March 16, 2020

Connecting & Communicating During COVID-19

We Are with You Every Step Of The Way!

Matt Polka, President and CEO

On behalf of your fellow members and the full ACA Connects team in Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., we hope you, your families and your colleagues are doing as well as can be expected under the challenging circumstances of the COVID-19 outbreak.

This global experience truly forces all of us to examine everything we do in a new light – whether at home, school, work, or with our extended families.

There is a great deal to report to you, but first and foremost, know this:

All of us at ACA Connects are here to assist you with any new challenges.  Whether in operations, workforce, network reliability, new messaging to your communities, or other important matters on your mind, we are available to you and ready to help.

Listed below is a summary of actions taken by and services available to you from ACA Connects.  To be sure, we understand that new issues may develop.  We are here to assist you in any way possible as the facts on the ground change and until this crisis is over.

We will continue to share current information that affects your businesses as it becomes available. 

We are in this TOGETHER, and we will be with you every step of the way!

Here’s a summary of recent steps we have taken for you and near-term plans:

First, as you know, ACA Connects decided to postpone this year’s Summit.  After we evaluated more information from the CDC and other expert sources about the health effects of the Coronavirus and the implications of its spread in the U.S., we knew it was the right decision to postpone.  We will announce soon when the Summit is rescheduled with dates that hopefully will be far outside of the current crisis.

Second, ACA Connects is hosting TWO special webinars on COVID-19.

Here are the details:

Tuesday, March 17, 2020 – 2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. ET

  • Topic:  The FCC’s “Keep Americans Connected” Pledge During the COVID-19 Crisis
  • Description:  ACA Connects’ Team will review the FCC’s request to ISPs to ensure broadband connectivity for all during the COVID-19 crisis.

Friday, March 20, 2020 – 2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. ET

  • Topic:  COVID-19 Preparedness and Response
  • Description:  ACA Connects and its counsel discuss with you important and necessary steps to take in your business to respond to the COVID-19 crisis in the best way possible to protect your customers and employees.

Register at our ACA Connects Homepage at our Member Lounge.

ACA Connects has long served as a resource for you on communications regulatory matters and now, as you deal with COVID-19 issues, we will also be a resource for you on legal and regulatory matters related to this novel health emergency.

We have convened experts on employment and labor law, consumer protection law, and contract and insurance law to begin to address issues you face in operating your businesses in the weeks and months ahead.

To help us tailor and target these webinars, we urge you to send us your questions prior to the webinar.  Please forward your questions to Brian Hurley, ACA Connects  Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, at [email protected].

Third, on Friday, March 13, ACA Connects joined with other telecommunications leaders to support Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai’s pledge to “Keep Americans Connected,” a call on broadband ISPs to assist consumers amid the coronavirus emergency.  I’m pleased to report that many, many ACA Connects members took the pledge, a response greatly appreciated by Chairman Pai and his senior staff.

Our members are also investing in both training and technology to ensure their networks remain operational and their service meets their customers’ needs during periods of increased demand as a result of this emergency.

Fourth, we have sent to you ACA Connects Advisories with important links from official government and business sources to help you stay up to date on all you need to know.  We will keep updating these links so you have the latest information on how to protect your workplace, employees and customers, and how to implement sound policies that provide support and encouragement through this difficult time.

Fifth, we are adding a Covid-19 page to the ACA Connects website where we will constantly update new information about the COVID-19 crisis, official guidance, and business intel.  You’ll be able to find this page at https://acaconnects.org/covid-19/.  In addition to the links  that we have already sent to you with helpful info, you’ll see other articles outlining what ISPs are doing around the country to help serve their customers and communities during this crisis, and much more.

Sixth, I’ll stay in touch with you via short videos to connect and communicate with you.  Let’s stay close, share what we know, and not let go.

Finally, THANK YOU, of course, for providing service and expertise to your customers and communities.  We know how invaluable you are to your friends and neighbors, as we tell Washington all the time about you, and now you will demonstrate this to all in a time of national crisis.  And I KNOW you will come through with flying colors!

You can be sure we at ACA Connects will continue to support you and your colleagues and share current information you need to accomplish this important task as you work to help all Americans!

Please reach out to me and the ACA Connects staff with questions you may have and together, as a team, we can meet this challenge and move forward.

For almost all of my career, I have had the privilege and honor to represent and work with you, our ACA Connects Members.  You demonstrate the best in what it is to be an American with your hard work, dedication, team spirit, and commitment to service.  Your challenges aren’t easy, but you have stepped up to meet them time and time again.

When we get beyond this current crisis, I believe we will all be able to look back and say, “We did this together.  We kept America connected and communicating in good ways that helped us all.”

You are the most good and noble people I know, and we are so proud of you! 

So, hey America, from all of us at ACA Connects, “WE GOT THIS!”