Law Seminars International Presents

A Comprehensive Conference on

Municipal Broadband

Challenges, Opportunities and Effective Solutions

August 16 & 17, 2004
Denver Marriott Southeast in Denver, CO
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Who Should Order Homestudy

Attorneys, government officials, industry representatives and land use professionals.

Why Order

"Many local communities have recognized that broadband communications systems may prove critical to economic development and to delivery of important governmental and educational services. The broadband challenge currently is to make affordable high-capacity connections available as rapidly as possible throughout America. Today, many communities are considering whether that can or should be done without relying on the private sector to carry the ball on its own. Local officials who want to position their communities for future economic growth must find the best way to extend high-speed connectivity to residences, small businesses, community organizations, and the smaller offices of larger organizations. Which of the many options is best for your community? This comprehensive conference offers an opportunity to explore that question with a group of national experts and community leaders who have been on the cutting edge of municipal broadband project development. We hope you will join us for a most informative examination of this vital topic for local governments." ~ Program Co-Chairs: James Baller, Esq., Nicholas P. Miller, Esq. and Ken Fellman, Esq.

What You Will Learn

The Business and Political Environment The Legal and Regulatory Landscape Political and Economic Challenges--Regional perspectives Technological Options and Community Needs Public Involvement Models The Planning Process--System Design and Other Factors Financing Options Political Conflicts and Competitive Issues Between Incumbents and New Entrants

Agenda

Monday, August 16, 2004
8:00 am Registration & Continental Breakfast
8:30 am Introduction
  Ken S. Fellman, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 Kissinger & Fellman P.C. / Denver, CO
8:45 am The Business and Political Environment
  Why municipal broadband is so attractive today and what proponents and oppenents are doing about it.
  James Baller, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 The Baller Herbst Law Group / Washington, DC
9:30 am The Legal and Regulatory Landscape
  Finding the right entity; the implications of various network options and available "business models" for local communities
  Nicholas P. Miller, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 Miller & Van Eaton / Washington, DC
10:15 am Break
10:30 am Regional Perspectives on the Environment for, and Political and Economic Challenges Facing, Municipal Broadband
  Rocky Mountain States
  Ken Fellman, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 Kissinger & Fellman P.C. / Denver, CO
  Pacific Northwest
  W. Scott Snyder, Esq.
 Ogden Murphy Wallace PLLC / Seattle, WA
12:00 pm Lunch (on your own)
1:15 pm Finding a Fit Between Community Needs and the Technological Options
  Wireline: Copper, Coax, Fiber
  Michael DiMauro, President
 Omega Communications, Inc & FTTH Council Board of Directors / Hyannis, MA
  Wireless: Cellular, WiFi, WiMax
  Steve Lowe, Vice President-Sales
 Tropos Network / San Mateo, CA
  Broadband over power lines and other options for municipal electric operations
  Brett Kilbourne, Esq., Director of Regulatory Services and Associate General Counsel
 United PowerLine Council, United Telcom Council / Washington, DC
  VoIP as an Overlay: The pros and cons
  Victoria Mandell
 Level 3 Communications Inc / Broomfield, CO
3:15 pm Break
3:30 pm Economic Viability, Sticking Points, and Tips for Effective Implementation of Public Involvement Models
  Building information streets and roads: wholesale services and regional development
  Roger Black, Deputy Director & Chief Operating Officer
 UTOPIA / Murray, UT
  Retail Services
  Juelle-Ann Boyer, Manager - Competitive Strategies
 Alameda Power & Telecom / Alameda, CA
5:00 pm A Roundtable Discussion Focusing on Questions of Most Concern to the Audience
  Ken S. Fellman, Esq., Moderator
 Kissinger & Fellman P.C. / Denver, CO
5:30 pm Reception for Attendees and Faculty

Tuesday, August 17, 2004
8:30 am The Planning Process: Needs, Existing Infrastructure Capabilities, and System Design
  Preliminary Needs Assessment
  Thomas Duchen, Esq., President
 River Oaks Communications Corporation / Colorado Springs, CO
  Tips for conducting an inventory of current assets (determining what's in place, who owns it, and whether it's useful)
  Thomas Asp, Consulting Manager
 Virchow, Krause & Company, LLP / Madison, WI
  Evaluating your Technological Options and establishing Performance Specifications: Practical approaches fro designing study and planning processes
  Michael S. Fox
 CCG Consulting, Inc. / Riverdale, MD
10:15 am Break
10:30 am The Planning Process: Other Factors
  Integrating municipal broadband into economic development plans - The Cedar Falls Story
  Doris J. Kelley, Director Business Development
 Black & Veatch / Overland Park, KS
  Addressing emergency response and Homeland Security issues
  Joel Mulder, Director - Business Development
 Adesta LLC / St. Charles, IL
  Dealing with competitive responses (and perhaps even anti-competitive practices) from existing service providers
  John Goodman
 Broadband Services Providers Association / Washington, DC
12:00 pm Lunch (on your own)
1:15 pm Financing Options
  Traditional and non-traditional methods of financing municipal broadband projects
  Scott Crowley, Chief Financial Officer
 U. S. Metronets / Provo, UT
  Federal loan and grant opportunities (including funds for Homeland Security upgrades)
  Christopher A. McLean, Esq., Principal
 National Strategies, Inc. / Washington, DC
  Key bond and tax considerations
  Scott J. Robertson, Principal
 Lewis, Young, Robertson & Burningham, Inc. / Salt Lake City, UT
2:45 pm Break
3:00 pm Entering Into The Fray: Who Really is in the Best Position to do What?
  Cable Industry Perspective
  Burt Braverman, Esq.
 Cole, Raywid & Braverman LLP / Washington, DC
  Telecommunications Industry Perspective
  Raymond L. Gifford, Esq., President
 Progress & Freedom Foundation / Washington, DC
  Municipal Perspective
  James Baller, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 The Baller Herbst Law Group / Washington, DC
  Nicholas P. Miller, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 Miller & Van Eaton / Washington, DC
4:30 pm Adjourn

Cancellation

There is a $25 cancellation fee for Course Materials orders and $50 for Homestudy orders

Continuing Education Credits

Law Seminars International automatically obtains CLE credit approval for the state in which a seminar is held. On request, we will apply for CLE credits in other states and other types of credits. Current credits status: CO CLE 15 | CA MCLE 13.5 | OH CLE 13.25 (#000146940) | TX CLE 13.25 (#000067225) | UT CLE 13 | WA CLE 13.25 (# 123625)

Cost

Our complete Homestudy Course, consisting of a VHS or DVD recording and the written course materials, is available for $905. The course materials alone are available for $100. We will ship your homestudy order via UPS ground within two weeks after the seminar or the date we receive payment (which ever is later).
Order Homestudy

Faculty Bios

James Baller, Program Co-Chair, is founder of the Baller Herbst Law Group that specializes in representing local governments and public power utilities in telecommunications, cable television, high-speed data communications, Internet access, wireless telecommunications, right-of-way management, pole and conduit attachments, and barriers to public-sector entry into telecommunications

Kenneth S. Fellman, Program Co-Chair, has been a Partner at Kissinger and Fellman PC since 1989 where he specializes in telecommunications law and policy development, civil litigation, and land use.

Nicholas P. Miller, Program Co-Chair, of Miller & Van Eaton, PLLC served as the U.S. Senate Communications Counsel and as a special consultant to the White House on telephone deregulation. He advises local governments and international multilateral agencies on cable television and telecommunications issues.

Thomas Asp a Partner at Virchow Krause & Co., LLP, has been serving public power systems for over 20 years. He is recognized as an expert in evaluating and offering recommendations regarding broadband communications systems and services. Mr. Asp’s experience includes electric system and telecommunications system design and evaluating the financial impacts of projects on utility operations.

Roger Black, Deputy Executive Director and COO at Utopia. In this position he is responsible for supervision of all internal operations functions. For a period of eight years he has served as Chief Administrative Officer for Salt Lake City and has held significant executive positions as Director of Personnel Management, Deputy State Budget Director, and Deputy Director of Administrative Services for the State of Utah.

Juelle-Ann Boyer is currently the Manager of Strategies and Administration for Alameda Power & Telecom, City of Alameda. She is responsible for the development and implementation of competitive strategies for all current and proposed business lines. Ms. Boyer also has implementation oversight responsibility for CATV and High-speed Internet service to the community.

Burt A. Braverman, Cole Raywid & Braverman LLP (Washington D.C.), specializes in cable television, telecommunications, Internet, antitrust and information law, and is the firm's lead litigator. A member of the International Lawyers Group, he consults on these matters with clients, attorneys and governmental entities in a number of countries. Burt has appeared as an expert witness before the U.S. Congress, and has written a number of articles and several treatises, on these topics. He was recently inducted into the Cable Television Pioneers. 

Thomas Duchen, Esq., President of River Oaks, is a 1978 Graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law. Tom has extensive broadband, telecommunications and cable experience. River Oaks has worked in these areas in over 30 states. Tom has been a frequent speaker at National and Regional Conferences. River Oaks has established a national reputation in cable television and telecommunications matters and has significant experience representing local governments (cities, counties and consortiums) and conducting Community Needs Assessments along with negotiating on behalf of and working with local government attorneys, staff and elected officials.

Brett Kilbourne is currently Director, Regulatory Services and Associate Counsel at United Telecom Council ("UTC") and the United PowerLine Council ("UPLC"), where he provides legal guidance to utilities on telecommunications issues.

Steve Lowe is Tropos Networks’ Vice President of Sales. He has over twenty years of engineering, product management and sales experience with computer aided dispatch, records management, wireless mobile applications and message switch technologies. Prior to Tropos, he was Vice President of Business Development for Printak, a Motorola Company.

Christopher A. McLean is a Vice President of National Strategies, Inc. He formerly served as the Administrator of Rural Utilities Service, a rural development agency of the United States Department of Agriculture. During his tenure, he championed broadband deployment, new and renewable energy technologies and universal service.

Joel Mulder is the Director of Business Development for Adesta LLC, a multidiscipline integrator for commercial, industrial and governmental entities. He has experience in the telecommunications marketplace with sales and sales management responsibilities at Motorola, NEC and Nortel.

Scott J. Robertson is a Principal at Lewis, Young, Robertson & Burningham, Inc. (LYRB). LYRB plays an active role as independent financial advisor to many Utah local governments. Mr. Robertson currently has served on the State and Institutional Trust Lands Permanent Funds Advisory Committee. He also holds several securities licenses including Registered General Securities Principal and Investment Advisor.

W. Scott Snyder of W. Scott Snyder Ogden Murphy Wallace, P.L.L.C. is a member in the firm's municipal department. He serves as the City Attorney of Edmonds, WA, and as counsel for the Pirelli Corporation. He advises the firm's municipal clients regarding telecommunications.