Your State Needs Broadband Legislative Champions. Just Ask Louis Riggs
Wednesday, August 16, 2023
August 2023
Analysis
Analysis
2023 Rural Telecommunications Benchmark Study Results
In 2023, 167 rural telecommunications companies in 19 states participated in this study which provides benchmark results for the 2022 balance sheet and income statement and more than 37 other key metrics. The study calculates the percentage increase in operating expenses both with and without depreciation expense. Total operating expenses increased 5.1% in 2022 and without including depreciation expense, operating expenses increased 5.2%.
Gov. Ivey awards grants for broadband expansion in four north Alabama counties
Governor Kay Ivey (R-AL) awarded $7.86 million to continue expanding high-speed internet services in Alabama. The three grants, awarded from funds provided by the Alabama Legislature, will serve areas in Blount, Cullman, Marshall and Morgan counties. The expansion projects will make broadband service accessible for more than 6,700 households, businesses and community anchors. Community anchors include schools, fire and police departments, libraries, and other public buildings. Households and businesses must subscribe to paid service to receive broadband.
Fiber-Optic Cables Are Natural Earthquake Detectors (ieee spectrum)
Submitted by dclay@benton.org on Tue, 08/15/2023 - 13:10More than 20 million Americans enrolled in a federal program for subsidized internet access
More than 20 million US households are now receiving discounts on internet service as part of Federal Communications Commission's Affordable Connectivity Program. The program has continued to gain more than half a million new households a month since February 2023.
OMB releases Draft Guidance on Build America, Buy America (Office of Management and Budget)
Submitted by benton on Tue, 08/15/2023 - 11:49
The Impact of Remote Work
Working from home became necessary during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a survey done by the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research during May of 2020, 42% of all US workers worked from home and accounted for two-thirds of the nation’s gross domestic product. Therefore, work from home has become a feasible economic development strategy at the onset of COVID-19. This study gauges the contribution of workers from home in Indiana in 2021 by using the Regional Economic Modeling, Inc. (REMI) general equilibrium model.
In Letter to House Speaker McCarthy, Biden Administration Notes Need for Additional Funding for Affordable Broadband
With the end of the fiscal year quickly approaching, the Administration is transmitting a supplemental funding request to the Congress to address three sets of critical needs for emergency funding as part of a potential short-term continuing resolution for the first quarter of FY 2024: assistance for Ukraine and other foreign policy priorities, US disaster assistance, and border security.