A $50 credit on monthly internet service could mean the difference between having broadband and not having internet at all. But from the looks of federal data, there hasn’t been much interest in claiming the money made available by the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) Program. The program launched in May 2021 and provides low-income consumers up to $50 off their monthly broadband bill (or $75 for those living on Tribal lands). But five months after it launched, EBB serves just over 63,000 households in Colorado, a fraction of those who qualify. Everyone on Medicaid is eligible and that’s 1.5 million people in Colorado. “The current number of EBB enrolled households is 63,019, which is 13.4 percent participation. Compared to other states, that percentage is in the lower middle range,” said state Chief Information Officer Tony Neal-Graves. “We are currently evaluating our outreach strategy.” The $3.2 billion national program, funded by a federal COVID relief package, has made changes to simplify the enrollment process for users and internet providers. But there’s been a minimal amount spent on marketing to get the word out. About 6 million US households had enrolled nationwide as of October 4. According to the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, that represents just 16 percent of the eligible US population, meaning $2.5 billion is still available.

During the summer of 2021, the Senate gave overwhelming approval to $65 billion for broadband access in the bipartisan infrastructure bill. The pandemic had clearly captured the attention of elected officials. The ultimate success of this initiative depends first on Congress’ final approval, then on the Federal Communications Commission and other government agencies being ready to move quickly in allocating funds. Jessica Rosenworcel is now serving as the FCC’s acting chairperson, and the commission’s five-member panel currently has one vacancy. President Joe Biden should formally nominate Rosenworcel to serve as chair and fill the other position without delay. The cost of postponing a formal nomination is too great. Rosenworcel understands the nature of the problem, has long worked to address it and knows how to get the job done. Once the FCC gets the resources Congress has appropriated, it needs to have skilled and experienced leaders who care about these issues and who can ensure that the funds are distributed equitably. It will be a lost opportunity of historic proportions if we fall short because the FCC lacks the right leader when Rosenworcel is ready, willing and able to lead this massive effort. It is past time for the president to designate her as the permanent FCC chair if his administration truly wants to close the digital divide once and for all.

[Dr. Charles E Lewis Jr. is head of the Congressional Research Institute for Social Work and Policy.]

A group of Waldo County (ME) residents is working to create an affordable broadband utility that every resident in Searsmont and four other towns should be able to access. The task force has been collecting data from residents and mapping the community's level of current Internet service, which members believe is low. To address this problem, Searsmont and the neighboring communities of Liberty, Palermo, Montville and Freedom have formed the Southwest Waldo County Broadband Coalition, which has a long-term plan of creating a municipally-owned public broadband utility. The cost for this is likely to be between $7 and $10 million, and right now the hope is to pay for it through grant funding and, later, through revenue bonds. "The utility itself would be responsible for paying the bonds," said Searsmont board member Pete Milinazzo. "We want to emphasize the fact that we're not going to do it with taxpayer dollars." Another possible funding avenue, he said, is the federal stimulus money available through the American Rescue Plan Act. Waldo County has received the first half of the $7.7 million award, and county officials plan to invest roughly $3 million of that in upgrades to emergency services infrastructure.

Reps Greg Pence (R-IN) and Angie Craig (D-MN) introduced the Rural Telehealth Access Task Force Act (H.R.5506) to expand rural communities’ access to telehealth capabilities. The proposed legislation seeks to establish a Rural Telehealth Access Task Force between the Federal Communications Commission, United States Department of Agriculture, Department of Health and Human Service, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. If enacted by law, the task force would be commissioned with identifying barriers to the adoption of telehealth technologies in rural America, sharing information on the deployment of broadband funding through federal programs to expand access to broadband, and provide findings and recommendations to Congress.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Representatives introduced new legislation to reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which shields websites and online platforms from being held liable for third-party content. Senior Member Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA), and Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee Chair Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) announced the bill. The Justice Against Malicious Algorithms Act, would amend Section 230 to remove absolute immunity in certain instances. Specifically, the bill would lift the Section 230 liability shield when an online platform knowingly or recklessly uses an algorithm or other technology to recommend content that materially contributes to physical or severe emotional injury. The bill will be introduced in the House on October 15. While the bill targets malicious algorithms, it does not apply to search features or algorithms that do not rely on personalization. It would also not apply to internet infrastructure such as web hosting or data storage and transfer, or to small online platforms with fewer than five million unique monthly visitors or users.