July 2022

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel recently proposed raising the minimum broadband speed requirement in the US to 100 Mbps for downloads and 20 Mbps for uploads. The move was generally well-received, but long overdue at a time when median download and upload speeds among US service providers still rank below several other nations. Still, Fiber Broadband Association President and CEO Gary Bolton said the FCC’s ongoing focus on speed minimums is a misguided approach.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced it has awarded the first five grants as part of the Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program (CMC). Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves announced the grants at an event in New York with Mercy College, one of the first grant recipients.