NCTA Hails Farm Bill's RUS Loan Reforms

The cable industry's main trade association hailed congressional passage Thursday of a massive farm bill that would reduce the flow of broadband subsidies into rural markets where the technology already exists. In recent years, the cable industry has complained that the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service has been subsidizing broadband network construction in markets already served by cable incumbents, ignoring the intent of Congress to assist broadband deployment in unserved areas. "This legislation sharpens the focus of the RUS's Broadband Loan Program by limiting loans in areas where competition already exists, and targeting loans to areas without widespread access to broadband service," said Kyle McSlarrow, president of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association. In general, the bill would tighten the definition of a rural area and tie loan eligibility to the percentage of homes with access to just a single broadband provider.
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