Monday, September 21, 2026
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State broadband officers are exhausted with BEAD
Broadband Funding
Telehealth
AI
Journalism
Company News
According to interviews and research from the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society, state broadband officers are exhausted by the challenges and shifting dynamics of implementing the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program. Leaders from the Benton Institute have interviewed over 30 SBOs so far about what it is taking to implement BEAD. And Dr. Revati Prasad of the Benton Institute talked about the takeaways from those conversations in a recent Fiber Broadband Association webinar. “The people who are in charge of overseeing this work are feeling exhausted,” said Prasad. “It's been a long haul, and more than one person said to us, ‘Just want to get it done.’ Their legislatures aren't exactly hostile to broadband; their governors aren't hostile to broadband. They're just not particularly interested in talking about it anymore.”
Brandy Reitter, the executive director of the Colorado Broadband Office since February 2022, stepped down after giving the agency two days’ notice. “Yes, unfortunately, OIT received Brandy’s resignation. She will be missed and we appreciate her service to the state,” Erin Jeffreys, a spokesperson for the Governor’s Office of Information Technology, home to the broadband office, said in an email. “Our focus during this transition is maintaining continuity for our CBO staff, stakeholders and partners.” Alison Terry, a strategy officer at the Governor’s Office of Federal Funds and Strategic Initiatives, will serve as the interim executive director until a permanent replacement is picked, Jeffreys said.
TDS Telecommunications has launched faster internet speeds for customers in Neillsville, Medford, Mosinee, and Junction City, marking the first phase of multi-year broadband upgrade projects in each central Wisconsin community. The projects are now delivering speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps (1 Gig), depending on location. The high-speed data infrastructure upgrades are supported, in part, by the Federal Communications Commission’s Enhanced Alternative Connect America Cost Model program. The program helps expand broadband access in rural areas by supporting and requiring carriers to deliver service of at least 100/20 Mbps to eligible locations. Beyond offering faster-than-required top speeds, TDS is also investing its own funds to bring faster internet options to additional locations not covered by the federal program.
Reps Walkinshaw, Carter Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Shape the Future of Medicare Telehealth With Better Data
Reps Walkinshaw (D-VA) and Buddy Carter (R-GA) introduced bipartisan legislation to replace fragmented federal reporting with reliable annual data showing who Medicare telehealth is reaching, where access barriers remain, how patients are faring, and where taxpayer dollars may be at risk. The Telehealth Reporting and Transparency Act of 2026 would require the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to report annually on telehealth utilization, patient access, available health outcomes, provider participation, and program integrity. The annual report would include:
- National and state-level telehealth utilization, including rural and urban trends;
- Demographic and geographic differences in utilization, including potential broadband barriers;
- Available patient outcomes, provider participation, and barriers to delivering telehealth services;
- Claims patterns that may indicate improper billing and actions CMS is taking to combat fraud, waste, and abuse.
A host of industry players, policy wonks and businesses are grappling with the question of how to regulate AI in a trustworthy manner. The industry's mad dash is the product of an ad hoc regulatory apparatus and a general consensus that swift action from Washington is unlikely in the near term. AI CEOs have been grappling with how to test advanced AI and work with Beijing on safety standards, while the White House favors a solution where the industry finds ways to police itself.
Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) attempted to pass his AI Emergency Button Act through unanimous consent to require artificial intelligence developers to install an emergency kill switch, but an objection from Sen. Rand Paul prevented the bill from passing unanimously.
Governor Newsom issues executive order to accelerate independent oversight and advance the creation of an AI kill switch
Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) issued an executive order to dramatically accelerate the implementation of new third-party oversight of safety and security risks in AI systems, as well as independent audits. The executive order convenes a group of world-leading experts to provide, within two months, a guide for California to reinforce and strengthen its AI safety and security laws. Proposals under consideration include requiring independent third parties to write safety plans for frontier AI companies, as well as requiring companies to develop an emergency shutoff, or “kill switch,” for frontier models. California leads the nation in oversight of emerging frontier technologies, with laws addressing nearly every major area of AI policy: frontier-model safety, independent oversight, children and companion chatbots, privacy, deepfakes, fraud, cybersecurity, workers and government deployment.
Chairman Brendan Carr’s FCC is more worried about who The View interviews than foreign governments owning Paramount
The Federal Communications Commission has announced it’s waiving its rules limiting foreign equity ownership to 25 percent in the Paramount-Warner Bros. case and will allow three sovereign wealth funds run by the governments of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi to own 49.5 percent of the company. During Chairman Brendan Carr’s tenure, the FCC has repeatedly threatened ABC, tried to block stations from airing interviews with Democrats, censored late-night TV hosts, and tried to bully journalists. However, it seems to have no qualms with repressive foreign governments owning a significant stake in a giant American media conglomerate. In its ruling, the FCC defended the decision, saying that, because the stocks being purchased did not have voting rights, they “will not be able to wield any influence, let alone control, over decisions involving the Licensees.”
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 Zoe Walker (zwalker AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
© Benton Institute for Broadband & Society 2026. Redistribution of this email publication — both internally and externally — is encouraged if it includes this message. For subscribe/unsubscribe info email: headlines AT benton DOT org
Kevin Taglang
Executive Editor, Communications-related Headlines
Benton Institute
for Broadband & Society
1041 Ridge Rd, Unit 214
Wilmette, IL 60091
847-220-4531
headlines AT benton DOT org
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