January 12, 2018

ACA Welcomes Introduction Of House Resolutions On Principles Of Broadband Infrastructure

PITTSBURGH, January 12, 2018 – American Cable Association President and CEO Matthew M. Polka issued the following statement in response to the introduction by members of the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology of a series of resolutions that establish principles for promoting broadband infrastructure by removing barriers to buildout, supporting innovation, and focusing on areas that need it most:

“ACA welcomes the ‘Principles for Broadband Infrastructure’ set forth by House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Chairman Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and her colleagues, Reps. Leonard Lance of New Jersey, Bob Latta of Ohio, Richard Hudson of North Carolina, and Gus Bilirakis of Florida.

“The principles are sound, providing clear direction to address our nation’s broadband infrastructure concerns. The country needs to remove barriers that stand in the way of broadband investment and deployment. We need to ensure that federal, state, and local taxes and fees, permitting and other government requirements actually facilitate deployment. And, we need to ensure that we have support programs that are targeted to bringing service to unserved locations.

“Similar principles have helped guide the Federal Communications Commission in its effort to remove barriers to deployment and reform its universal service support programs, which now ensure ongoing support is distributed into unserved areas on a more efficient basis. These new House-sponsored principles will make further progress in driving investment and closing the digital divide. ACA and its members, who have invested and continue to invest billions of dollars to deploy high-performance networks to their customers, stand ready to work with these lawmakers as they consider legislation.”

About the American Cable Association: Based in Pittsburgh, the American Cable Association is a trade organization representing nearly 750 smaller and medium-sized, independent cable companies who provide broadband services for nearly 7 million cable subscribers primarily located in rural and smaller suburban markets across America. Through active participation in the regulatory and legislative process in Washington, D.C., ACA members work together to advance the interests of their customers and ensure the future competitiveness and viability of their business. For more information, visit https://acaconnects.org/