A Report Card for Broadband Projects Funded by the American Rescue Plan

States and localities find themselves in a historic moment in relation to broadband investment. There is unprecedented federal funding for broadband infrastructure and adoption appropriated for distribution by state and local governments. Stakeholders like members of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) have an interest in ensuring public officials work to ensure that publicly funded infrastructure projects are transparent, equitable, and contribute to creating high-quality career jobs. This report card evaluates fourteen county-level broadband projects funded through the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds on how well they incorporated transparency, equity, and labor standards within their selection process, with a total available score of 20 points per project. The United States is in the midst of an extensive publicly subsidized broadband buildout to bring essential connectivity to unserved and underserved locations, and it is vital to ensure that publicly funded infrastructure projects are transparent, equitable, and contribute to creating high-quality career jobs.