President Obama is talking jobs—today in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and yesterday at the White House Forum on Jobs and Economic Growth.  It’s a timely and important topic that touches virtually every American in some way today, and a key theme that’s coming through loud and clear from our President is his belief in the central importance of private investment to our nation’s economic recovery.

…[W]hile I believe that government has a critical role in creating the conditions for economic growth, ultimately true economic recovery is only going to come from the private sector. We don’t have enough public dollars to fill the hole of private dollars that was created as a consequence of the crisis.  It is only when the private sector starts to reinvest again, only when our businesses start hiring again and people start spending again and families start seeing improvement in their own lives again that we’re going to have the kind of economy that we want.  That’s the measure of a real economic recovery.

He makes an important point, and we couldn’t agree more with his assessment.  With the communications industry a major source of growth for our economy, it’s critical that we support public policies that continue to inspire investment in this sector, which is laying a strong foundation for our information economy.

The broadband-fueled information, communications and technology sector created nearly half of all new American jobs in 2008.  And, they lead U.S. GDP growth, adding nearly $900 billion annually to our nation’s economy.

Broadband providers invest more than $60 billion each year in the U.S. economy, and these are resources that go into expanding and upgrading the nation’s broadband networks.  So these investments provide jobs directly, and they enable economic opportunities to expand throughout our economy.  How can government encourage this essential private investment?  By continuing to push toward ubiquitous broadband deployment, by encouraging broader consumer adoption of this essential modern resource and by proceeding with immense caution when it comes to new regulations that might inhibit future broadband investment.

Congress and the White House are rightly looking for innovative ideas to renew our economy and create jobs.  But they should also not lose sight of the equally important mantra ‘first do no harm.’  U.S. broadband providers stand ready to power the next wave of American economic renewal and innovation.  Precisely because the economy touches virtually every American today, there is no higher calling for U.S. policy than to encourage this essential engine of ‘real economic recovery.’

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