1. Monthly archive
  2. July 2022

July 2022

US House Unanimously Passes Bill to Provide Refurbished Government Computers to US Veterans

The House of Representatives unanimously passed Rep Abigail Spanberger (D-VA)’s bipartisan bill that would help provide surplus computers to nonprofit computer refurbishers — who would then repair and distribute these federal computers to veterans and others in need. Spanberger’s Computers for Veterans and Students Act would allow certified, nonprofit refurbishing organizations to directly obtain, refurbish, and distribute repairable, surplus government computers to serve veterans, students, and seniors in need of a device.

Sponsor: 

House Commerce Committee

Date: 
Wed, 07/13/2022 - 11:00

Memorandum from Chairman Pallone to the Full Committee 

Bills to be considered include:

 


How Biden’s “Internet for All” Initiative Can Actually Fulfill Its Mission

The Biden administration has launched the Internet for All initiative, which may well be the boldest digital inclusion project in history, and aspires to close an essential gap in the world’s most valuable and second most evolved digital economy. The funding for the initiative draws from an unprecedented $65 billion sum from the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act earmarked for the purpose of closing the digital divide. The program, as designed, could lead to a misallocation of resources, as well as inefficiencies and gaps in coordination and implementation.

When Will Affordable Connectivity Program Funding Run Out?

On June 24, 2022, The Hill published our Op-Ed urging policymakers to fully fund the Affordable Connectivity Program. That Op-Ed predicted that funding for the program is likely to run out by mid-2024 and called for action at the state and federal levels to extend that funding. We’ve had some follow up questions on how we came up with our projections. Here we explain our projections.

Detroit to Put $10 Million Toward Open-Access Fiber Network

After Bruce Patterson’s success designing a network to serve the residents of Ammon (ID), he decided to depart and work to help other cities build similar open-access networks. Perhaps the most significant taker is the city of Detroit (MI) which is planning to use $10 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act to build a pilot open-access fiber network that will serve a neighborhood of about 3,200 households.

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