Levin’s Appearance Comes as Washington, D.C., Prepares to Award Billions in Broadband Deployment Grants to Close the Digital Divide
Policy Advisor, New Street Research
PITTSBURGH, Feb. 10, 2023 – Veteran communications policy analyst Blair Levin, whose career includes distinguished service at the top tiers of law, business and government, will speak at ACA Connects’ 30th Anniversary Summit, offering insights as the federal government prepares to award more than $42 billion in broadband deployment grants in a public-private partnership aimed at closing the digital divide for good.
“I’ve been acquainted with Blair Levin’s work for many years, always impressed with the clarity of his analysis and the range of his vision on any number of key issues, including broadband and spectrum, convergence and competition, and so much more. We are incredibly fortunate to have Blair as a keynote speaker at this historic Summit,” ACA Connects President and CEO Grant Spellmeyer said.
Levin is scheduled to appear on March 1 during the Summit’s daylong public policy forum, an audience that will include hundreds of independent video and broadband providers from nearly every state in the Union.
“With so much on the line — including concerns about government-funded overbuilding — ACA Connects Members will greatly appreciate Blair Levin’s take on the big broadband funding decisions that the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is expected to announce in just a few months. I want to thank Blair for putting aside the time to visit with us at our 30th anniversary Summit,” said Patricia Jo Boyers, who is President/CEO & Co-Founder of BOYCOM Vision in Poplar Bluff, Mo., a video and broadband provider with about 5,100 customers.
Currently, Levin is the Policy Advisor to New Street Research. His extensive policy background includes government service as chief of staff to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Reed Hundt from December 1993 through October 1997. During that period he oversaw, among other matters, the implementation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the first spectrum auctions, the development of digital television standards and the FCC’s Internet initiative.
Levin is also a nonresident senior fellow with the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program. He serves as the executive director of Gig.U: The Next Generation Network Innovation Project, an initiative of three dozen leading research university communities seeking to support educational and economic development by accelerating the deployment of next generation networks.
Levin is a graduate of Yale College and Yale Law School.
Previously announced ACA Connects Summit speakers include:
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr;
FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington;
Director of the U.S. Treasury Capital Projects Fund Joseph Wender;
Calix President and CEO Michael Weening
Appearing on the Summit’s State Broadband panel will be:
- Brandon Carson, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority;
- Dr. Tamarah Holmes, Director of Virginia’s Office of Broadband at the Department of Housing and Community Development; and
- Josh Hildebrandt, Director of Broadband Initiatives at the Georgia Technology Authority
The panel will be moderated by ACA Connects Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Mike Jacobs.
The ACA Connects Summit is a special event that offers small and midsize broadband and video providers that serve hometown America the opportunity to engage with key lawmakers and regulators as well as media representatives that report on communications policy in Washington, D.C.
The Summit gives independent communications providers a vehicle for framing the diverse and complex issues in their own words during dozens of sessions on Capitol Hill and with regulators at the FCC.
The ACA Connects Summit host will be the Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H St NW, Washington, DC 20001.
#Summit2023 will be the official social media hashtag for the event.
Registration information is available at: https://acaconnects.org/aca-summit/
About ACA Connects: America’s Communications Association –America’s Communications Association – ACA Connects is a trade organization representing more than 500 smaller and medium-sized, independent companies that provide broadband, video, and phone services covering 31.9 million households, 7.3 million of which are located in rural and smaller suburban markets across America. ACA Connects Members operate in every state, providing advanced communications to connect homes, companies, main street, schools, hospitals and more. America’s economic prosperity in smaller communities and rural areas depends on the growth and success of ACA Connects Members, who believe a connected nation is a prosperous nation.