Housing Secretary Donovan Compares National Broadband Plan to Interstate Highway System

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan on Tuesday compared broadband expansion in the United States to the development of the interstate highway system under President Eisenhower, speaking at America's Digital Inclusion Summit. Also speaking at the event was Federal Communications Commissioner Chairman Julius Genachowski, who addressed the various impacts of broadband on the wider economy and the need for expansion in order to spur innovation. Chairman Genachowski also commented on the fact that the United States has fallen behind on key metrics; once number two globally, the United States has fallen to a distant 15 in connectivity. As for Sec Donovan, he said that access to the Internet is crucial for citizens economic growth. "We see our work as fundamentally a gateway to opportunity" by giving citizens access to the Internet they are able to expand their knowledge and find new and better opportunities, he said. The largest limiting factors for the non-adopters who have access are cost of access (both of a computer and Internet service) and digital literacy.