Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser.



Friends of Municipal Broadband Press Conference  
Committee VOTE Tomorrow 
~  NEW VERSION OF #2108 Attached ~   
Friends of Municipal Broadband #Kill2108
Byron’s new version of House Bill 2108 will be voted on by the Full Commerce & Labor Committee this Thursday, February 2nd.
Last week, Byron surprised the committee by requesting a one-week postponement of the previously scheduled hearing of her newly revised House Bill 2018. 
The bill has been substantially watered down but it is still bad for Broadband, bad for our communities and and bad for Virginians! 

Speak out in opposition. 
Join us:

When:     1:00 p.m., Thursday Jan. 25, 2017

Where:   General Assembly Building

                1st Floor, Hearing Room D 

                (Please confirm room assignments on door signs when you arrive)

Logistics:

The Commerce and Labor Committee hearing room is on the first floor or the General Assembly Building. Parking is at a premium around the Virginia State Capitol, so please allow time to find street parking or plan to walk from these recommended parking locations:

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

815 E Grace St

Richmond, VA 23219

Library of Virginia

800 E Broad St

Richmond, VA 23219


Talking Points:

The new version of HB 2108 removes ALL FOIA exemptions related to municipal broadband. It also includes a number of duplicative line items to address issues that are already covered in existing code. 

This means that:

  •  We won’t be able to protect our customers proprietary information, security protocols, and expansion plans

  • Competitors in the private sector will have access to every operating detail, strategy, and growth plan for our municipal networks

  • Standard Industry Contracts will no longer be able to be negotiated on a case by case basis. This cuts off our ability to attract last mile providers and leverage competitive pressure to limit monopolistic practices and drive down end-user costs

  • Additional conduit would be subject to nondiscriminatory access clauses meaning we could be required to turn over our network expansion capacity to incumbent providers


Last Weeks Activity Summary: 

After Governor Terry McAuliffe announced that he would veto HB2108 if it came to his desk, sponsor Kathy Byron rewrote and resubmitted a substantially edited version. Then, in a surprise move, she postponed last week’s hearing citing the need for additional changes to the bill. Now, this Thursday, she will proceed to state her case in the last committee meeting before crossover. This is her last chance to move the bill this session.

 

Contact:

Jacqueline Le

j.le@eddycommunications.com

Eddy Communications Corporation

202-709-7509 (W)

540-878-9681 (C)

###




Direct Mail for Mac This email is powered by Direct Mail for Mac. Learn MoreReport Spam