How to expand rural broadband, fast and affordably

When companies try to expand broadband into hard-to-reach and far-apart locations, they have to make huge capital expenditures in technology and infrastructure, which sometimes can run for hundreds of miles or more. While federal funding is supposed to ease this burden, a lot of the money goes toward something Congress never anticipated and taxpayers often overlook: replacing utility poles. Members of Congress may be shocked to learn that enormous chunks of private and government broadband funding are not spent on fiber optic cable, but rather on poles in rural areas.

We cannot expect to connect rural Americans without addressing this issue. If it’s wrong to ask the broadband companies to pay for everything, then it’s wrong to make that same demand of utility companies. The best path forward is to require that the parties each pay their share. This would save taxpayer money and speed up broadband buildout into unserved communities.  Congress can step up to make this happen. It makes sense for lawmakers to enact such a policy in upcoming legislation. If gridlock makes that impossible, then lawmakers can use their influence to get the Federal Communications Commission to act.

[Katie McAuliffe is federal affairs manager for Americans for Tax Reform and the executive director of Digital Liberty, which advocates for a consumer-driven market.]