How the FCC misses the mark with bulk billing and digital discrimination

With the Federal Communications Commission's recent proposal to ban bulk billing arrangements in the multifamily industry, the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) has been hard at work to ensure policymakers understand the full impact on the multifamily broadband industry. NMHC has been successful in advocating to the FCC, and before Congress, educating them about the pro-consumer and pro-renter benefits of bulk internet and managed Wi-Fi. Congress has begun to weigh in on this issue, and NMHC has been encouraging the FCC to proceed very cautiously and not upend the multifamily broadband market, and potentially disconnect millions of Americans, along with raising the cost of broadband for millions more. Bulk billing has evolved into managed Wi-Fi, and together they are extremely beneficial to removing barriers to adoption and deployment of broadband to a broad range of residents, including the most vulnerable. Housing providers often include broadband bulk billing as an added benefit, negotiating lower broadband costs for residents compared to standard market rates. Prohibiting bulk internet agreements could negatively affect residents’ access to affordable broadband services, especially in rural and low-income areas, as well as smaller rental communities that face challenges in connectivity. This restriction could also deter future investments in broadband infrastructure, ultimately hampering efforts to bridge the digital divide.

Another recent area where the FCC has erred in its approach is in putting forward a final digital discrimination rule that goes far beyond what Congress intended and could end up harming renters and their access to affordable and reliable broadband. While NMHC supports the underlying goal of ending digital discrimination and has worked tirelessly on advancing digital equity policies, NMHC filed an appeal of this rule in federal court in early March. Again, NMHC strongly supports the goal of ending digital discrimination, yet believes that the FCC is significantly flawed in its approach. In its final rule, the FCC includes property owners as a “covered entity.” This would hold housing providers liable under the FCC’s enforcement plan if adequate broadband is not available to its renters.

[Kevin Donnelly is vice president of Government Affairs, Technology & Strategic Initiatives for the National Multifamily Housing Council. Valerie M. Sargent is a multifamily speaker, trainer and executive consultant, and is the multifamily news correspondent for Broadband Communities.]