The Role of a Robust Broadband Infrastructure in Building Economic Resiliency During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The study proposes an economic growth econometric model that accounts for the role of fixed broadband in mitigating the economic losses resulting from COVID-19. Results show that had the national fixed broadband penetration been the same as that of the most-connected state (Delaware, 91.4%) rather than the actual level of 70.5%1 , the national GDP contraction in 2020 would have been 1% rather than the actual 2.2%. The analysis also indicates that those states with higher adoption of fixed broadband infrastructure were able to mitigate a larger portion of their 2020 economic losses due to pandemic-related restrictions. That is the case of states with higher broadband penetration, such as Delaware (91.4%) or New Jersey (90.5%), where high connectivity levels allowed for an important part of the economy to continue to function during lockdowns. At the other end, the most affected states during 2020 were Arkansas, New Mexico, and Mississippi, partly because of their low fixed broadband penetration.