At the beginning of December, the CompTIA Policy Executive Board (PxB) met to review and finalize CompTIA’s 2017 policy priorities. The PxB is the governing body for CompTIA public policy and has member company representation from our State Government Affairs, Federal and International policy practices. This group is charged with ensuring all policy committees are aware of policy positions and initiatives, seek consensus for those positions, and provide guidance on the growth and direction of CompTIA advocacy activities.
We are pleased to share that the 2017 policy priorities for our state, federal and international practices were approved. Across these disciplines, we are focused on policies that that advance free and open competition; promote a highly educated and technical workforce; encourage collaboration and cooperation in ideas and technology; and advance approaches that positively impact the ability of the private sector to effectively research, develop, integrate, manufacture, service and freely sell solutions in the global marketplace.
After an eventful national election, we are now poised to inaugurate Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States, a new congress with Republican majorities in both houses was sworn in last week, and state houses across the country are gearing up for an active legislative year. While we await a new administration and the launch of legislative sessions nationally, topics that animate the entire CompTIA organization, are evident in our policy priorities, and permeated the PxB discussion in December, include advancing the IT workforce, taking smart approaches to improving our cybersecurity practices and workforce, and advancing our national infrastructure in a way that will nurture IoT and smart communities.