[1st-mile-nm] Re-sending: Sacred Wind posting

[Richard Lowenberg]

There may have been a problem with the attachment sent
in this morning's prior email to this list.
Here it is as plain text.
RL
-------

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: John Badal, (505) 821.5080

President Obama Orders Interagency Work Group to Improve Internet to 
Rural Areas
Sacred Wind selected to represent rural telecom companies

ALBUQUERQUE, NM – December 12, 2012 - Sacred Wind Communications has 
been selected to speak today to a gathering
of federal agencies in Washington, DC on ways to accelerate the 
deployment of high speed Internet in rural areas.

The federal agencies are part of a Broadband Deployment on Federal 
Property Working Group, created by an Executive Order of the President 
signed on June 14, 2012.

The intent of the Executive Order is to develop uniform policies and 
procedures among federal government agencies that would accelerate the 
deployment of high speed Internet (Broadband) mainly in rural areas by 
providing consistent, improved and streamlined access to federal 
property and federally managed rights of way.
Every federal agency that “has significant ownership of, or 
responsibility for managing, federal lands, buildings, and rights of 
way, federally assisted highways, and tribal lands” is a member of the 
working group, which includes the U.S. Department of Defense, Department 
of Interior, Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, 
Department of Transportation, Department of Veterans Affairs, and the 
U.S. Postal Service. Additionally, the Federal Communications 
Commission, the Council on Environmental Quality, Advisory Council on 
Historic Preservation, and the National Security Staff have been 
assigned an advisory and assistance role. Indian tribes have also been 
consulted.

Sacred Wind, a New Mexico company that operates mainly on tribal lands 
in the state, has been active at the national and local levels in 
promoting improved rights of way procedures. The formation of such 
federal working group, in fact, was a recommendation made by Sacred Wind 
in its comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) of July 
2011, as a response to the FCC’s request for comments on the deployment 
of broadband in rural areas.
Sacred Wind has built a landline and fixed wireless telecommunications 
infrastructure on Navajo lands in New Mexico and will be assisting the 
Laguna Pueblo in their development of a similar network for broadband 
services to the Laguna people.

Eventhough having developed a system that encroaches less on tribal 
lands than traditional telecommunications systems, Sacred Wind has 
experienced frequent delays due to governmental rights of way 
procedures.
“Our network could have been finished two years earlier, but for the 
years-long rights of way procedures even for the smallest of jobs,” said 
John Badal, CEO of Sacred Wind.

Sacred Wind has expended over $45 Million in its network, building 
infrastructure where none existed. Some of that expense was incurred in 
complying with different federal and tribal agency rights of way rules, 
including conducting archaeological and environmental surveys to attach 
fiber optic or copper landline on an existing electric pole.

Sacred Wind has become an expert on rights of way policies and 
procedures on federal lands and has spoken at several national forums on 
the subject.

“This is the first time that any rural company has had a chance to 
address such a gathering of federal agencies,” Badal said.

“We are optimistic that, under the President’s Executive Order, a 
reform of federal rights of way policies is within reach.”


About Sacred Wind Communications
Sacred Wind Communications is a privately owned, FCC recognized rural 
telecommunications and New Mexico-based company. We are dedicated to 
improving telecommunications services to rural areas within New Mexico. 
Focused primarily on introducing basic telephone and advanced Internet 
services to the thousands of underserved homes on Navajo lands, Sacred 
Wind also offers advanced services to remote non-Navajo communities, 
governmental entities and businesses in its territory. Sacred Wind was 
voted “The Most Inspiring Small Business in America” in 2009 in a 
national American Express/NBC Universal Shine A Light contest. For more 
information, please visit www.sacredwindcommunications.com .



--------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
1st-Mile Institute
Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110 / 505-603-5200
www.1st-mile.com   rl at 1st-mile.com
--------------------------------