Internet regulation matters to U.S. economic recovery

[Commentary] As policymakers puzzle over ways to put the U.S. economy on a more stable footing, many have overlooked two reports from 2011 that point to a root of our lingering economic problems, and to a possible solution.

• The first report, an annual survey by the Federal Communications Commission, found that the rate of U.S. consumers adopting high-speed Internet is falling behind that of broadband superpowers like South Korea and Denmark, where people pay less to cruise along a faster Web.
• The second report, from the McKinsey Global Institute, finds that Internet access has a significant impact on growth, jobs and wealth creation across all sectors of the economy, contributing more to the national GDPs of developed countries than energy, agriculture and several other critical industries. For the Internet to continue as a driver of economic growth both in the Pacific Northwest and beyond, governments need to "leverage" public spending on deployment to kick-start innovation.

America's declining Internet standing is reason for concern. But are our politicians even paying attention?