Analysis

On May 9, 2022, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris announced that they have secured commitments from 20 internet service providers to lower high-speed internet costs for US consumers. The providers are all participating in the Affordable Connectivity Program, a $14.2 billion federal program created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to subsidize broadband service for

A group of organizations referred to as the Joint Advocates [including the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society] submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission regarding the implementation of the anti-digital discrimination section in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. In their comments, the Joint Advocates requested that the FCC conduct a study to assess preferential treatment for high-income broadband users over the needs of low-income users. The group makes the following arguments in its filing:

Public Knowledge submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission on May 16, in response to the FCC's Notice of Inquiry regarding digital discrimination rules in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. "Digital discrimination is not just unjust towards individuals, but can hold back entire communities and prevent the nation from living up to its potential," states Public Knowledge in its filing. "Thankfully, the Commission now has not merely the legal authority, but an affirmative obligation, to end digital discrimination.

The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission regarding the implementation of the digital discrimination section in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. NDIA submitted comments urging the FCC to:

The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the $42.2 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) grants establishes new rules for the grants that might have a wider implication for broadband elsewhere. One of the most interesting aspects of the NOFO was the definition of a new term – Reliable Broadband Service.

USTelecom recently sent a letter to practically every politician who might have a hand in deciding how broadband grants are awarded – the White House and key Cabinet officials, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the Federal Communications Commission, members of Congress, Governors, Mayors, other local officials, Tribal leaders, and state broadband offices.

The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the $42.2 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program grants has been released by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). Here are some issues I’ll be exploring in more detail:

From a lobbying perspective, municipal broadband providers have never had a seat at the table. In any given state, a municipal broadband provider might get its voice heard through organizations like the League of Cities and Counties – or whatever that is called in a given state. But municipal broadband internet service providers (ISPs) have never had a national voice to push back against the hard lobbying that has been leveled against them for the last few decades.

This is the third in a four-part series about the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) digital equity and broadband grant Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) announcements from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) has identified how the BEAD Program will intersect with the Digital Equity Act Program and how the two complement each other:

This is the second in a four-part series about the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) digital equity and broadband grant Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) announcements from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). Sifting through the Digital Equity Act (DEA) NOFO, the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) identified the following highlights: