The 25th Anniversary of the Telecommunications Act of 1996: The E-Rate Provision

A growing concern as we considered telecommunications reform efforts in the early 1990s was the creation or emergence of a “digital divide.” It is an issue that remains with us today. In the early 90s, there was a desire to harness the awesome power of advanced, digital communications services to enhance education. My boss, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), was concerned, however, that wealthy households would obtain computers and access to the information riches of the emerging “information superhighway” in ways that would naturally advantage their children educationally, while less wealthy households would fall behind. There was a risk that de facto electronic redlining in deploying new infrastructure and services would unfold, disadvantaging minority households. So we started to raise alarm bells about this. We also found a powerful ally. In August of 1993, one of the most memorable moments for me as a telecommunications policy staffer for Chairman Markey, including as his eventual lead staffer on TA96, was when he and I had lunch at the Willard Hotel in Washington with filmmaker/producer George Lucas of Star Wars fame. Lucas had founded The George Lucas Educational Foundation and was quite interested in educational technology issues. Over lunch, Lucas and Rep Markey talked about their shared goal of ensuring that the upcoming effort to overhaul the nation’s telecommunications laws would include provisions to enhance education and equality of opportunity. They quickly agreed that every classroom and public library should be connected, and also discussed the benefits of including other community anchor institutions as well.

[Colin Crowell is Vice President of Global Public Policy and Philanthropy at Twitter. Prior to Twitter, Crowell worked for over two decades for then-Congressman, now Senator Ed Markey (D-MA).]