Internet2, ACUTA and EDUCAUSE Submit National Broadband Plan Comments

Internet2, ACUTA and EDUCAUSE have jointly submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission on the development of a national broadband plan. These joint comments concentrate on five areas: 1) goals and benchmarks, 2) the middle mile and the last mile, 3) proposed solutions, 4) evaluation, and 5) other policy goals. Offering their members' expertise as a resource for the FCC, the three groups said they are "concerned about the inadequate level of broadband connectivity" and its impact on higher education. The comments encourage the FCC to support the prioritization of ARRA grants that focus on extending "middle mile" network facilities into communities with the goal of enhancing connectivity to so-called "anchor institutions" such as K-12 schools, colleges and universities, libraries, and community centers, and emphasized the importance of campuses having access to "the highest broadband speeds available" in order to promote research and development in the United States. The filings also recommend that the FCC work more closely with state and regional research and education networks in more than 30 states, to extend the capabilities of their regional backbone networks deeper into the communities they serve and continue to involve these networks in ongoing programs like the Universal Service Fund which has been key to initiatives like the Rural Healthcare Pilot Program.