National Telecommunications and Information Administration employees have been told that Anna Gomez, who is currently vice president for government affairs at Sprint Nextel, has been tapped for the role of deputy assistant secretary. Sources said her paperwork is still being completed but the White House wants her to start as soon as possible -- potentially early next week. Gomez worked on President Barack Obama's transition team as the U.S. Trade Representative Lead and was deputy chief of the FCC's international bureau. She also previously served as deputy chief of staff for the National Economic Council and was an associate at the law firm Arnold & Porter, according to OpenSecrets.org.
In her role at NTIA, Gomez will answer to the yet-to-be-named Commerce secretary and will be a key administration voice on the nationwide switch to digital television. The transition is currently scheduled to conclude on Feb. 17 but it could be pushed back to June 12. The Senate voted twice to delay the switch last week. The first bill did not get a two-thirds majority in the House, which will take up the second bill next week. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Obama will sign legislation to delay the switch because he wants to make sure nobody loses their TV signals. -- Winter Casey
Update: At Sprint, Gomez served as one of the company's lead regulatory attorneys before the FCC and state public utility commissions. She was not a registered lobbyist on Capitol Hill and she officially left Sprint on Friday.
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