FCC Chairman Ajit Pai will be getting an early start on Thursday, March 30. That’s because he’s just committed to an 8 a.m. address at a major telecommunications advocacy group’s 24th annual policy summit in the Nation’s Capital.
Chairman Pai will speak at the American Cable Association‘s ACA Summit, and will officially kick off the lobbying organization’s “messaging day” on Capitol Hill.
ACA President/CEO Matthew Polka said he was thrilled that Chairman Pai will be speaking at the ACA Summit, “so that its smaller broadband and video provider members and other attendees can hear firsthand his plans to create a pro-growth and pro-investment regulatory environment.”
Polka added that Pai “has long recognized and appreciated the important role that smaller providers play in deploying high-performance broadband networks in small communities and rural areas and in bringing competition to urban areas. Moreover, he understands that regulations can be disproportionately costly for smaller providers and they deter them from investing to meet their customers’ needs. ACA members have spent billions on their networks over the past decade, and, as these smaller providers prepare to continue upgrading and expanding their networks, they are eager to hear from Chairman Pai about his plans for the FCC to remove barriers to growth and ensure broadband service is provided to all Americans as efficiently as possible.”
Polka added that the ACA “stands ready” to help Pai use his time as Chairman to close the digital divide and promote innovation.
The ACA Summit begins Wednesday, March 29 with speakers including House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.); Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.); and
FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly, one day after addressing 2017 Hispanic Radio Conference attendees in Fort Lauderdale.
The ACA Summit gives the opportunity to small and mid-sized cable operators who are ACA members to connect with leading lawmakers and regulators in Washington, D.C.
