Re: [icann-eu] A *larger* role for U.S. DoC?

["Michael Froomkin - U.Miami School of Law" <froomkin@law.miami.edu>]

A fair request.

My reasons for this view are set out in excruciating detail at:

http://personal.law.miami.edu/~froomkin/articles/icann.pdf

or, use the HTML version, at 

http://personal.law.miami.edu/~froomkin/articles/icann-main.htm

[beware if you have a slow link - this is a *long* document]

On Thu, 18 Jan 2001, Alexander Svensson wrote:

> 
> Dear all,
> 
> I just saw the "Public Interest Groups' letter to Department 
> of Commerce Regarding ICANN"
> http://www.icannwatch.org/archives/quick/979766847.shtml
> 
> The signatories (members of ACLU, ACM, CPSR, EPIC, and Froomkin)
> request that the NTIA, the department within the U.S. Department
> of Commerce dealing with the Internet, holds "a public hearing 
> before taking any further action on this matter".
> 
> The legal argument rests on the U.S. Administrative Procedure Act 
> (APA) and that "any attempt by the U.S. Government or its agents 
> to decide such an important matter of public policy without 
> adherence to principles of notice and public participation 
> embodied in the APA would be wrong as a matter of principle, and 
> indeed illegal not to mention potentially unconstitutional".
> That is, un-U.S.-constitutional.
> 
> I was a bit taken aback by this letter. Not about the critique
> regarding ICANN's TLD decision, but about running to the U.S. DoC/NTIA
> for protection. 
> 
> If you read the comments about the planned hearing in the U.S. House 
> Commerce Committee in Germany, you will see some annoyance that it 
> looks once more as if ICANN is a Federal Agency of the USA. 
> While I don't oppose *parliamentary* scrutiny of ICANN (every 
> parliament is entitled to do it, not only the U.S.), I don't 
> see why the DoC should be involved in this even more than it is now. 
> 
> Maybe some of the signatories want to explain why they think that
> this is a matter for the U.S. Administration?
> 
> Best regards,
> /// Alexander
> 
> _______________________________________________________
>   ICANN Channel              http://www.icannchannel.de
> 

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