The Federal Communications Commission is diligently working on new broadband maps. The stakes are high since all of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act broadband funding requires the new maps to exist before the money can be allocated to states. The new maps will fix a well-known flaw in the current “Form 477” maps, which is Census blocks are either served or not served - there’s no concept of a partially served block. Here, I use a simple technique to make an estimate of what the new maps might look like, using only data currently available.

[Mike Conlow writes about technology, policy, politics, and economics in various combinations in 'Mike's Newsletter'.]

State lawmakers often joke about “waiting on Washington” to pass laws, distribute funds, or approve permits—a time-honored tradition in the halls of state governments. But today, when it comes to expanding access to broadband service, the federal government is waiting on the states. Experts estimate that providing every American with access to affordable high-speed internet—a need highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic—will cost $80 billion or more. Yet more than a year after Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), just 24 states have confirmed plans to use billions in federal dollars provided through the act’s Capital Projects Fund (CPF) for broadband expansion. States actually can use resources from two ARPA funds for broadband and related expenses, and although they can use CPF monies for other capital projects, the Treasury Department named affordable, reliable broadband as a “key priority” of the fund and made hundreds of millions of dollars available to states for that purpose right now. But much of it is sitting unused. So what’s standing in the way of full-scale deployment of these CPF resources? Among other things, state legislatures are choosing not to use CPF for broadband because they are waiting on other, potentially larger pots of federal money that may be months away rather than seizing this important opportunity now.

[Kathryn de Wit is project director of the Broadband Access Initiative.]

Federal regulators are just beginning to tackle a technical flaw that threatens to hold back the United States’ next giant leap in communications: Many of our radios suck. The issue is a growing problem for telecom companies, which time and again have seen multibillion-dollar wireless projects run aground on claims that the new service would interfere with airwaves that other industries rely on. That was the root of a squabble in January 2022 that forced AT&T and Verizon to delay a rollout of 5G broadband service, as the wireless and airline industries jousted over whether the signals could cause planes to crash. Similar fights in recent years have pitted new wireless projects against politically powerful industries such as automakers, electric utilities and cable operators, along with the US military. In each case, companies offering new service on slices of the electromagnetic spectrum faced complaints that their transmitters’ signals would spill into adjacent airwaves — despite assurances to the contrary from the Federal Communications Commission. But some critics say the problem isn’t the newcomers’ transmitters — it’s the incumbent industries’ receivers. They maintain that poorly designed receivers ill-suited to the dawning 5G age, including the altimeters on some passenger planes, fail to filter out signals from nearby swaths of spectrum. That didn’t pose much difficulty when the spectrum was less crowded with users, but it’s becoming increasingly troublesome as the demand rises for super fast wireless connections to enable services such as video conferencing, telemedicine and connected cars.

Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan announced the appointment of two senior agency leaders: General Counsel Anisha Dasgupta and Office of Policy Planning Director Elizabeth Wilkins. Anisha Dasgupta comes to the FTC from the Office of the New York State Attorney General, where she has served since 2014 as Deputy Solicitor General. Prior to that, Dasgupta was an appellate attorney with the Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice. Before joining the FTC, Elizabeth Wilkins served as Senior Advisor to the White House Chief of Staff. Prior to that, she worked in several senior leadership roles at the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, including Senior Counsel for Policy and Chief of Staff. Reilly Dolan, who served as Acting General Counsel prior to Dasgupta’s appointment, has returned to his previous post as Principal Deputy General Counsel. Kelly Signs, who served as Acting OPP Director prior to Wilkins’s arrival, has returned to the Bureau of Competition’s Office of Policy and Coordination as Assistant Director.

As the work of connecting everyone through broadband moves from the federal to the state level, the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Broadband Access Initiative has now emerged as one of the central catalysts accelerating promising state efforts. Pew has been partnering with state governments for years to implement evidence-based solutions but is now taking it to a whole new level to deliver even more broadband progress thanks to the foresight and leadership of Kathryn de Wit. Kathryn leads a cross-functional team of researchers, communications experts, and government affairs professionals who identify and bridge research gaps and build models key to solving the digital divide. Her bold broadband vision means more states will be better prepared to seize this moment, to ensure everyone has access to affordable, robust broadband service. Anyone who has had the chance to work with Kathryn, as I've been fortunate to, understands she’s not just a smart and perceptive leader for today, but will be one of the greats of tomorrow. As we raise our sights, and look to the future, a new generation of savvy leaders is already stepping up to make a huge impact in service to our cause. Kathryn de Wit is a leader we can all look up to and learn from.

[Jim Kohlenberger is a member of the Benton Institute's board of directors.]