What's on the agenda for policymakers.
Agenda
Unserved and Underserved is a distinction without a difference
Senator John Thune (R-SD) recently asked broadband stakeholders what Congress could do to improve the Infrastructure Improvement and Jobs Act (IIJA) with respect to broadband.
Fiber Broadband Association’s Where's The Funding? is a free-to-attend 12-part webinar series to help members understand, navigate, and obtain matching funds for broadband grants.
Episode 2 will welcome Evan Feinman, who serves as director of BEAD for the NTIA. Before joining the NTIA, Evan served the Commonwealth of Virginia as the governor's chief broadband advisor for nearly four years, from 2018 to 2022.
Supervisor Mitchell Releases Priority Areas for Community Broadband Network in LA County's 2nd District, Hosts Laptop Giveaway
Supervisor Holly Mitchell released a map of priority locations where Los Angeles County will build low-cost internet for households in the Second District. Supervisor Mitchell made the announcement in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Internal Services Department (ISD), which is Los Angeles County’s lead on digital equity, during a free laptop giveaway event at the Willowbrook Library.
A conservative case for the Affordable Connectivity Program
Unfortunately, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is set to run out of funds as soon as early 2024. For conservatives who are rightly concerned about traditional government subsidies, I humbly suggest that extending the ACP by appropriating additional funds for the program is well within our economic principles, even when we absolutely must shrink overall federal spending.
An overview of the Digital Equity Plan, and next steps to join the Digital Equity Coalition and stay involved
Minnesotans Urged to Play Role in Digital Equity Plan
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's Office of Broadband Development (OBD) is developing a digital equity plan to create improvements in internet affordability, access to internet-enabled devices, and ways to provide digital skills training. We want to hear from Minnesotans most impacted by the digital access and skills gap to ensure our digital equity plan reflects the goals and needs of all Minnesotans. This plan will help us determine how to spend federal funding coming in 2024 aimed at increasing digital access and skills.
The FirstNet Authority will post a detailed agenda for the Combined Board and Board Committees Meeting on FirstNet.gov prior to the meeting. The agenda topics are subject to change. Please note that the subjects discussed by the Board and Board Committees may involve commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential, or other legal matters affecting the FirstNet Authority. As such, the Board may, by majority vote, close the meeting only for the time necessary to preserve the confidentiality of such information.
Senate Democrats and Biden need to stand up to homophobic attacks on FCC nominee Gigi Sohn
Gigi Sohn is gay. She’s also a highly qualified nominee for the Federal Communications Commission with decades of experience as a public interest advocate working on issues of affordable broadband access, net neutrality, and closing the digital divide.
An in-person workshop for Tribal governments, Tribal employees, and Tribal members. This event is designed to provide information that will help Tribal Nations identify and evaluate opportunities to develop more robust broadband infrastructure and services in Tribal communities. It is also designed to provide information about the FCC and how it conducts its regulatory responsibilities, and to encourage Tribal participation in the regulatory process.
The Fiber Fad: Are Public Dollars For Broadband Buildouts Too Good To Be True?
Millions of dollars in federal funding are currently making their way to northern Michigan to aid in the buildout of fiber-optic broadband internet infrastructure throughout the region. As a historic moment, these fiber internet investments mirror what the government did with electricity back in the 1930s.