What's on the agenda for policymakers.
Agenda
DigitalC Selected by City of Cleveland As Partner to Build Citywide Broadband Network
DigitalC, a local nonprofit technology social enterprise, has been selected by Mayor Justin Bibb (D-Cleveland) to receive $20 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding from the City of Cleveland (OH) to deliver affordable, high-speed internet to city residents. The Cleveland City Council must approve legislation submitted by the mayor to allocate this funding to DigitalC. The legislation will be presented at the next City Council meeting on May 15, 2023. DigitalC was selected through a competitive process.
T-Mobile, Charter spar over CBRS, spectrum sharing models
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) recently released a report that shows Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) is working. However, CBRS opponents, led by CTIA, insist that CBRS remains an unproven experiment in spectrum sharing, with constraints like low power levels that make it impossible to provide broad coverage.
A discussion with experts from several agencies on how to prevent bad actors and adversaries from undermining national security and the economy
The U.S. Department of the Treasury is hosting a Tribal Consultation on proposed State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SFLRF) and Capital Projects Fund (CPF) Supplementary Broadband Guidance for Tribal governments. The consultation will be held Wednesday, May 17, 2023, from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Treasury is accepting written comments until June 16, 2023, 11:59 p.m. Alaska Time. Submit written comments at tribal.consult@treasury.gov.
House Commerce Committee Continues Oversight of Federal Broadband Programs
The House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation held a hearing on May 10 discussing federal funding for broadband deployment as part of ongoing efforts to
Why is TDS So Keen on Extending A-CAM? And What’s at Stake for the FCC?
TDS has been taking every opportunity to talk up the Federal Communications Commission's Alternative Connect America (A-CAM) program and why the company is so excited about a possible extension to the program, even as the US gets set to award an unprecedented $42.5 billion for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) rural broadband program. “A-CAM has been absolutely revolutionary for improving our hardest-to-serve rural areas,” said TDS Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs Andrew Petersen. TDS is rather unique among publicly-held broadband providers in that it is eligible
With the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), funds are actively flowing into states and localities. That means the hard work now passes to cities, counties, and states to get the greatest value out of the new laws—but also puts the greatest pressure on officials outside Washington to come up with solutions.
What Minnesota wants in the federal farm bill
A sweeping food and agriculture bill in the works in Washington (DC) is set to reshape the future of farming in Minnesota. Minnesota lawmakers are set to play a big role in shaping the final bill. Sens Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) are members of the Senate Agriculture Committee, while Reps. Angie Craig (D-MN) and Brad Finstad (R-MN) are on the House panel. In terms of broadband, an estimated 144,000 Minnesota households still don't have access to high-speed internet.
‘Rip and Replace’: The Tech Cold War Is Upending Wireless Carriers
As the US and China battle for geopolitical and technological primacy, the fallout has reached small wireless carriers in dozens of states. They are on the receiving end of the Biden administration’s sweeping policies to suppress China’s rise. What the wireless carriers must do, under a program known as “rip and replace,” has become the starkest physical manifestation of the tech Cold War between the two superpowers.