Kevin Taglang

On April 19, Governor JB Pritzker (D-IL) signed the 2023 Illinois state budget into law. Included in the 500+ page legislation is the Broadband Infrastructure Advancement Act (P.A. 102-0699), the state's overarching procedures to make use of coming federal monies to support broadband deployment projects.

On March 31, the House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Communications and Technology held a hearing called "Connecting America: Oversight of the FCC." Each of the current four Federal Communications Commissioners testified before the subcommittee, led by Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and including Brendan Carr, Nathan Simington, and Geoffrey Starks. Rep.

The Biden Administration celebrated the one-year anniversary of the American Rescue Plan Act last week. The law aimed to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy, public health, state and local governments, individuals, and businesses. Broadband played a big role. A year later, we look at the types of broadband projects the American Rescue Plan Act is funding.

The Illinois General Assembly is currently considering legislation that will constrain the state's use of Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act broadband funding and likely impair efforts to close the digital divide in Illinois.

Recent years have seen an explosion in demand for telehealth services, a trend accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, that has increased the bandwidth needs of rural health care providers. The Federal Communications Commission is proposing changes to its Rural Health Care Program rules that are designed to ensure that rural healthcare providers receive the funding necessary to access broadband and telecommunications services to provide vital healthcare services.

Every American should have access to affordable broadband internet services at home, school, and work. That's the topline recommendation in The Future of Tech: A Blueprint for Action. Americans appreciate the importance of broadband that is reliable, safe, modern, trustworthy, and affordable.

The House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology held an oversight hearing on the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

"The Federal Communications Commission has long banned internet service providers from entering into sweetheart deals with landlords that guarantee they are the only provider in the building," said Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. "But the record in this proceeding has made it clear that our existing rules are not doing enough and that we can do more to pry open to the door for providers who want to offer competitive service in apartment buildings. That’s why we take three steps today.

As 2021 turned into 2022, the Federal Communications Commission transformed the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program into the Affordable Connectivity Program. Congress created the Affordable Connectivity Program through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and provided the FCC $14.2 billion to subsidize broadband service for low-income households. Broadband providers will receive up to $30/month (or up to $75/month if the household is on Tribal Land) for providing service to low-income households.

This week, the Federal Communications Commission launched a proceeding seeking public comment on creating a mechanism to ensure access to accurate, simple-to-understand information about broadband Internet access services. The aim is to enable consumers to comparison shop when choosing broadband services and providers that best meet their needs and match their budgets.