Chairman Pai’s Response to Sen Markey and Rep Eshoo Regarding Broadband Mapping

On April 3, 2020, Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rep Anna Eshoo (D-CA) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to ensure that as the FCC begins the mapping efforts required under the Broadband DATA Act (which President Donald Trump signed on March 23, 2020), that the FCC include community anchor institutions such as health care facilities, schools, and libraries.

On May 27, Chairman Pai responded by referencing the August 2019 Digital Opportunity Data Collection (DODC) Report and Order, aimed at generating more granular and more precise broadband maps through the creation of the DODC. "Accordingly, under the Report and Order, a crowd-sourcing portal will allow individual consumers, as well as state, local, and Tribal government entities, including the community anchor institutions you reference in your letter, to submit public input on the accuracy of the data on the public fixed broadband availability map." He wrote, "In closing, I would reiterate it is vital for Congress to provide the FCC as soon as possible with the appropriations necessary to implement the Broadband DATA Act. Right now, the FCC does not have the funding to carry out the Act, and given the Act's prohibition on the Universal Service Administrative Company performing this mapping work, if Congress does not act soon, this well-intentioned legislation will have the unfortunate effect of delaying rather than expediting the development of better broadband maps."