State Broadband Policies: New York Tops in Survey

New York has the most favorable conditions for broadband deployment and adoption of 48 US states, according to a new survey. The survey about state broadband policies was conducted by Strategic Networks Group (SNG) and Rural Telecommunications Congress (RTC). SNG is a business that measures how broadband is used by individual businesses, organizations and households. RTC is a non-profit organization focused on rural broadband issues.

Just behind New York on the list of states with the most positive broadband policies were Ohio, Maine, New Mexico and New Hampshire. The state with the least positive policies was Texas, which ranked just below Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Montana. The survey about state broadband policies based its findings on five categories of factors, including broadband availability, adoption, driving meaningful use, growth investment and regulation. The broadband availability and adoption data came from the Federal Communications Commission. A state’s ranking on “meaningful use” was determined by its broadband training/ education programs and whether the state tracks or estimates the social and economic benefits of broadband.