House Commerce Committee
and
Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
Congressional Guide profiles of the House and Senate commerce panels that handle telecommunications issues. Member of these committees receive much of the industry's political contributions. Searching washingtonpost.com's database of political donations allows you to see which companies have contributed to the campaigns of committee members.

Spotlight: Federal Communications Commission
Federal Internet Guide profile of the Federal Communications Commission Web site. The FCC regulates the telephone industry.

Lobbying by Telephone Utilities in 1997
A detailed, company-by-company breakdown of the industry's lobbying expenditures from a December 1998 report by the Center for Responsive Politics. The report ranked phone utilities third in overall lobbying expenditures.

Pocketbook Politics: Party Lines
Part of a February 1988 study by the political watchdog organization Common Cause, spotlighting contributions by cable and local telephone companies.

Telecommunications Act of 1996
Full text of the 1996 telecommunications bill from THOMAS, the Library of Congress online information service. Two trade associations summarized the complex bill for their members: the Telecommunications Industry Association and the U.S. Telephone Association.