FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION WASHINGTON OFFICE OF THE CHAIRMAN The Honorable Mitch McConnell Majority Leader United States Senate 31 7 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 Dear Senator McConnell: March 6, 2017 Thank you for your letter supporting the appointment of Mr. Brian Mefford, CEO of Connected Nation Exchange to serve on the Commission's Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC). We will certainly consider your recommendation and Mr. Mefford's impressive resume as the Commission reviews the nominations for the BDAC. Last September, I proposed what I called a Digital Empowerment Agenda-a blueprint of policies that would accelerate the deployment of high-speed Internet access, or broadband, in communities across the country, including rural America. The BDAC is intended to provide an effective means for stakeholders to exchange ideas and develop recommendations to the Commission on broadband deployment. Its mission will be to identify regulatory barriers to infrastructure investment and to make recommendations on reducing and/or removing them, which will in tum enhance the Commission's ability to carry out its statutory responsibility to encourage broadband deployment to all Americans. I appreciate your taking the time to communicate your recommendations to me. Please let me know if I can be of any further assistance. Sincerely, Ajit V. Pai