 
SEN. FISCHER ENCOURAGES CITIZENS TO ATTEND KEYSTONE PIPELINE PUBLIC MEETING
Staff
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5/4/2010
News Release
(Lincoln, NE) –Sen. Fischer announces that the US Department of State (DOS) will be holding a public meeting regarding the Keystone XL Pipeline Environmental Impact Study on Tuesday, May 11, 2010, in Atkinson. The meeting will take place at the Atkinson Community Center located at 206 W. 5th Street. This is one of 19 meetings to be held across the state on the study. The public is invited to attend this public meeting to provide oral and written comments for the administrative record. “I strongly encourage citizens to attend this meeting to....Read More
SEN. FISCHER ENCOURAGES CITIZENS TO FILL OUT DEPARTMENT OF ROADS SURVEY
Staff
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4/29/2010
Press Release
(Lincoln, NE) – With funding for Nebraska’s highway system hitting historically crisis levels, State Senator Deb Fischer of Valentine, encourages local government officials and the traveling public to fill out a Department of Roads’ (NDOR) survey that was recently released. Senator Fischer is chairperson of the Legislature’s Transportation and Telecommunications Committee.
“I think most people have become aware of the fiscal crisis we are facing in Nebraska with regard to highway funding,” Senator Fischer said. “While we have less revenue, at the same time we are facing higher costs in our highway construction program. Now, more than ever, we need to be able to prioritize the needs of our transportation infrastructure and the efforts of NDOR.”
NDOR periodically prepares a Long Range Transportation Plan for the state. The Department has designed a survey to gather input to identify statewide, regional and local transportation issues facing Nebraska. The survey results will guide NDOR in developing goals and objectives for the Long Range Transportation Plan: Vision 2032.
“This is an excellent opportunity for the average citizen to participate in his or her government so that our limited resources can be used in the most efficient manner and according to the priorities of the traveling public,” Senator Fischer said.
All responses will be kept anonymous and will be reported in the aggregate. The survey takes approximately fifteen minutes to complete. The survey is open to the traveling public and those who travel or distribute goods throughout the state.
Anyone willing to fill out the survey can access it on the internet at www.roads.nebraska.gov/lrtp/vision2032/. The survey deadline is May 21, and results will be posted later this summer.
“I encourage everyone to take the time and fill this survey out,” Fischer said. “Not only will NDOR be able to effectively plan for the future, but the Legislature will be guided in its pursuit of additional highway funding with the limited resources available.”
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World-Herald editorial: Capitol’s cast of characters
Editorial
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4/15/2010
Omaha World-Herald
With the close of the 2010 session of the Nebraska Legislature, we could offer thoughts on all members of that body. Let’s instead consider brief tangents relating to only a few of them in regard to the just-ended session:....Read More
OWH Editorial: Nebraska needs to show caution on telecom plan
Se. Deb Fischer
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4/4/2010
Omaha World-Herald
As chairwoman of the Nebraska Legislature’s Transportation and Telecommunications Committee, I welcomed a March 22 World-Herald editorial that urged caution regarding the federal government’s National Broadband Plan.
This plan is being offered by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and Nebraskans need to keep a close eye on how this would affect the high-quality broadband service Nebraskans enjoy today.
Nebraska has employed a positive legislative and regulatory environment in the area of telecommunications going back to 1986, when legislation was passed providing appropriate incentives and assistance to spur private investment in our telecommunications network.
That policy has served Nebraska well by encouraging private investment in voice telephone service as well as one of the nation’s most comprehensive broadband networks. Broadband service is vital to businesses and economic growth, and Nebraska proudly ranks third in the country in access to broadband Internet services.
One very successful element of this policy has been prohibiting government entities to compete with our private sector telecommunications companies. This promoted private investment in our broadband networks and made Nebraska a welcome place for private companies to make investments in their telecommunications infrastructure.
Another successful element of our regulatory policy has been the Nebraska Universal Service Fund (USF), which encourages private investment in our state.
Ninety-six percent of Nebraska residents enjoy access to advanced high-speed broadband services. In most cases, allowing the public sector into this business will merely duplicate services Nebraskans are already offered.
I do not mean to imply that all Nebraskans have adequate broadband service. There is work left to be done, including reaching the remote rural areas of the state.
However, I am certain that we can find a way to serve the 4 percent not receiving broadband service without putting the other 96 percent of the state at risk of losing their service or falling behind in new technologies.
The role of future state and federal policy should be to close those gaps, but not at the risk of moving backward at the expense of the private sector and investments in our state that have already been made or will be made in the near future.
In the past, whenever the federal government deregulated an industry, it created a safety net for rural areas. We must make sure that any national broadband plan provides for all Americans, including our rural businesses and residents.
We cannot allow the federal government to solely dictate the direction of a broadband plan without a role for state authority and regulation. Local needs and the local economic and geographic environment require shared regulatory responsibilities.
I have introduced a legislative study resolution that will review and monitor the progress of the national broadband plan proposed by the FCC. The goal is to determine the plan’s impact upon existing Nebraska telecommunications policy.
The Legislature hopes to collect input and assistance from Nebraska’s broadband service providers, the Nebraska Public Service Commission, federal government agencies and from Nebraska’s business and residential broadband customers.
The future of broadband and telecommunications services in our state is vital to the economic prosperity and safety of all Nebraska residents. We must be vigilant to make sure Nebraska’s concerns and needs are met by any comprehensive national policy.
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