Benton Institute for Broadband & Society

House Hearing Examines Streamlining Broadband Permitting

What challenges exist at the federal, state, and local levels that delay or burden broadband deployment?  How can Congress help expedite or streamline the process for broadband deployment? Is attaching telecommunications equipment on municipally or cooperatively-owned poles more difficult or expensive than on other poles?

Promise, Perils and the Big Switch Ahead for AI and BEAD

Today, government officials have new strategic decisions to make just as momentous as the ones the intersection of policy and technology dumped in our Federal Communications Commission laps back in the early 1990’s. As we look out on a future in which more and more of our economic and civic activity involves online communications, we should not forget there is an urgent and critical task: eliminating the digital divide.

Internet for All in California

Delivering broadband to a state as large and diverse as California is complicated. Regions and communities vary by levels of competition, historic investment, and the need for subsidies to incentivize infrastructure deployment and broadband adoption. While broadband infrastructure and increasing adoption have helped power California’s fiscal health and well-being for decades, access to this essential service remains uneven.

Another Knife in the News

Sitting atop a backdrop of economic imbalance are Wall Street hedge funds and private equity firms that daily manage hundreds of billions of dollars, leveraging debt to acquire companies, then firing workers, and stripping the carcasses of American industry for asset sales. This destructive way of running our economy is bad news in many sectors. Nowhere is it more pernicious than in communications and the media. Two massive Wall Street funds, Standard General and Apollo Global Management have set out to purchase the second-largest local TV station group in the U.S.—Tegna.

Will Maryland be the Tesla or the Solyndra of the BEAD Program?

History always renders a powerful and positive verdict for any group that understands that there are some things that cannot be allowed to divide a nation. And then acts to close that divide. I don’t want claim that the achieving universal broadband connectivity has the same moral imperative as ending slavery or drastically reducing poverty. But it is no small thing. And sometimes things that are not front-page news, overtime have enormous impacts.

Benton Institute Announces Inaugural Cohort of Opportunity Fund Fellows

The Benton Institute for Broadband and Society introduced its inaugural Marjorie & Charles Benton Opportunity Fund Fellows. The six broadband practitioners, advocates, and researchers are leading efforts to close the digital divide and realize a stronger, more equitable, and more just America.

Broadband is Key to Pennsylvania's Future

A years-long debate slowed progress in the Keystone State, but in September 2022, Gov. Tom Wolf (D-PA) announced that $500 million from the American Rescue Plan Act will go to local governments to invest in infrastructure, including broadband, accelerating the Commonwealth's efforts to close the digital divide.

Delaware Converting Broadband Deserts

The groundwork for a well-connected Delaware dates back to 1997 with a pioneering collaboration between the state's departments of technology & information, transportation, and education. The Delaware Department of Transportation constructed extensive fiber for transportation purposes, quickly placing Delaware at the cutting edge of intelligent state transportation systems. This initial public investment in fiber infrastructure also supported a broad array of public institutions.

FCC Takes Next Steps Towards Just and Reasonable Communications

On January 5, 2023, President Joseph Biden signed into law the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act of 2022 (Martha Wright-Reed Act) to ensure just and reasonable charges for telephone and advanced communications services in correctional and detention facilities. The law is the product of efforts by multiple individuals and committed stakeholders over a number of years to comprehensively address the persistent problem of unreasonably high rates and charges incarcerated people and their families pay for communications services.

New York is Working to ConnectALL

New York State is approaching universal broadband through both access and adoption—and recognizes that affordability is a key barrier to adoption. In January 2022, Gov. Hochul unveiled ConnectALL, a $1 billion public-private initiative to deliver affordable broadband to millions of New Yorkers and transform the state's digital infrastructure through new investments. The initiative includes: 

Reaction to USF Decision

FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said, “I’m pleased that the Fifth Circuit agreed with what I and many others—including bipartisan members of Congress—have said about the Universal Service Fund. It is constitutional, both in concept and implementation. The Universal Service Fund continues to connect rural communities, schools, libraries, healthcare providers, and low-income households all across the country.

Benton Institute for Broadband & Society Salutes 'Ringing Ratification' of USF

Coming from one of the more conservative courts in the country, this decision is a ringing ratification of the system Congress established to ensure that all Americans have affordable access to telecommunications service and advanced services like broadband. This should not come as a surprise, but once the USF was subjected to a legal challenge, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society joined with public allies to defend this critical mechanism for ensuring universal broadband.

FCC Plans Additional ACP Awareness Grants

Half of all households eligible to participate in the Affordable Connectivity Program are unaware of the benefit. That's too many households. A January 2023 survey of low-income households found that 37 percent of eligible households that knew little about ACP said they would be likely to apply with more information and 31 percent said they would be likely to apply if they knew whether they qualified.

50 Ways the American Rescue Plan Act is Improving Internet Connectivity

Today marks the second anniversary of the American Rescue Plan Act. Funding from the law provided over $25 billion to jumpstart universal broadband access—including broadband connections for 16 million students through the Emergency Connectivity Fund for schools and libraries to close the homework gap.

South Carolina's Bipartisan Efforts on the 'Next, Next Greatest Thing'

In 2021, the South Carolina General Assembly established the Office of Broadband Coordinator within the Office of Regulatory Staff to serve as the central broadband planning body for the state and to coordinate with federal, state, regional, local, and private entities to encourage the continued development of access to broadband in the Palmetto State. The office was charged with convening a collaborative stakeholder process to identify challenges to expediting broadband access—and so it established the Broadband Advisory Council to help guide broadband planning in South Carolina.

Reactions to the Withdrawal of Gigi Sohn's Nomination to the FCC

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “We appreciate Gigi Sohn’s candidacy for this important role.  She would have brought tremendous—intellect and experience, which is why the President nominated her in the first place. We also appreciate her dedication to public service, her talent, and her years of work as one of the nation’s leading public advocates on behalf of American consumers and competition.”

Benton Senior Fellow and Public Advocate Gigi Sohn Ends Bid for FCC Seat

On October 25, 2021, I joined a chorus of voices celebrating President Biden’s wise choice for America’s broadband future. Having worked with her closely, I understand firsthand that Gigi Sohn is a smart, savvy, and talented leader who would have brought 30 years of relevant experience, an incredible intellect, and tremendous talent to the FCC to help guide our nation's communications future at such a pivotal time in history. Throughout her more than three decades of public interest advocacy, Ms.

NTIA Needs to Hear From You About Two New Digital Equity Programs

On March 1, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) sought public comment on the design and implementation of two components of the Digital Equity Act of 2021 (a part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act): the $1.44 billion State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program and the $1.25 billion Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program.

2023 Charles Benton Digital Equity Awards

A more equitable, more just society. What an audacious goal. But it is a goal that, I believe, everyone here shares. “It takes a village” is such an understatement. What it takes to reach this ambitious but increasingly necessary goal is all of us pulling in the same direction over many miles and many years. What it takes is commitment, innovation, leadership, and collaboration. Today we get to celebrate some digital equity heroes. These champions demonstrate the commitment, innovation, leadership, and collaboration we all need to embrace in our own work.

One Year Later, What We Know About the Broadband Infrastructure Program

In late December 2021, President Donald Trump signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, a $2.3 trillion COVID relief and government spending bill that extended unemployment benefits and ensured the government kept running. Through that law, Congress allocated $7 billion to help improve connectivity in the U.S. including a new $300 million broadband deployment grant program at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

Talking About Things We Don’t Talk About

The Federal Communications Commission is an important institution. It oversees a huge input to our information economy: Spectrum. Fortunately, three decades ago, we developed a method for allocating spectrum that has garnered bipartisan praise, been copied around the world, underlaid two Nobel prizes, and is arguably the most successful communications policy innovation ever. Unfortunately, Congress can’t decide how to reauthorize that auction authority. Congressional dysfunction? Alas, not weird. The stakes are high: billions in investment capital, 10x more in economic impact.

Digital Opportunities Compass

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which includes the Digital Equity Act of 2021 (DEA), establishes a broad framework and significant funding to advance broadband connectivity and digital equity. The law recognizes key factors and populations to address when striving for digital equity. To fully realize the full benefits of digital technology for individuals, communities, and society at large additional insights are needed. The Digital Opportunities Compass is an holistic framework for broadband and digital equity planning, implementation and evaluation.

Federal Boost for Tennessee Broadband Accessibility

In 2016, the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development published research performed by Strategic Networks Group and NEO Connect aimed at answering four basic questions: 1) What is the technical definition of broadband? 2) How many Tennesseans do not have access to broadband? 3) What is the cost of bringing broadband to Tennesseans that do not have it?