As budget and deficit deals continue to consume Capitol Hill, the consulting firm Capitol Solutions has installed Greg Waring, a former senior analyst on the House Budget Committee, as vice president of budget policy and analysis.
"This is an increasingly budget-driven process," firm founder and managing partner David Taylor said. The firm's clients include the Wireless Broadband Coalition and CTIA, which have a heavy stake in the debate over spectrum auctions.
"Spectrum has a history of being a big piece of budget deals," said Waring, who served on the Budget panel under ranking member Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.). "So I think this fall will be an exciting time for telecommunications policy."
Shale and Hearty
Pennsylvania companies with an interest in energy issues, particularly natural gas policy, have a new ally inside the Beltway: Keystone Public Affairs, launched this month by two Pennsylvania natives and former Capitol Hill aides.
Brian Sowa and Jeff Vorberger will serve as president and executive vice president, respectively, of the firm. Sowa was most recently vice president of Strategic Marketing Innovations. Vorberger left the strategic communications firm Financial Dynamics. Both previously were top aides to former Rep. John Peterson (R-Pa.).
"Given our Pennsylvania backgrounds, we are particularly interested in the Marcellus Shale development," said Vorberger, referring to the natural gas formation that stretches across the state. The drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing has drawn environmental protests and federal scrutiny, including an Environmental Protection Agency study.
The firm will help clients "navigate the repercussions and consequences of" federal inquiries, Vorberger said, as well as "the legislative and regulatory proposals that will emanate from them."
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