A new Congress, a new approach to technology?

With election '08 over, Democrats are likely to be newly emboldened and may be eager to approve legislation that stalled in the 110th Congress, including spyware regulations and a shield law that would protect some bloggers. The outlook is complicated by some shuffling in House and Senate committee leadership, which is expected to take place next week. Two politicians are jockeying over chairmanship of the House Commerce Committee, which includes green tech and Internet regulation in its portfolio. And increased interest in intellectual property issues in the House Judiciary Committee has led John Conyers (D-MI) to reorganize a key subcommittee. Other issues expected to be addressed again next year include Net neutrality, consumer privacy issues such as regulation over electronic medical records, and patent reform.