In recognition of the high stakes that the coming year represents for local Internet choice, CLIC is holding a full day event on October 18th in Minneapolis, MN, focused on an Action Plan for Local Internet Choice in 2017 and Beyond. This event will be a preconference to the Broadband Communities Fiber for the New Economy conference at the Radisson Blu hotel.
As we earlier reported, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently overturned the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) decision to invalidate the portions of state laws in North Carolina and Tennessee that prevented Wilson and Chattanooga from expanding their robust, high-speed broadband network to their neighbors who were living in a digital desert. The Court’s ruling left standing the FCC’s findings regarding the benefits of local broadband, but its decision limits the FCC’s authority to remove unnecessary and harmful restrictions on community broadband providers. As a result of this decision, CLIC’s and your work to preserve, protect, and advance local Internet choice are now more important than ever.
Over the next year, CLIC and its allies must redouble our efforts to make local Internet choice a national priority at all levels of government, to oppose new state barriers proposed in the wake of the Sixth Circuit decision, and to roll back the existing state legislation that limits community-led broadband projects in nearly 20 states.
Join us for our CLIC Day in Minneapolis for this important strategy discussion. An Action Plan for Local Internet Choice in 2017 and Beyond will break down how we expect 2017 to impact the ability of communities to make Internet choices at the local level and develop strategies for all of us—community advocates, government officials, private sector leaders, and members of CLIC—going forward. We are bringing together some of the key thought leaders in our field to discuss what lies ahead for local Internet choice. We’ll review effective messaging tools that can enhance conversations about broadband and local decision-making. We’ll share stories from the field about building support for Internet choice at the local and state levels—and about fighting off bad laws that seek to stop the expansion of broadband competition. And we’ll develop specific action plans together to make local Internet choice a consensus issue across America in 2017 and beyond! You can register here to join this critical conversation