Letter

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.

We write to request information about the security risks posed by cellular connectivity modules provided by companies subject to the jurisdiction, direction, or control of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) or the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Connectivity modules are components that enable Internet of Things (IoT) devices—from cars to medical equipment to tractors—to connect to the internet. Connectivity modules are typically controlled remotely and are the necessary link between the device and the internet.

We write concerning the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Implementing the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) “Prevention and Elimination of Digital Discrimination” (Docket/RM 22-69). We urge you to take swift action to adopt final rules to facilitate equal access to broadband internet.  Congress intended Section 60506 to require internet service providers to end discrimination resulting from programs and policies that perpetuate systemic barriers for people of color and other underserved groups.

In January 2023, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) publicly released a report which makes nine recommendations to assist the Federal Communications Commission  enhance the Affordable Connectivity Program’s (ACP) performance goals and measures, language translation process, consumer outreach plan, and various processes for managing fraud risk. The FCC  has undertaken an aggressive and robust corrective plan to address and resolve each of GAO’s nine recommendations.

It is critical that we address a pending issue that could negatively affect our efforts toward eliminating the digital divide. Funding for the Federal Communications Commission’s Affordable Connectivity Program will expire in the summer of 2024 unless it is reauthorized. Granting access to high-speed internet without addressing affordability will prevent hundreds of thousands of Louisianians from maximizing the effects of this service on their lives. Thus, reauthorization of ACP funding is a crucial step toward eliminating the digital divide.

The Chairs of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congressional Black Caucus, and Congressional Hispanic Caucus wrote to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to urge quick action to replenish one of the Biden-Harris Administration’s signature initiatives – the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP)—created in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The Biden-Harris Administration has consistently led on internet access and affordability issues and has done more to close the digital divide than its predecessors.

We write to express our strong support for the Federal Communications Commission’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) and to urge Congress to allocate additional funding to this crucial initiative. By investing in the FCC’s ACP, we can address the existing digital disparities faced by people with disabilities and promote a more inclusive and equitable society.

WTA—Advocates for Rural Broadband filed a letter in opposition to a proposal by the Coalition of RDOF Winners which seeks substantial post-auction supplemental additions to the support amounts, as well as significant changes to the distribution schedules and other terms and conditions, for which the Coalition’s members made winning low bids and agreed to accept during the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) reverse auction.

On June 12, 2023, Sens Roger Wicker (R-MS), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), and JD Vance (R-OH) wrote the Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel seeking additional funding for Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) Phase I auction winners.

In May 2023, about three dozen Members of the House of Representatives wrote to the Federal Communications Commission urging the FCC to complete work on updating  Alternative Connect America Cost Model (ACAM) and Connect America Fund-Broadband Loop Support (CAF-BLS), two universal service mechanisms that have been and remain critical to delivery of broadband in rural America. On June 20, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel replied to the letter noting that she had circulated a Report and Order for her colleagues’ consideration that would create the Enhanced A-CAM program.