House Lawmakers Eye Next Steps for USDA Broadband Program

During an April 20 hearing, multiple members of the House Agriculture Committee said they want to push their colleagues to move the Agriculture Department’s two-year-old ReConnect program, aimed at helping deliver broadband to rural lands, past its pilot stage. Committee Chairman David Scott (D-GA) said he wants his panel to be at “the vanguard” of tackling the digital divide. He said he hopes to put together legislation addressing broadband issues by the end of the year.  Lawmakers widely acknowledge tensions around how many different agencies deliver broadband subsidies, all relying on different metrics and data — issues that will likely matter as part of Biden’s push for $100 billion in broadband investments in his infrastructure plan.