National Broadband Policy and educause

In a letter that was delivered yesterday, EDUCAUSE and several other groups have asked that Congress pass S. 1492, the Broadband Data Improvement Act, and H.R. 3919, the Broadband Census of America Act, before the 110th Congress ends.  The groups say this legislation "would improve information-gathering about current broadband deployment and assist in targeting resources to areas in need of such services."  The letter was sent to leadership offices in the House and Senate, as well as members of both the House Energy and Commerce and Senate Commerce Committees. The letter specifically says that a national broadband policy could have "dramatic and far-reaching economic impacts."

Currently, S. 1492 and H.R. 3919 are awaiting consideration in the Senate.  H.R. 3919 previously passed the House on November 13, 2007. 

In efforts to support a "fast, affordable and open" Internet, EDUCAUSE recently joined forces in creating and promoting InternetforEveryone.org. This coalition, which consists of public interest organizations, industry groups, and concerned citizens, is devoted to the notion that citizens should have access to an open Internet. The official launch date for the campaign was June 24.

The 2007 Policy Conference kicked off with a top-ten style list of Policy Issues currently facing higher education. This entertaining and insightful list was compiled and delivered by Tracy Mitrano, Director of IT Policy and Computer Policy and Law Program at Cornell University. What's past is prologue. As we look ahead to the policy questions facing the Internet today and tomorrow, it's useful to recall what we've seen over the past 12 months. This speech, entitled the Year In Review, runs approximately 33 minutes.

In this 48-minute recording from the 2006 EDUCAUSE Annual Conference, we'll hear from Rodney Petersen and Wendy Wigen in a session entitled Policing the Internet: Higher Education Law and Policy. They discuss recent government initiatives and emerging legal and policy issues in higher education, such as the USA PATRIOT Act, CALEA, and the European Union Data Directive.

An archived recording of the August 1 EDUCAUSE Web seminar addressing CALEA compliance for higher education is now available. Hear from key speakers, including:

• Matt Brill—Lead attorney for ACE and EDUCAUSE in our challenge to the FCC CALEA order
• Terry Hartle—Senior Vice President of ACE for Government Relations
• Steve Rosen—University Counsel for the University of California
• Steve Worona—Moderator, EDUCAUSE Director of Policy and Networking Programs

For background information, access a robust collection of CALEA resources.