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  2. February 2021

February 2021

Cox interested in participating in Emergency Broadband Benefit

Cox urges the Federal Communications Commission to consider the following principles in adopting rules to effectuate the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program: (1) allow customers to apply the benefit to their existing broadband service or other broadband service of their choice; (2) maximize consumers’ opportunities to select service from the providers of their choice; and (3) provide benefit certainty for consumers and providers regarding the termination of the program. On item #2, Cox thinks the FCC should:

How universal service fund programs and the Emergency Broadband Benefit program can close the digital divide

Millions of low-income Americans supported by the Federal Communications Commission’s Lifeline program have come to rely on mobile wireless services to meet their expanding education, health care and public safety needs.

Public Knowledge Petitions FCC to Begin Reconsidering Trump-Era Broadband Deregulation

Public Knowledge filed a petition asking the Federal Communications Commission to reconsider the agency’s determination under Chairman Pai that its deregulatory agenda was more important than public safety, the infrastructure access necessary for broadband competition, or universal service.

States push for Lifeline protections in Verizon/TracFone deal

The attorneys general from 16 states and the District of Columbia sent a letter to the Federal Communications urging the agency to request additional information from Verizon about its planned TracFone Wireless acquisition. “The potential for Verizon to pursue additional profits by reducing the access and/or quality of Lifeline services could shut out millions of low-income Americans from adequate communications services,” they wrote.

Sponsor 

Senate Commerce Committee

Date 
Thu, 02/11/2021 - 10:00

Rules Governing the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

Budget Resolution for the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation


Digital divide lurks behind school reopening plans

Students without reliable in-home internet are already at an educational deficit, and many of the remote learning tools the pandemic has ushered in are here to stay.

Broadband Myths: Are High Broadband Prices Holding Back Adoption?

Broadband affordability is a problem for some Americans, but not the “crisis” advocates claim. Municipal broadband prices are not substantially different from private ISPs’ broadband prices. After accounting for associated costs, private entry-level broadband plans are comparable to, if not more affordable than, municipal broadband. US entry-level broadband rates are also comparable with prices in peer nations. Studies focused on advertised prices often fail to account for average income.

Some tribes are getting help narrowing the digital divide

In Indian Country, the proportion of households with high-speed internet access has consistently lagged behind the rest of the US. There has been some work to improve things, with an influx of federal funding helping some tribes build their own broadband networks. A Federal Communications Commission program is giving tribes across the US wireless-spectrum licenses for free.

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