US government 'does not know best' when delivering broadband dollars: SHLB exec director

It’s not just Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment delays we have to worry about. The Universal Service Fund is also stuck in limbo, and the federal government has no clue how to handle all the funding involved, according to Joseph Wender, executive director of the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition. Wender, who was formerly director of the $10 billion Capital Projects Fund, put it bluntly at a Fiber Connect keynote that “Washington does not know best when it comes to deploying billions of dollars.” The Supreme Court is currently deliberating over the constitutionality of USF, but policymakers for years have debated on how to keep the program funded, from taxing Big Tech to allocating money in Congress’ budget. The latter option, Wender argued, “is an effort to starve and kill the program.” Compared to BEAD, Wender believes the USF is “overlooked” in today’s conversations around broadband access, particularly the program’s impact on community anchor institutions.