-CT) with cosponsors Conrad R. Burns
(R-MT), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Olympia J. Snowe
(R-ME) and Edward M. Kennedy
(D-MA). As of spring, 2006, it is pending hearings in the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. H.R. 2512 "Digital Opportunity Investment Trust Act" was sponsored in May, 2005, by Rep. Ralph Regula
(R-OH) with cosponsors Paul E. Gillmor
(R-OH), Edward J. Markey
(D-MA), Rush D. Holt, Jr.
(D-NJ), Major R. Owens
(D-NY), Richard H. Baker
(R-LA), Sherrod Brown
(D-OH), Nita M. Lowey
(D-NY), Allyson Y. Schwartz
(D-PA), F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr.
(R-WI), Frank R. Wolf
(R-VA) and Rick Boucher
(D-VA). As of spring, 2006, it is pending hearings in the Subcommittee on Select Education.
Although they carry the same title, S. 1023 and H.R. 2512 differ in some provisions. Both require 30 percent of the proceeds of each auction of radio frequency spectrum
to be deposited in a United States
federal trust fund, and both allocate 21 percent of the interest from the fund to educational television
stations supported by the U.S. Corporation for Public Broadcasting
. Both specify that the trust fund is otherwise to be used for the following purposes:
S. 1023 authorizes the trust fund management to cooperate with business
and nonprofit
organizations by "seeking new ways to put telecommunications and information technologies to work in their areas of interest." H.R. 2512 makes use of the fund subject to Congressional appropriation
, but S. 1023 does not. In that respect, the House
bill follows the model of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, while the Senate
bill follows a model similar to the Smithsonian Institution
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
federal trust to distribute, for education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
al purposes, funds to be raised by public auction
Auction
An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...
s of license
License
The verb license or grant licence means to give permission. The noun license or licence refers to that permission as well as to the document recording that permission.A license may be granted by a party to another party as an element of an agreement...
s to use radio frequency
Radio frequency
Radio frequency is a rate of oscillation in the range of about 3 kHz to 300 GHz, which corresponds to the frequency of radio waves, and the alternating currents which carry radio signals...
bands.
Concepts
According to advocates at the National Humanities Alliance, DOIT would receive funds from U.S. governmentFederal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
lease revenues and distribute them through competitive grants
Grant (money)
Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...
for projects to (1) apply information technologies in education and skills training
Training
The term training refers to the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and competencies as a result of the teaching of vocational or practical skills and knowledge that relate to specific useful competencies. It forms the core of apprenticeships and provides the backbone of content at institutes of...
; (2) digitize collections of libraries, museums, universities and public television stations; and (3) develop tools for education and digital technology.
U. S. government funding for humanities and arts
The National Endowment for the HumanitiesNational Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
and the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
, created by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 (P.L. 89-209), currently have the largest shares of United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government funding for programs in humanities
Humanities
The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
and arts
The arts
The arts are a vast subdivision of culture, composed of many creative endeavors and disciplines. It is a broader term than "art", which as a description of a field usually means only the visual arts. The arts encompass visual arts, literary arts and the performing arts – music, theatre, dance and...
. The FY 2006 appropriations
Appropriation (law)
In law and government, appropriation is the act of setting apart something for its application to a particular usage, to the exclusion of all other uses....
for these two agencies are US$140.9 million and US$124.4 million. Appropriations in recent years (in US$ millions) are shown in the following table:
| Fiscal Year | Humanities | Arts |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 174.0 | 176.0 |
| 1993 | 177.4 | 174.5 |
| 1994 | 177.5 | 170.2 |
| 1995 | 172.0 | 162.3 |
| 1996 | 110.0 | 99.5 |
| 1997 | 110.7 | 98.0 |
| 1998 | 110.7 | 99.5 |
| 1999 | 110.7 | 98.0 |
| 2000 | 115.3 | 97.6 |
| 2001 | 120.0 | 104.8 |
| 2002 | 124.5 | 115.2 |
| 2003 | 124.9 | 115.7 |
| 2004 | 135.3 | 121.0 |
| 2005 | 138.1 | 121.3 |
| 2006 | 140.9 | 124.4 |
Potential funding for DOIT as described above, although relatively small as compared to United States government support for education (US$71,545 million in FY 2006), would represent a major increase above the funding levels historically provided for humanities and arts.
Federal grants and demonstration projects
The Federation of American Scientists has received grantsFederal grant
In the United States, federal grants are economic aid issued by the United States government out of the general federal revenue. A federal grant is an award of financial assistance from a federal agency to a recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of...
from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government to demonstrate the potential of a Digital Opportunity Investment Trust. US$1.34 million in funding was provided through three Congressional
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
earmarks
Earmark (politics)
In United States politics, an earmark is a legislative provision that directs approved funds to be spent on specific projects, or that directs specific exemptions from taxes or mandated fees...
. These funds were used to write a report describing DOIT goals and organization and to supplement $0.58 million from four competitive grants in carrying out three prototype projects:
Immune Attack! -- an advanced video game teaching human immunology from the 9th grade to the college level
Discover Babylon -- a cultural, educational and historical virtual reality of ancient Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq)
Mass Casualty Incident Responder -- a high-stress, interactive real-time decision-making training simulation to teach firefighters and serve as a model for other first responder training
The interactive projects were first demonstrated to the public at a briefing organized by New America Foundation, held in the meeting room at 188 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., on May 3, 2006.
Federal legislation
The Digital Promise Project has sought federal legislation for the proposed Digital Opportunity Investment Trust in the 108th and 109th U.S. CongressesUnited States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. H.R. 1396 "Spectrum Commons and Digital Dividends Act of 2003" was sponsored in March, 2003, by Rep. Edward J. Markey
Ed Markey
Edward John "Ed" Markey is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1976. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes most of Boston's northern and western suburbs, such as Medford and Framingham. Markey is the Dean of both the Massachusetts and New England House delegations...
(D-MA) with cosponsors John B. Larson
John Larson
John Barry Larson is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1999. He is a member of the a Democratic Party. The district is based in the state capital, Hartford.Larson is the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus....
(D-CT) and Karen McCarthy
Karen McCarthy
Karen McCarthy was a Missouri politician. She served as the U.S. Representative for the fifth district of Missouri from 1995 to 2005.-Early life:...
(D-MO). S. 1854 "Digital Opportunity Investment Trust Act" was sponsored in November, 2003, by Sen. Christopher J. Dodd
Christopher Dodd
Christopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
(D-CT) with cosponsors Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Olympia J. Snowe
Olympia Snowe
Olympia Jean Snowe , née Bouchles, is the senior United States Senator from Maine and a member of the Republican Party. Snowe has become widely known for her ability to influence the outcome of close votes, including whether to end filibusters. She and her fellow Senator from Maine, Susan Collins,...
(R-ME). Critics said H.R. 1396 was "really just old wine in a new bottle...the fusion of the National Endowment for the Arts, PBS, and the 'E-Rate' program...which is a federally mandated hidden tax on telephone bills." Although they helped introduce the concepts, the bills in the 108th Congress made little progress and expired at the close of the Congress.
S. 1023 "Digital Opportunity Investment Trust Act" was sponsored in May, 2005, by Sen. Christopher J. Dodd
Christopher Dodd
Christopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
(D-CT) with cosponsors Conrad R. Burns
Conrad Burns
Conrad Ray Burns is a former United States Senator from Montana. He is only the second Republican to represent Montana in the Senate since the passage in 1913 of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and is the longest-serving Republican senator in Montana history.While in...
(R-MT), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Olympia J. Snowe
Olympia Snowe
Olympia Jean Snowe , née Bouchles, is the senior United States Senator from Maine and a member of the Republican Party. Snowe has become widely known for her ability to influence the outcome of close votes, including whether to end filibusters. She and her fellow Senator from Maine, Susan Collins,...
(R-ME) and Edward M. Kennedy
Ted Kennedy
Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
(D-MA). As of spring, 2006, it is pending hearings in the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. H.R. 2512 "Digital Opportunity Investment Trust Act" was sponsored in May, 2005, by Rep. Ralph Regula
Ralph Regula
Ralph Straus Regula was a Representative in the United States Congress from the 16th District of the State of Ohio. He retired in January 2009 after 18 consecutive terms. He is a member of the Republican Party. In the 110th Congress , he was the second longest serving Republican member of the U.S...
(R-OH) with cosponsors Paul E. Gillmor
Paul Gillmor
Paul Eugene Gillmor was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the U.S. Representative from the 5th congressional district of Ohio from 1989 until his death....
(R-OH), Edward J. Markey
Ed Markey
Edward John "Ed" Markey is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1976. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes most of Boston's northern and western suburbs, such as Medford and Framingham. Markey is the Dean of both the Massachusetts and New England House delegations...
(D-MA), Rush D. Holt, Jr.
Rush D. Holt Jr.
Rush Dew Holt, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for . He is a member of the Democratic Party. He is currently the only Quaker in Congress.-Early life and education :Rush D. Holt was born to Rush D...
(D-NJ), Major R. Owens
Major Owens
Major Robert Odell Owens is a New York politician and a prominent member of the Democratic Party. He is also a former Congressman, having represented the state's 11th Congressional district in the United States House of Representatives. He retired at the end of his term in January 2007 and was...
(D-NY), Richard H. Baker
Richard Baker (politician)
Richard Hugh Baker , an American politician,is a lobbyist and former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, having represented the 6th District of Louisiana from 1987 to 2008.-Early life and career:...
(R-LA), Sherrod Brown
Sherrod Brown
Sherrod Campbell Brown is the senior United States Senator from Ohio and a member of the Democratic Party. Before his election to the U.S. Senate, he was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Ohio's 13th congressional district from 1993 to 2007...
(D-OH), Nita M. Lowey
Nita Lowey
Nita Melnikoff Lowey is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1993. She is a member of the Democratic Party. She previously represented the 20th district from 1989 to 1993.-Early life, education and career:...
(D-NY), Allyson Y. Schwartz
Allyson Schwartz
Allyson Young Schwartz is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. She is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes parts of Montgomery County and Northeast Philadelphia...
(D-PA), F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr.
Jim Sensenbrenner
Frank James Sensenbrenner, Jr. is an American politician who has been a member of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives since 1979, representing . The district, the state's richest, includes many of Milwaukee's northern and western suburbs, and extends into rural...
(R-WI), Frank R. Wolf
Frank Rudolph Wolf
Frank Rudolph Wolf is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1981. He is a member of the Republican Party.-Early life, education, and early political career:...
(R-VA) and Rick Boucher
Rick Boucher
Frederick Carlyle "Rick" Boucher is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 1983 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...
(D-VA). As of spring, 2006, it is pending hearings in the Subcommittee on Select Education.
Although they carry the same title, S. 1023 and H.R. 2512 differ in some provisions. Both require 30 percent of the proceeds of each auction of radio frequency spectrum
Radio frequency
Radio frequency is a rate of oscillation in the range of about 3 kHz to 300 GHz, which corresponds to the frequency of radio waves, and the alternating currents which carry radio signals...
to be deposited in a United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
federal trust fund, and both allocate 21 percent of the interest from the fund to educational television
Public broadcasting
Public broadcasting includes radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing and commercial financing.Public broadcasting may be...
stations supported by the U.S. Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a non-profit corporation created by an act of the United States Congress, funded by the United States’ federal government to promote public broadcasting...
. Both specify that the trust fund is otherwise to be used for the following purposes:
"to help underwrite the digitization of the collections in the Nation's universities, museums, libraries, public broadcasting stations, and cultural institutions"
"to support basic and applied research, development, and demonstrations of innovative learning and assessment systems as well as the components and tools needed to create them"
"to use the research results developed...to create prototype applications designed to meet learning objectives in a variety of subject areas and designed for learners with many different educational backgrounds"
S. 1023 authorizes the trust fund management to cooperate with business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
and nonprofit
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
organizations by "seeking new ways to put telecommunications and information technologies to work in their areas of interest." H.R. 2512 makes use of the fund subject to Congressional appropriation
Appropriation bill
An appropriation bill or running bill is a legislative motion which authorizes the government to spend money. It is a bill that sets money aside for specific spending...
, but S. 1023 does not. In that respect, the House
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
bill follows the model of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, while the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
bill follows a model similar to the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
.
External links
- Digital Promise Project, hosted by the Federation of American Scientists