Wednesday, June 2, 2021
Headlines Daily Digest
New York Times Examines the Rural-Urban Broadband Divide
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Brookings: The American Rescue Plan is the broadband down payment the country needs
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Digital Equity
Veterans of the nation’s decade-long efforts to extend the nation’s broadband footprint worry that President Joe Biden's new plan carries the same bias of its predecessors: Billions will be spent to extend the internet infrastructure to the farthest reaches of rural America, where few people live, and little will be devoted to connecting millions of urban families who live in areas with high-speed service that they cannot afford. About 81 percent of rural households are plugged into broadband, compared with about 86 percent in urban areas, according to Census Bureau data. But the number of urban households without a connection, 13.6 million, is almost three times as big as the 4.6 million rural households that don’t have one.
Broadband expert Blair Levin argues that getting near universal broadband use will probably require offering a permanent subsidy to make the service affordable to low-income families. And the government would have to persuade such households to subscribe to broadband by providing online services that are valuable to low-income families — in, say, health, education and employment — and helping them figure out how to use the technology. “There are some paths forward, but first there has to be some kind of acknowledgment that as a country, we benefit from having everyone on and that private market forces are not going to produce that result,” Levin said. “I think we are finally there. But we need leadership and a plan to get us over the finish line.”
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act offer billions of broadband-related dollars to reduce consumer prices, build out network infrastructure, and fund digital skills programming. How should state and local leaders balance it all? We recommend a two-phase strategy.
The first phase should prioritize immediate relief. Leaders should leverage new resources to subsidize broadband subscriptions, lower device prices, and provide digital navigation and literacy support to ensure these affordability programs extend through the 2021-22 school year. Leaders should also prioritize only those network investments that can quickly initiate new service, such as E-rate connections through qualifying institutions like schools. Critically, state and local governments should use ARP funds (if permitted) or local resources to launch state and local digital equity offices to coordinate these programs, including benefits to both households and small businesses.
The second phase should predevelop a durable digital equity plan using ARP’s one-time funding infusion (and any additional local resources if necessary). New digital equity offices should aggressively measure digital need across their jurisdictions, including speed testing, accurate pricing data, physical network gaps, and locations for wraparound equity programming. Whichever agency manages broadband networks should then use the measurement data to develop a long-range capital plan to reach universal adoption, including pricing out capital investments with outside vendors and the specifications to launch cooperative-, civic-, or public-owned networks. If executed well, this strategy can help state and local leaders reduce the digital divide today while designing a plan to permanently eliminate it in the coming decade.
Emergency Communications
FCC Assisted in Hurricane Maria Network Restoration, but a Clarified Disaster Response Role and Enhanced Communication Are Needed
Federal agencies faced unprecedented challenges responding to 2017's Hurricane Maria, which caused extensive damage in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. We found unclear federal guidance on the Federal Communications Commission's role in disaster response, which could have contributed to confusion and delays. Also, the FCC has not provided a complete and accurate account of its disaster response, which could help with preparation for future disasters. GAO is making two recommendations including that the Department of Homeland Security should update its emergency support function guidance to clearly define FCC's disaster response role, and that FCC should enhance the transparency of its operations by publicly reporting on its Hurricane Recovery Task Force.
Benton (www.benton.org) provides the only free, reliable, and non-partisan daily digest that curates and distributes news related to universal broadband, while connecting communications, democracy, and public interest issues. Posted Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are factually accurate, their sometimes informal tone may not always represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang (headlines AT benton DOT org) and Robbie McBeath (rmcbeath AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
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