What's on the agenda for policymakers.
Agenda
Hear from Ernesto Falcon, Senior Legislative Counsel at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes 21st century fiber access for all Americans in its policy work. Ernesto is a lead researcher and advocate that was deeply involved in pushing California to promote universal fiber infrastructure in its newest broadband program.
Rosenworcel & Davidson: With Leadership in Place, NTIA and FCC Must Now Work Together to Close the Digital Divide
On January 11, the U.S. Senate voted 60-31 to confirm the nomination of Alan Davidson to be the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information. Once sworn in, Davidson will lead the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), which is President Joe Biden's principal adviser on telecommunications and information policy.
White House resumes its internet alliance efforts
The Biden administration is getting closer to launching its proposed Alliance for the Future of the Internet. Administration officials originally hoped to launch this effort of “like-minded countries” in early December 2021 in tandem with the president’s Summit for Democracy.
Republican Lawmakers Urge Democrats to Hold NTIA Oversight Hearing
House Energy and Commerce Republicans Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Bob Latta (R-OH) urged Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Mike Doyle (D-PA) to hold an oversight hearing to review ongoing activities and programs at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). "The NTIA has not appeared before the Energy and Commerce Committee since the 115th Congress," said the lawmakers' letter.
Scott D. Woods is the Director of the Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives in NTIA’s Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth. He also serves as a principal liaison between the BroadbandUSA and OIGC program offices and key strategic partners and external stakeholder groups, including representatives from state and local governments, telecommunications companies, for-profit and non-profit corporations, and colleges/universities.
S. 2992, American Innovation and Choice Online Act (Sponsors: Sens Klobuchar, Grassley, Durbin, Graham, Blumenthal, Kennedy, Booker, Hirono, Hawley). The American Innovation and Choice Online Act would:
Calls for tech regulation — from lawmakers, regulators, small businesses, even consumers — have become deafening. It now seems almost certain that antitrust action, privacy laws and more will influence the industry in some form in a bid to undermine the most powerful companies in the world's most powerful industry.
But those companies want a hand in shaping what that regulation looks like. And while lawmakers argue about what policy should actually look like, tech companies are able to change their behaviors and business models to prepare for what's coming down the pike.
It’s Time to Call the Vote on Gigi Sohn for a Fully Functioning FCC
President Biden has renominated Gigi Sohn [Senior Fellow and Public Advocate at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society] to be a commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). With Alan Davidson confirmed to lead the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), it is critical that we have a fully functioning FCC to implement much of the work Congress has directed the two agencies to do.
Is your city struggling to get all residents online? Do you want to spend Coronavirus Relief Fund money on connectivity, or apply for federal grant support, but don’t know what would be the most effective way to start? The first step in promoting digital equity is gaining a thorough understanding of your community’s challenges, gaps, and assets through a needs assessment.