By Ann Bednarz
Network World, 12/24/01

They may be removed from the everyday tasks of Network World readers, but these big-picture policy players are making decisions that will shape the products and services available to enterprise users.

Colleen Kollar-Kotelly
JUDGE, U.S. DISTRICT COURT

Kollar-Kotelly is heading the remedy phase of the federal government's antitrust case against Microsoft. When a computerized lottery landed her that responsibility, media stories focused on her limited experience handling complex antitrust cases and her reputation for advocating out-of-court settlements. The spotlight could not have been much brighter.  Today she's navigating the case down two paths — one for the Department of Justice and the nine states that have reached a proposed settlement agreement with Microsoft, and one for those that want to continue litigation. Critics charge that the proposed settlement is too lenient; Kollar-Kotelly, who pressed for the two sides to negotiate, must approve the settlement. She hasn't indicated how she will rule.

Michael Powell
CHAIRMAN, FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

As one of the nation's top regulators, Powell will set the direction of U.S. communications policy, including spectrum use and the regional Bell operating companies' entries into long-distance, through the Bush administration. Powell is said to favor a more hands-off, deregulatory approach than some of his predecessors. He wants the FCC to move quickly and recommends that Congress increase penalties for anticompetitive practices. He wants fines on incumbent local exchange carriers that violate competition terms of the Telecommunication Act to increase from $1.2 million to at least $10 million per violation.

Powell has said he will push for a more technologically literate FCC; education for regulators, judges and lawyers is one of his priorities.

Tom Ridge
DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF HOMELAND  SECURITY

His post is by no means the only one dedicated to domestic security, but it's one of the newest. Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ridge took the helm of the nascent U.S. Office of Homeland Security in October, charged with shoring up domestic security and streamlining information-sharing among the dozens of government agencies coordinating antiterrorism efforts. At his swearing-in, Ridge summed up the challenge: "Americans should find comfort in knowing that millions of their fellow citizens are working every day to ensure our security at every level — federal, state, county, municipal. . .. But there may be gaps in the system. The job of the Office of Homeland Security will be to identify those gaps and work to close them. The size and scope of this challenge are immense."