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  2. November 2021

November 2021

3G shutdowns could leave most vulnerable without a connection

Consumer advocates say the 3G shutdown will leave some of society’s most vulnerable people without critical communications tools. Many devices have moved to 4G networks and newer phones are now moving onto 5G. But a motley assortment still relies on the more rudimentary 3G service and consumer advocates are urging the Federal Communications Commission to slow the change, which is set to start in February 2022. Older and low-income Americans are more likely to be affected by the shift.

Sponsor: 

Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

Date: 
Wed, 11/17/2021 - 10:00

A virtual discussion where panelists will explore current and emerging uses of technology that affect the equity of opportunity in employment, education, housing, and financial well-being.

Panelists will also discuss the state of reforms and interventions that can shift technology innovation toward more equitable outcomes and technical mechanisms for ensuring that AI use does not erode civil rights and liberties.


ViaSat Urges FCC Not to Approve SpaceX for Any Rural Digital Opportunity Funding

ViaSat sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission urging the Commission not to approve any Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) funding for ViaSat’s satellite broadband competitor SpaceX. SpaceX is in the process of deploying thousands of low earth orbit (LEO) satellites to provide broadband service with lower latency in comparison with the geostationary satellite broadband service that ViaSat offers. SpaceX was one of the biggest winners in the RDOF auction and was tentatively awarded $885 million to cover some of the costs of providing broadband to unserved rural areas.

The infrastructure bill devotes $65 billion to broadband. Now what?

President Biden signed Congress's $1.2 trillion infrastructure package into law, including a whopping $65 billion to expand broadband access. Now, it's up to federal agencies, states and civil society groups to implement it. The bill prioritized broadband projects that target unserved communities — as laid out in the bill, that means communities that either have no broadband access or lack sufficient speeds.

When Do We Get Our Broadband?

Having waited patiently for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, now people want to know what happens next—when will we all get our broadband? For now, the action shifts from Congress to key federal agencies that will implement the broadband provisions of the new law.

President Biden’s Executive Order on Implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

On November 15, President Biden signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal into law–historic legislation to rebuild crumbling infrastructure, create good-paying jobs, and grow the economy. To coordinate the law's effective implementation, President Biden signed an Executive Order outlining the Administration's implementation priorities and establishing an Infrastructure Implementation Task Force. The Executive Order lays out six main priorities to guide implementation across the Federal government.

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