The End of ReConnect?

The US Department of Agriculture has proposed a budget for the 2027 fiscal year, starting October 1, which contains drastic cuts for broadband. Overall, the agency is proposing to cut its overall discretionary funding by $4.9 billion, a 19 percent reduction. The cuts align with the proposed White House budget recommendations for the next fiscal year, which says: "USDA’s Rural Development programs are streamlined to focus on programs that have demonstrated efficient results and are an appropriate Federal role. . . No new USDA funding is needed for broadband expansion, as existing balances and other Federal resources are meeting planned growth. The Budget would also eliminate programs that are duplicative, too small to have macro-economic impact, costly to deliver, in limited demand, available through the private sector, or conceived as temporary. These include rural business programs, single family housing direct loans, self-help housing grants, telecommunications loans, and rural housing vouchers. Rural Development salaries and expenses are reduced commensurately." Probably the biggest headline in the proposed USDA budget is that it completely eliminates the ReConnect grant program. The agency argues that ReConnect funding would be duplicative since Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment and other grant programs have eliminated the need for additional rural broadband infrastructure spending.