President Trump's Infrastructure Plan Unveiled, And It's Light on Broadband

President Donald Trump’s long-awaited infrastructure proposal was finally unveiled on February 12, 2018. The 10-year plan for "rebuilding infrastructure in America" calls for $200 billion of federal seed money that the Administration projects will generate $1.5 trillion by incentivizing states, localities, and private investors. “We will build gleaming new roads, bridges, highways, railways and waterways all across our land,” the fact sheet begins, quoting President Trump’s State of the Union address. “And we will do it with American heart and American hands and American grit.” Broadband, and closing our country’s digital divide, is one area many were hoping would get specific federal  spending. Just a couple of weeks ago, we reported how big a problem (in billions) it is to close the digital divide. Democrats on the House Communications subcommittee cited a 2017 Federal Communications Commission report that estimates a $40 billion investment is necessary to deploy fixed broadband service to 98 percent of the United States. Projected costs rise to $80 billion to reach 100 percent of the population. [Of note: the the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband Coalition released research this week finding that it will cost $13 billion to $19 billion just to connect all unserved community anchor institutions in the continental U.S. and Hawaii.] So where does broadband deployment fit into President Trump’s infrastructure plan? It gets squeezed in. Sorta.