S.R. 191 Resolution on Next-generation Broadband Networks

On May 8, 2007, Sen John Rockefeller IV (D-WV) introduced Senate Resolution 191, proposing to set a national broadband goal and develop a strategy to meet the goal. The goal is 10 megabits per second universally available in the United States by the end of 2010, and 100 megabits by the end of 2015. His strategy would include tax incentives to push the private sector beyond their current deployment plans, low-interest loans for the same purpose, reform of the Universal Service Fund to encourage broadband deployment, municipal broadband networks, and wise use of wireless spectrum. The national broadband strategy would be developed by the end of 2007 and revisted every year thereafter to modify as necessary.

S. RES. 191

Establishing a national goal for the universal deployment of next-generation broadband networks to access the Internet and for other uses by 2015, and calling upon Congress and the President to develop a strategy, enact legislation, and adopt policies to accomplish this objective.

Whereas approximately half of households in the United States subscribe to high-speed data service over current-generation broadband networks, and the number of households subscribing to high-speed data service is growing by more than 20 percent annually;

Whereas households in the United States have used these networks to access over the Internet and via direct connections an increasingly broad array of critical information, services, and applications;

Whereas the information, services, and applications households in the United States access through these networks serve important policy priorities of the United States, such as improving health care and education, enhancing access to domestic and international markets, and reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gases;

Whereas, because new information, services, and applications require increasing amounts of bandwidth, and that trend is expected to accelerate dramatically, current-generation broadband networks, with their limited bandwidth capabilities, are proving insufficient to meet the electronic access needs of households in the United States;

Whereas next-generation broadband networks, with transmission speeds of 100 megabits per second, bidirectionally, have the capabilities to provide access to important bandwidth-intensive information, services, and applications being developed and can readily increase these capabilities for future developments;

Whereas, recognizing that next-generation broadband networks are essential to the achievement of social objectives, economic competitiveness, and global leadership, other countries have adopted national objectives and strategies to deploy next-generation broadband networks and are already accelerating the construction of such critical infrastructure to households;

Whereas next-generation broadband networks in the United States pass through only approximately 5 percent of households today;

Whereas, at the current pace, next-generation broadband networks will not be universally available in the United States for more than 20 years, and, as a result--

(1) households in the United States will not have access to critical information, services, and applications;

(2) entrepreneurs and businesses in the United States will be constrained in developing new products and services that are accessed over the Internet and broadband networks; and

(3) the overall welfare and economy of the United States will suffer substantially; and

Whereas key leaders and organizations in the private sector have called recently for the immediate development of a national next-generation broadband network policy and strategy: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Senate--

(1) establishes a national next-generation broadband network goal to bring, by 2015, universal and affordable access to networks with the capability of transmitting data at 100 megabits per second, bidirectionally, so that households, businesses, and government offices in the United States can access the Internet and, via direct connections, access other households, businesses, and government offices; and

(2) directs the relevant congressional committees to work with the President--

(A) to develop a strategy to achieve the national next-generation broadband network goal; and

(B) to begin, by the end of 2007, to enact specific legislation and adopt policies to implement this strategy.