Remarks of Assistant Secretary Redl at the Sept 28 White House 5G Summit

There are too many places in this country, especially in rural America, that lack the basic infrastructure that will be needed to enable 5G service. We have data that shows this. But we are currently relying too much on the Federal Communications Commission’s Form 477 data, which only tells part of the story. If we want all Americans to have the kind of broadband access needed to compete in the modern world, we need to know the full story. That’s why Congress directed the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to improve data associated with the national broadband map. At the beginning of summer 2018, NTIA asked for comments from the public on ways to increase the quality and accuracy of broadband availability data. We received 53 sets of comments indicating a variety of data sources and approaches that we can use to support these efforts. Our plan now is to take a phased approach to collecting the data we need to make a broadband availability map that shows the true picture of where we are. We will be working with states that already have collected broadband availability data, or had otherwise strong broadband programs. This will allow us to get the most value for the resources allocated to us by Congress. By the end of 2018 we will be issuing a request for proposals for additional data, and a technology service provider that will help us integrate all of the data sources we can bring together.