Adoption

Digital inequities allow the digital divide to thrive in the most under-resourced communities. Proof of inequity rarely surfaces in isolation and has a compound effect by multiplying the impact of disadvantage. This research was designed to explore three primary questions. First, is there a predominant race and socioeconomic class of the populations most frequently impacted by the digital divide? Second, does the digital divide impose a collective cost that is shared with digitally disadvantaged and connected households? Third, should investing in digital equity be a national priority?

Governor Phil Scott (R-VT) and Rep Peter Welch (D-VT) joined the Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) and community leaders to announce over $16 million in broadband construction grants that will bring fiber broadband speeds to residents of Bolton and several towns in the Northeast Kingdom (VT). The first grant approved by the VCBB was awarded to the Communications Union District serving the NEK.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)'s definition of reliable broadband service in the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program grant rules says that any grant cannot be used to overbuild a reliable broadband technology that meets or exceeds the 100/20 Mbps speed threshold of the grants.

The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) encouraged the Federal Communications Commission to involve trusted community organizations in outreach efforts for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). NDIA submitted comments to the FCC regarding the implementation of an ACP outreach grant program and a pilot program focused on promoting ACP enrollment among households participating in Federal Public Housing Assistance programs In addition to the $14.2 billion Congress provided

There is a lot to appreciate in the recently published Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) by the National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA). It is arguably the first federal government proposal that seeks to promote infrastructure policies focused on the future, rather than the usual subsidizing “good enough for now” access. That means that the US government, or at least part of it, finally recognizes what appears obvious: that the future of internet access is in fiber.

The White House made much ado of an announcement that it had secured commitments from a collection of large Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to adjust speed tiers and monthly costs for their existing plans so as to be able to offer a $30/month, minimum 100 megabit per second (Mbps) download offering for low-income households across the country.

Gov Tom Wolf (D-PA) was joined by Department of Commerce Under Secretary Jed Kolko at Marion-Walker Elementary in Centre County (PA) to highlight the Biden-Harris Administration’s $45 billion Internet for All Initiative and Pennsylvania’s readiness to manage more than $100 million in federal funds to deploy affordable, high-speed internet to Pennsylvanians. The Department of Commerce announced the launch of Internet for All to provide affordable, reliable, high-speed internet for everyone in America by the end of the decade.

Gov Gavin Newsom (D-CA) announced that California is awarding new contracts that will supply the materials necessary for building 3,000 miles of broadband infrastructure.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has established basic rules for the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) grants in the recent Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). One of the most important aspects of the rules that potential applicants need to understand relates to funding and financing. Note that the NOFO instructs the States what it expects to be included in each state’s broadband grant program for the BEAD funding. The first set of rules concerns the amount of grant funding.

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