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Stamp Aims To Make Telecom Mark
by Heather Greenfield
The Independent Telephone and Telecommunications Alliance has a new executive director. Iowa Utilities Board Commissioner Curt Stamp, has decided to trade one political hotbed for another and will join ITTA on Wednesday.
Stamp also has served as a member of the FCC's Federal-State Joint Board on Separations and a member of the Mid-America Regulatory Commissioners. He is an attorney, previously serving as a staff member of the FCC and in private legal practice in Des Moines, Iowa.
Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack nominated Stamp to become commissioner of the Iowa Utilities Board in 2005. He recently was reappointed to the board by Gov. Chet Culver.
"Curt has extensive knowledge of the telecommunications industry, impressive experience in all aspects of regulatory and legislative policy, and will be an aggressive steward of mid-size telecommunications interests in Washington, D.C.," said Gene Johnson, the CEO of FairPoint Communications and a co-chairman of ITTA's selection process.
"This will be a seamless leadership transition," Stamp said. "We have a strong telecommunications industry membership, exceptional and involved corporate executive management, and tremendously talented internal ITTA employees who will drive public policy positions."
He added that ITTA will continue to push for policies to improve and increase high-speed Internet availability, to modernize the universal service program for guaranteeing communications services to all Americans, and to reduce outdated regulations.
According to Stamp, "The future of the telecom business is one that must have affordable voice, broadband and video products available to all consumers, regardless of where they live."
Stamp, who recently resigned from the Iowa board, replaces Lisa Zaina, who left as ITTA's executive director in March.
Tech Lobbying Shop Adds To Staff
463 Communications, which represents TechNet and other technology industry clients in Washington, is growing. Sean Garrett wrote in the firm's blog that 463 is planning to hire good tech communications people in San Francisco and Brussels, Belgium.
"In the Bay area, we are looking for a strong, experienced (eight years-plus) person who has a corporate communications technology background and has a more than curious interest in public affairs," Garrett said. "In Brussels, we are looking to serve our clients with a senior-level individual who can provide an ear-to-the-ground, media relations."
463 also will acquire David McGuire, the communications director for the Center for Democracy and Technology, next month.
Before joining CDT, McGuire was a reporter for washingtonpost.com, where he covered the Internet copyright debate, government efforts to restrict unsolicited commercial e-mail, and the evolution of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.
McGuire has been in the Washington area since graduating from San Francisco State University in 1995. CDT is now looking for a communications director, and McGuire is expected to help until then.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, meanwhile, is looking for an intellectual property staff attorney for its legal team. Cindy Cohn says EFF is looking for someone to do litigation, public speaking, media outreach, and legislative and regulatory advocacy, all in connection with various intellectual property and technology matters.
Ideally EFF wants someone with at least four years of legal experience, with knowledge in patent law and at least one other IP specialty -- copyright, trademark, trade secrets. Tech savvy and familiarity with Internet civil liberties and high-tech public-interest issues are preferred. Those interested can apply at ipjob@eff.org.
Homeland Security's Deputy 'Lame Duck'
The Homeland Security Department's second-ranking deputy has decided he needs to pay more attention to his financial security now. Deputy Secretary and Chief Operating Officer Michael Jackson, who runs the day-to-day operations and has put the current management team in place, announced his resignation Monday.
AP reports that Jackson told staff in an e-mail, "The simple truth ... is that after over five years of serving with the president's team, I am compelled to depart for financial reasons that I can no longer ignore."
"Michael is the longest-serving deputy secretary at this department and has devoted enormous energy, talent and thought into making it a stronger, more integrated and mature organization," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said.
Jackson was confirmed by the Senate in March 2005 and previously was the deputy secretary of the Transportation Department between 2001 and 2003. While there, he helped create the Transportation Security Administration.
From late 2003 to 2005, Jackson worked in the private sector as a senior vice president of AECOM Technology. Until 2001, he was chief operating officer at Lockheed Martin IMS' Transportation Systems and Services. IMS' transportation group provides technology services to toll authorities, freight companies and 35 state governments. Jackson also has been a researcher at the conservative think tank the American Enterprise Institute and was chief of staff to the Transportation secretary under the first Bush administration.
In his e-mail Monday, Jackson said, "Today I become, in Washington's argot, a lame duck." His resignation takes effective Oct. 26.
Maybe It Should Be The Google-Forbes List
Google's co-founders have become the youngest people to crack Forbes' top 10 list of the richest Americans.
Sergey Brin and Larry Page, both 34, tied for fifth on the new Forbes 400 list released late last week. According to the magazine's survey, each is worth $18.5 billion. They stand just behind Larry Ellison of Oracle, who is 63 and worth $26 billion. Bill Gates, 51, ranked first for the 14th straight year, with $59 billion.
Page and Brin jumped up from 12th and 13th last year, and their net worth has more than quadrupled since they first made the list in 2004, when Google went public and earned them $4 billion each. "The speed to wealth is startling," said Matthew Miller, the Forbes editor who compiles the annual list, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary. "They're by far the youngest to appear on the list."
Google had more people than any other Silicon Valley company on the list. Other Google billionaires include: CEO Eric Schmidt, No. 48, $6.5 billion; Omid Kordestani, senior vice president of global sales and business development, No. 204, $2.4 billion; and Kavitark Shriram, a Google director, No. 271, $1.8 billion.
Perhaps Google also could claim venture capitalist and board member John Doerr, who has sold huge amounts of Google stock. He tied for 276th, with $1.8 billion. Google's stock prices also helped a new venture capitalist, Michael Moritz, make the list at 380, with $1.3 billion. Moritz, a partner at Sequoia Capital, served as a director for Google, and his firm backed the startup.
This year's list includes 24 Silicon Valley residents and executives. Apple Inc. founder Steve Jobs was No. 56, worth $5.7 billion. EBay CEO Meg Whitman ranks at No. 361, with $1.4 billion.
The co-founders of Yahoo, Google's search-engine competitor, can be found at No. 239, where founder David Filo reports $2 billion, and at No. 261, the slot occupied by Jerry Yang due to his $1.9 billion.
Quote Of The Week
"It was like watching Bob Dole -- without the Viagra."
-- Conservative blogger Robert Bluey, analyzing the speech that Republican candidate Fred Thompson gave to the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference in Michigan over the weekend.
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