House Approves $7.6 Billion for E-rate to Address Homework Gap

The House of Representatives approved President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion pandemic rescue plan in a 219 to 212 vote, sending the measure to the Senate as Democrats race to pass it into law before boosted unemployment payments expire in March. The legislation includes a $7.6 billion Emergency Connectivity Fund. For the duration of the ongoing pandemic, the fund will enable schools and libraries to connect students and library patrons to broadband services and devices. John Windhausen Jr., executive director of the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition, said, “For nearly a year now, millions of students and library patrons without home broadband access have been struggling to participate in online learning. The longer we wait to bridge this connectivity gap, the further these students and patrons fall behind on their education. The passage of today’s reconciliation bill is a welcome move to help learners of all ages. Furthermore, the legislation embodies SHLB’s ‘to and through’ approach by allowing schools and libraries to extend their broadband services to the surrounding communities. We applaud the House’s quick action and encourage the Senate to follow suit and greenlight the bill as soon as possible.”