A Plan of Firsts

The National broadband Plan is a plan of firsts. The first time the federal government did an in-depth survey of non-adopters of broadband, to understand what influences that choice, a prerequisite to increasing adoption rates. The first time the federal government did a cost model to determine the net present value private investment gap for communities not served by broadband, a pre-requisite for moving universal service to support broadband. The first time the FCC undertook a process this open and transparent, holding dozens of public workshops to solicit the input of experts and citizens alike, welcoming extensive feedback online. It's one thing to have a bold plan, a bold vision, and bold goals. It's more impressive, though, to make that plan, that vision, and those goals a reality.