1. Monthly archive
  2. March 2024

March 2024

Sen Rosen Leads Colleagues in Push to Secure Funding for Affordable Connectivity Program in Forthcoming Package

A group of 33 senators urged Senate leadership to include funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) as part of future must-pass legislation, including the next government funding package. We write to urge you to take immediate action to fund the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) and the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program. Both of these programs are vital for closing the digital divide, by making connectivity affordable to millions of working families and ensuring providers are able to continue serving rural communities.

Public officials can be held liable for blocking critics on social media

The Supreme Court ruled that public officials who post about topics relating to their work on their personal social media accounts are acting on behalf of the government, and therefore can be held liable for violating the First Amendment when they block their critics, only when they have the power to speak on behalf of the state and are actually exercising that power. The court’s decisions came in a pair of cases, involving local officials in California and Michigan who blocked constituents who made repetitive and critical comments on their personal social media accounts.

The Affordable Connectivity Program Creates $16.2 Billion in Annual Benefits to Subscribers

Created by Congress in 2020 and renewed in 2021, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is helping 23.3 million households afford internet access. But funding for ACP—the largest, most successful internet affordability program in US history—is set to expire on May 30, 2024. This week, President Joe Biden proposed short- and long-term funding solutions in his budget. And a House bill to provide funding through the end of 2024 had 180 cosponsors in the House of Representatives.

Sponsor 

Federal Communications Commission

Date 
Wed, 03/27/2024 - 10:00 to 14:00

 

10:00 am: Welcome and Opening of Meeting

  • Rodney McDonald, Designated Federal Officer, CEDC, Wireline Competition Bureau, FCC
  • Jessica Rosenworcel, Chairwoman Federal Communications Commission
  • Sanford Williams, Deputy Chief of Staff for Chairwoman Rosenworcel Federal Communications Commission

10:12 am: Introduction of DFO & Deputy DFOs


Spectrum Launches Gigabit Broadband, Mobile, TV and Voice Services in Walworth County, Wisconsin

Spectrum announced the launch of Spectrum Internet, Mobile, TV and Voice services to approximately 400 homes and small businesses throughout rural Walworth County, Wisconsin. Spectrum’s newly constructed fiber-optic network buildout includes parts of the city and town of Whitewater and the towns of LaGrange and Sugar Creek.

Analysis

Broadband Provisions in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024

Benton Institute for Broadband & Society

Friday, March 15, 2024

© 1994-2025 Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. All Rights Reserved.