How County Governments Can Step Up their Broadband Game and Benefit Rural Broadband

AUSTIN, April 24, 2018 – The Rural Telecommunications Congress track at the Broadband Communities Summit here next week kicks off with a discussion about county-led economic development, and features the top technologies leaders from three divergent counties that each include different perspectives on delivering rural broadband. I’ll have the privilege of moderating our first discussion, which will include a discussion about how counties with rural areas can benefit from leveraging county-wide fiber assets.

Nathaniel Watkins, CIO of Garrett County, Maryland, will speak about the role of facilitating economic development through planning for better broadband. Also joining the discussion will be Jon Walton, CIO of San Mateo County, California. Although the county includes a portion of dense Silicon Valley, large swaths of the western portion of the county are extremely rural. Professor Trevor Lane and Commissioner Nathan Davis of Ferry County, Washington, will speak about how to bring better broadband to one of the most rural and remote regions of eastern Washington State.

Below is a description for the panel, and registration information for the entire Broadband Communities Conference next week in Austin!

County-Level Economic Development: A Key to Rural Broadband Progress: Tuesday, May 1, 3 p.m.-4 p.m.
New policies are coming online from the Trump administration that seek to increase rural broadband deployment by making use of federally owned dark fiber. Counties, too, are streamlining and facilitating access to local government resources by licensing existing dark fiber networks. This session explores how these new dynamics affect county-level economic development.

Moderator:
Drew Clark – Editor and Publisher, BroadbandBreakfast.com; President, Rural Telecommunications Congress

Presenters:
Commissioner Nathan Davis – Ferry County, Vice Chairman and County Commissioner, State of Washington
Jon Walton – CIO, San Mateo County, California
Nathaniel Watkins – CIO, Garrett County, Maryland
Trevor Lane – Assistant Professor, Community & Economic Development, Washington State University, Ferry County Extension Office

Rural broadband has never been a more pressing priority for our nation, and now is the time to join the conversation. The Rural Telecommunications Congress (RTC) has an exciting program at the Broadband Communities Summit this year from May 1-3 in Austin, Texas. When you register for the summit using the RTC discount code of RTC350, you are guaranteed to receive the best possible rate.

You’ll be able to attend the Rural Broadband Development Track sessions, and the entire broadband summit, by registering today. Click on the registration link below, click “Register Now” and make sure to click the “CODEHOLDERS” radio button and enter your VIP Code: RTC350.

Registration Link
VIP Code:  RTC350