Close the learning gap by providing broadband access to all Californians

Lack of access to the internet means lack of access to education – an effect that has been made even more urgent as school has moved online in response to COVID-19. Already districts up and down the state that serve 1.4 million students have announced that they will begin the 2020 school year with students learning from home, and we can be sure that more announcements are coming. Right now in California, nearly 1 in 3 school-aged children lack access to the robust broadband networks they need to effectively engage in remote learning. For Los Angeles Unified School District, where instruction continued online during the pandemic, only one in four students had the resources they needed to take part in online learning before the pandemic started. California’s digital divide is now putting families at risk of losing out on learning, or of jeopardizing their health and safety. 

We must invest in high quality broadband for all Californians. Legislation that would do just that is already moving through the Legislature, though it is just a matter of time before the industry attempts to kill it. Introduced by state Sen. Lena Gonzalez, Senate Bill 1130, “Broadband for California,” would make existing funds for broadband accessible to all communities in the state and ensure that projects built with these funds are future-proof and have more open-access to our communities. These changes will see an increase in broadband while at the same time ensuring that scarce state dollars are invested in high-quality internet networks that will last communities for decades. 

[State Sen. Lena Gonzalez represents the 33rd Senate District. James P. Steyer is CEO and founder of Common Sense Media]