Federal Communications Commission

The Federal Communications Commission announced that it is committing $240,888,016 in its eighth wave of Emergency Connectivity Fund program support. The funding commitments will support over 600,000 students and provide funding for 693 schools, 55 libraries and 8 consortia in 49 states, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the District of Columbia. The institutions are approved to receive nearly 683,000 connected devices and 182,000 broadband connections. Since its June 2021 launch, the program has committed over $4.4 billion in support.

This $14.2 billion investment, a byproduct of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, is the biggest program we have ever had to help ensure that every family can afford the broadband that is now essential for full participation in modern life." The chairwoman highlighted a number of additions to the Affordable Connectivity Program's rules, including "updated income qualifications" for the program, which "will open the door for more families to receive support." Chairwoman Rosenworcel stressed the importance of outreach to ensure the efficacy of the Affordable Connectivity Program, sayi

The rules repeatedly affirm our decision to spend that money in ways that advance our digital equity goals. I am proud that my colleagues adopted my recommendation to commit to deploying the new tools Congress gave us with 'particular emphasis on reaching people of color, persons with disabilities, persons who live in rural or Tribal areas, and others who are or have been historically unserved, marginalized, or adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality.' I intend to make sure we follow through on that commitment.

For the most part, I am very satisfied with the resulting order, which incorporated extensive feedback from all commissioners’ offices, industry, and other groups outside of the FCC.

I have been focused on ensuring that every dollar the FCC allocates through its programs goes to the families that Congress intended to benefit. And that is why I have been raising serious concerns since the beginning of last year about the risk of massive levels of waste, fraud, and abuse [in the Affordable Connectivity Program].

In this Order, the Federal Communications Commission adopts final rules for the Affordable Connectivity Program, which builds upon the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program (EBB Program), to offer eligible low-income households discounts off the cost of broadband service and connected devices.

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel shared a Report and Order and Declaratory Ruling that would promote competition and increase choice for broadband services for people living and working in multiple tenant environments (MTEs). The measures, if adopted, would halt practices that evade long-existing FCC rules intended to allow tenants to choose their own provider. To promote broadband competition and deployment in MTEs, the Order and Declaratory Ruling, if adopted by a vote of the full FCC, would:

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced the appointment of a diverse group of leading technology experts to serve as members of the Technological Advisory Council (TAC). The TAC will hold its first meeting on Monday, February 28, 2022, beginning at 10:00 am EDT via video conference and will be available online. The advisory council provides technical expertise to the FCC to identify important areas of innovation and develop informed technology policies.