More Money Coming for Technology in Rural States?

Rural communities desperate for money to invest in technology upgrades and expanded broadband access could have a new best friend in Sen Kelly Ayotte (R-NH). She introduced legislation that would return 75 percent of all funds collected through the Universal Service Fund (USF) back to rural states.

Currently, a percentage of the USF is distributed back to states using a complex formula. The USF Equitable Distribution Act, S. 1766, would change the distribution formula and require that any state designated “rural” under the act would be given back 75 percent of their USF contributions. The Act defines “rural state” as having less than 200 people per square mile. According to Sen Ayotte’s office, New Hampshire only receives 37 percent of what it pays into the USF, paying $37.9 million to the fund in 2011, receiving $14.2 million back.