Gigi Sohn

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program “Benefit of the Bargain” round, sold as “technology neutral” and laser-focused on lowering costs, was neither a benefit nor a bargain for Lake Providence, the poorest parish in Louisiana. A $6 million fiber award became a $150,000 award to satellite Internet provider Starlink. A service that costs $80 a month for the “lite” tier and $120 for standard is a non-starter in a town where nearly half of its residents live below the poverty line.

Andrew C. Barrett, Rachelle B. Chong, Ervin S. Duggan, Mark S. Fowler, Dennis R. Patrick, Alfred C. Sikes, Thomas E. Wheeler, Christopher J. Wright, Kathryn C. Brown, Jerald N. Fritz, Peter Pitsch (the petitioners) request that the Federal Communications Commission repeal the news distortion policy in full. In Moody v. NetChoice, LLC, the Supreme Court, applying the First Amendment, reaffirmed that the government has no role in “un-biasing” the media.

When it comes to federal efforts to close the digital divide, Minnesota has been left behind. Program after program has promised transformational change—yet time and again, your communities are still waiting. But Minnesota has the power—and the track record—to build its own broadband future. Federal broadband programs have failed the state. They promised a feast and delivered crumbs. In the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, ISPs defaulted on 80% of  more than $400,000,000 in state RDOF funds and on 78% of the over 142,000 RDOF locations.

I’m going to talk about something that I imagine will be discussed at about half of the panels here—the Commerce Department’s June 6 Policy Notice laying out the Administration’s new requirements for the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program. While I’m sure that some of you are steeped in the details of the Policy Notice, I’m guessing that many of you aren’t. My plan is to walk you through the highlights and give my spin.

President Trump announced by tweet (or whatever it is they do on Truth Social) that he was somehow “ending” the Digital Equity Act, calling it “UNCONSTITUTIONAL” and “ILLEGAL.” The next day, letters were sent to states and awardees across the country terminating their grants. And so, just like that, nearly $3 billion in funding and years of work came to a halt. So, what are we going to do about it? When President Trump illegally and unconstitutionally attempted to end the Digital Equity Act, I became angry. Really, really angry. Is anybody else in this room angry?

Community-owned broadband networks are thriving across the country. The Institute for Local Self-Reliance’s Community Network Map shows a record 795 public networks delivering fast, affordable and reliable internet—hardly the “magical thinking” Annette Meeks described in her recent commentary in the Minnesota Star Tribune on the Connect Willmar Initiative.

I’m here today to urge you—city officials, business leaders, educators, digital equity advocates and city residents—to consider moving forward on building a city-wide, city-owned broadband network.  I was asked by a Texas Public Radio reporter a few days ago whether now was the right time, and I said—it’s past time. If the COVID-19 pandemic taught us anything, it was that affordable, high speed broadband Internet access is essential for full participation in our society, our economy, our education and health care systems, and our democracy.

What can be done for the 23 million households that relied on the Affordable Connectivity Program? The Federal Communications Commission could start a proceeding to increase the amount of money in the USF so that it can fund an ACP-like subsidy. It has the power under the Communications Act, it has a consistent funding source, and it has a reason with the ACP’s expiration—an event former FCC Chief of Staff Blair Levin describes as the “biggest step any country has ever taken to widen, rather than close, its digital divide.” Given all this, why doesn’t the FCC act?

In August 2020, during the heart of the covid-19 pandemic when many schools were closed, social media and news outlets were awash with a picture of two grade school students sitting outside of a Taco Bell, attempting to do their schoolwork.

For decades, public broadband networks have been successfully serving hundreds of communities with fast, robust, and affordable internet access. Unlike private-sector networks, municipal, tribal, and other community- and member-owned broadband networks are focused on ensuring universal, robust connectivity at affordable prices. The results have been remarkable.