Ryan Johnston

Telecom and Regulatory Attorney
rjohnston@turn.org (415) 248-8449 ext. 329

Ryan Johnston (He/Him/His) joined TURN in October 2025 as a Telecommunications Regulatory Attorney. He is excited to continue his work on broadband access, affordability, and network resilience to ensure that every Californian is able to get and stay connected.

Before joining TURN Ryan worked at Next Century Cities where he led legal analysis and federal advocacy efforts for municipalities on programs such as the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program and the Affordable Connectivity Program. Ryan’s advocacy has also included direct engagement with Congress and state legislatures to shape broadband policy and safeguard municipal authority. He has testified before the California Assembly Committee on Communications and Conveyance on strategies to strengthen broadband deployment and network resilience. His publications, including Resounding Silence: The Need for Local Insights in Federal Broadband Policy-Making and Communities Responding to Natural Disasters Through Network Resilience, highlight the importance of community-driven solutions in telecommunications policy. Ryan was also appointed to the Federal Communication Commission’s Consumer Advisory Committee where he worked to ensure consumer protections in the agency’s broadband “nutrition label,” and weighed in on emerging challenges like AI governance and robocall prevention.

Before Next Century Cities, Ryan worked with the Computer and Communications Industry Association where he focused on telecommunications, privacy, and content moderation policy.

Ryan received a BA from Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and earned his JD from American University’s Washington College of Law in Washington, D.C.