The City of Tacoma Demonstrates its Commitments to Technical Innovation

Read the Resolution put forward by Tacoma Mayor Baarsma in a downloable pdf. Tacoma Resolution No. 36850.

The Everett Herald Says "Change in Telecom Law Must Keep Local Control"

The following are excerpts from the Herald's May 18, 2006 editorial.
 
"As telecommunications technology changes practically by the day, Congress is working quickly - perhaps too quickly - to adapt to the digital age"
 
"...[P]roposed is a change to national cable franchising - a move away from local control of cable services and, potentially, local utility rights-of-way"
 
"City and county governments throughout the country, as well as the U.S. Conference of Mayors, are voicing strong and valid opposition to these bills in their current form. Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson, who understands the telecom industry well from his years as a Verizon executive, is among them. Amendments to protect local control have been killed in committee, suggesting that for the moment, at least, telecom industry lobbyists have the upper hand"
 
"The value of local franchise agreements is considerable. They give local representatives leverage to negotiate broad citizen access to vital services, keeping providers from cherry-picking just middle- and upper-class neighborhoods. Without such requirements, lots of lower-income folks and rural residents would surely have fewer service choices"
 
"Local franchise agreements also ensure the availability of educational and government-access channels, and give citizens a local arbiter for service complaints. If the FCC takes over, who are you going to call? Some bureaucrat in Washington, D.C.?"
 
"Competition is a good thing because it tends to bring more choices and lower prices. But it shouldn't undermine local control that ensures fairness and public safety. Congress mustn't make that a casualty of the digital age"