Federal Communications Commission Increases Broadband Speed Benchmark

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted its annual assessment of whether advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion across the US. In addition to deployment, the Report considers broadband affordability, adoption, availability, and equitable access, when determining whether broadband is being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion to “all Americans.” The FCC’s Report, issued pursuant to section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, raises the FCC’s benchmark for high-speed fixed broadband to download speeds of 100
megabits per second and upload speeds of 20 megabits per second—a four-fold increase from the 25/3 Mbps benchmark set in 2015. The increase in the Commission’s fixed speed benchmark for advanced telecommunications capability is based on the standards now used in multiple federal and state programs (such as the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s BEAD Program and multiple Universal Service Fund programs), consumer usage patterns, and what is actually available from and marketed by internet service providers. The Report concludes that advanced telecommunications capability is not being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion based on the total number of Americans, Americans in rural areas, and people living on Tribal lands who lack access to such capability, and the fact that these gaps in deployment are not closing rapidly enough.