State

Devon Braunstein is taking the helm as Deputy Director of the Illinois Office of Broadband at the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity and Matt Schmit is poised to join the Illinois Broadband Lab at the University of Illinois System as Senior Director for Broadband.

The Washington State Public Works Board (PWB) recently approved $21 million in critical infrastructure projects in 10 communities for broadband construction, pre-construction, and emergency funding. Taking action at its May 3, 2024 business meeting, the PWB approved $20 million to expand broadband access in unserved communities, $550,000 for two pre-construction projects, and two emergency infrastructure projects for $514,500.

Windstream, Colquitt Electric Membership Cooperative (EMC) and Lowndes County (GA), are teaming up on a $39 million public-private partnership to bring broadband to about 16,000 locations in the county. Windstream is contributing about $17.6 million. The other $21.7 million is funded through the Georgia State Fiscal Recovery Fund and the county. Windstream will handle cost overruns. The project, which will provide multi-gigabit service to users, will include 806 miles of fiber.

The Affordable Connectivity Program has 23 million participants nationwide—including 1.9 million households in New York State and nearly 1 million households in New York City. As broadband access becomes increasingly essential for connecting with education, employment, and services—and New Yorkers grapple with a widespread affordability crisis—New York can’t afford to reverse course on making broadband more affordable. Congress still has time to act in May to reauthorize funding for the ACP and New York’s congressional delegation should lead the charge.

Broadband provider United Communications and majority owner Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE) are partnering to expand the scope of a major fiber buildout that they undertook in 2023. They are expanding a fiber build in Williamson County, Tennessee. Construction in that county was initially designed to reach 2,800 addresses but the new target is 8,000 locations. Funding for the initial stage of the Williamson County project came through Project UNITE, an initiative consisting of United, MTE and Duck River Electric Membership Corporation.

Librarians are mounting a fierce state-by-state battle against the high prices they pay to provide patrons with e-books—so far, with little to show for it. Th

The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled recently that federal telecommunications law does not stop states from regulating broadband rates. This was in relation to a 2018 law passed by the State of New York that required internet service providers (ISPs) to offer low-income rate plans for as low as $15 per month. ISPs appealed the new law, and a US District Court issued an injunction against the law. The recent ruling overturned that injunction and puts the law back into effect.

Governor Bill Lee (R-TN) and Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) Commissioner Stuart McWhorter announced that Tennessee will award $162.7 million in broadband and digital opportunity grants. In total, these investments will provide broadband access and digital opportunity programs to more than 236,000 Tennesseans across 92 counties. With this announcement, TNECD has invested more than $715 million to expand the state’s broadband infrastructure, connecting more than 689,000 Tennesseans across 275,000 residential and business locations.

Elon Musk’s satellite internet service, Starlink, is expected to play a role in the Biden administration’s $42 billion program to bring high-speed internet to every American home, as Washington comes up against some hard math in its effort to build networks reaching the most remote corners of the nation. The growing discussion of using Starlink to fill in coverage gaps is an acknowledgment of just how expensive and challenging it would be to run new internet cables up every mountain and down every valley nationwide.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) is reminding Wisconsin residents that, due to congressional inaction, the Federal Communications Commission’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is currently winding down, and no further ACP payments will be provided after the month of May. Initial ACP funding made available in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has almost run out. Unless Congress provides additional funding for the program, the ACP is set to expire soon. A replacement for the ACP does not currently exist.