April 1, 2014
LOOKING BACK AND LOOKING FORWARD:
America’s Communications Policy
Answering the Committee’s Call
Monday, April 7th
9:30 a.m.
Rayburn 2322
The last significant revision of the Communications Act occurred in 1996. Since then, innovation and competitive markets have dramatically altered the way consumers receive communications services. While the world of phones, computers, and the Internet has completely changed over the last 18 years, the nation’s telecommunications regulatory framework remains the same.
The House Committee on Energy and Commerce is seeking recommendations on how best to modernize the Communications Act. Two key architects of the 1996 Act will engage in a wide-ranging policy discussion that will include:
- The pervasive and rapidly developing role of broadband networks in the delivery of modern communications, in contrast to the market landscape in 1996.
- How current policy impacts broadband investment.
- The obstacles and opportunities facing lawmakers as they embark on modernizing the legal and regulatory framework that oversees the nation’s communications industry.
- Recommendations to help spur investment and innovation
in America’s 21st Century digital economy.
Featuring:
Rick Boucher
Former Chairman, U.S. House Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
Honorary Chairman, Internet Innovation Alliance
Sidley Austin, LLP
Jack Fields
Former Chairman, U.S. House Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Finance
CEO, Twenty-First Century Group
This event complied with House and Senate ethics standards