Senate Leader At Center Of Commerce Issues On Capitol Hill
PITTSBURGH, February 18, 2013 – The American Cable Association today announced that Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), an influential Senate leader committed to spurring broadband investment in rural America, will address ACA Members and attendees at ACA’s 20th Washington Summit, sharing his insights into the major policy issues facing Congress over the next two years.
“ACA is very pleased that Sen. Blunt — a truly great friend to the small cable operator for many years — will speak to hundreds of ACA Members at our historic 20th Washington Summit. Coming from the Midwest’s ‘Show Me’ state, Sen. Blunt is an unapologetic advocate for rural interests, especially with regard to government policies designed to spread broadband and other critical infrastructure into the most economically challenging areas to serve,” ACA President and CEO Matthew M. Polka said.
Sen. Blunt is scheduled to address the ACA Summit on Wednesday, March 13, from 1:15 p.m. to 2 p.m.
With a background as a public servant, university president, and teacher, Sen. Blunt was elected by the people of Missouri to the U.S. Senate in 2010. Less than one year after being sworn in, Sen. Blunt was chosen to serve in the Senate leadership as the Vice Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference. He also serves as a member of the Senate Republican Whip Team.
Sen. Blunt is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee; the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee; the Senate Armed Services Committee; and the Senate Rules Committee. He serves as the Ranking Republican on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies. Sen. Blunt is also the Ranking Republican on the Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security.
Sen. Blunt served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1996 to 2008, representing the people of southwest Missouri. He was elected by his colleagues to serve as House Majority Whip and Republican Whip three times.
Before serving in Congress, Sen. Blunt was a history teacher, a county official, and Missouri’s Secretary of State. He also served four years as the president of his alma mater, Southwest Baptist University, in Bolivar, Missouri.
ACA previously announced that three other leaders in the field of communications policymaking – Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), Rep. John Barrow (D-Ga.) and Commissioner Ajit Pai of the Federal Communications Commission – have accepted invitations to address the ACA Summit. ACA expects to announce more speakers in the future.
Rep. Scalise is scheduled to address the ACA Summit on Wednesday, March 13, from 2:00 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.
FCC Commissioner Pai is scheduled to have a one-on-one discussion with ACA’s Polka on Wednesday, March 13, while Rep. Barrow will speak the following day, delivering that morning’s address moments before hundreds of ACA Members head to Capitol Hill to discuss issues important to voice, video and broadband providers and consumers.
Independent cable operators from communities all across the great American heartland will gather in Washington, D.C., on March 12-14 to celebrate their two decades of achievement at the 20th Summit.
This year’s ACA Summit – cable’s premier event for smaller, independent and competitive cable operators – will take place at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in downtown Washington, D.C. The Summit is widely considered as the best opportunity for small business owners serving hometown America with advanced communications services to advocate for change in face-to-face exchanges with Obama Administration officials, Capitol Hill lawmakers and senior FCC personnel.
The 20th ACA Summit will extend its tradition as the most important forum nationally to honor the critical role played by independent cable operators that serve rural and remote regions of the country that are typically much more costly to build out with advanced technology.
The year’s ACA Summit will once again underscore the trade group’s firm commitment to finding consensus and highlighting progress made on many critical issues, especially retransmission consent, broadband deployment and access to content on fair and reasonable terms.
ACA is currently seeking exhibitors and sponsors for the event. Interested parties should contact Stacey Leech at [email protected] or (412)-922-8300, ext. 15.
Further information about the ACA Summit 2013 agenda and the exciting lineup of speakers will be made available on the ACA Summit 2013 website closer to the time of the event.
Meanwhile, to register and learn more about ACA Summit 2013, please visit: http://acasummit.org/
About the American Cable Association: Based in Pittsburgh, the American Cable Association is a trade organization representing about 850 smaller and medium-sized, independent cable companies who provide broadband services for more than 7.4 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’s 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/