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February 27, 2007
PeopleReport: The FCC's Homeland Security Chief
A North Carolina police chief will be trading in his badge as a university safety officer to manage disaster preparedness at the FCC.
Agency Chairman Kevin Martin has appointed Derek Poarch as chief of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. Poarch, a native of Lenoir, N.C., is currently the director of public safety and chief of police at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
In his new role, he will oversee the bureau responsible for FCC activities pertaining to public safety, homeland security, emergency management and disaster preparedness.
This week's podcast also reports on the hiring of a trade lobbyist by the Electronic Industries Alliance and the opening of the Interactive Advertising Bureau's Washington lobbying office.
Posted by Technology Daily at 11:22 AM | Permalink
February 20, 2007
PeopleReport: Telecom Groups Add Democrats
Nick Kolovos, a Democratic lobbyist, is going from wireless to wired. He is leaving the wireless association CTIA to take a job as vice president of government relations for the National Cable and Telecommunications Association starting next month.
Verizon Communications has added a Democrat to its lobbying team as well. Mark Keam will be the vice president for federal government relations.
This week's "People Report" also covers the Information Technology Industry Council's hiring of an energy and environmental expert and the Motion Picture Association of America's promotion of its acting general counsel.
Posted by Technology Daily at 12:13 PM | Permalink
February 16, 2007
Planned Tech Cuts Rile Industry
A week after the Bush administration released its budget proposal for fiscal 2008, the plan is taking hits on a handful of technology-related fronts.
Industry experts are disappointed that President Bush did not include more money for the expanded role of the cyber-security czar in the Homeland Security Department. The Information Technology Association of America said the basically flat funding would be insufficient.
Proponents of educational technology, meanwhile, complained that for the third straight year, Bush has proposed eliminating the Enhancing Education through Technology grant program. Bush's decision to slightly increase funding for a task force on intellectual property may spark opposition from lawmakers who want more information on the task force's progress.
And at a House subcommittee hearing, some lawmakers voiced exasperation that Bush again has targeted the Advanced Technology Program and the Manufacturing Extension Partnership. Critics of the proposed cuts say the programs are essential to U.S. competitiveness.
Other topics in this week's podcast include trade-negotiating authority, federal ID standards network neutrality and the future of the Electronic Industries Alliance.
Posted by Technology Daily at 10:38 AM | Permalink
February 13, 2007
PeopleReport: TechNet Reshapes Lobbying Team
TechNet has a nearly all new government and political affairs team.
The association for technology industry CEOs had been looking for a Democratic vice president since last fall when Alix Burns left to start her own consulting firm, Bay Bridget Strategies. Then Republican Vice President Andrea Hoffman left late last month.
TechNet has hired Betsy Mullins to replace Burns. Mullins most recently served as the deputy director of the Democratic Governors Association, where she served as member of the senior management team and liaison to the chairman, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
Mike Platt will fill Hoffman's job. Platt was the legislative director for Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., where he focused on technology, telecommunications, intellectual property, and trade policy.
Other news from this week's "PeopleReport" podcast: Google hired a new attorney for its Washington office, and FTC Chairwoman Deborah Platt Majoris received an award for her work in fighting identity theft and other Internet-related threats.
Posted by Technology Daily at 11:56 AM | Permalink
Introducing Tech Daily's "PeopleReport"
Each Tuesday at Technology Daily, Senior Writer Heather Greenfield looks at the top movers and shakers in high-tech policy circles in her "People Column."
The column is one of the most popular features at Tech Daily, so we figured it's about time that we offer some of the content in audio format. To that end, the "PeopleReport" debuts here at Tech Policy Pod later today. We hope you'll check back every week to hear who's going where, why and what they'll be doing.
Posted by Danny at 11:05 AM | Permalink
February 09, 2007
Tech Goodies On Budget Day
Most of America knows early February as the time for Groundhog Day. But folks inside the Beltway celebrate something else this time of year: Budget Day, when presidents traditionally release their budget priorities for the next fiscal year.
This week, the Bush administration unveiled a fiscal 2008 budget request that is chock-full of technology-related initiatives.
The Homeland Security Department would get more money for border surveillance and tracking foreign visitors. The Justice Department's budget includes money for countering terrorism, analyzing data breaches and helping collect digital evidence. And the health information superhighway would be injected with a 93 percent funding boost.
President Bush did revive his longstanding requests to cut funding for some tech programs, however. They include the Advanced Technology Program, manufacturing extension partnerships with the private sector, and tech-based community learning centers.
The rest of the podcast covers subjects like caller-identification "spoofing," e-voting and e-waste.
Posted by Technology Daily at 11:10 AM | Permalink
February 02, 2007
The Grilling Of Kevin Martin
For months, Democratic lawmakers have hinted that Republican FC Chairman Kevin Martin would face a grilling from them, and this week they delivered.
At a Senate Commerce Committee hearing that featured all five FCC members as witnesses, Martin was hit with a barrage of questions about his stance on the AT&T-BellSouth merger, his commitments to promoting an open Internet, and whether he suppressed internal reports on media diversity that differ from his regulatory views on the subject.
Martin responded to crtiticism that he might not stand by certain conditions on the AT&T deal by clarifying that his previous statement on the issue meant he would not apply those rules industry-wide. He also has denied spiking any reports on media diversity.
The hearing, the first on communications matters in the new Congress, signals closer scrutiny ahead for the agency.
Other subjects in the news this week included U.S. broadband policy, a proposal to strength the universal service fund for expanding communications services, and a planned increase in science funding for fiscal 2007. Listen to the podcast for details.
Posted by Technology Daily at 07:29 AM | Permalink
