On Wednesday, the House Consumer Affairs Committee and Senate Communications and Technology Committee held a joint public hearing on rural broadband deployment. (See related story in Quotable Section). On the agenda were the Pa Farm Bureau, Beaver County representatives, several technology equipment providers, internet service providers, the Pennsylvania Telephone Association, and the Broadband Cable Association. In the wake of the hearing, a fast-moving broadband authority bill was passed by the House Consumer Affairs Committee in the form of HB 2071. The bill was introduced and referred to the committee on Tuesday and has been placed on the House Calendar for consideration next week. Stay tuned.