As May nears its final days, so does the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The ACP, which entered a partial payment period at the start of the month, will officially end on May 31, unless Congress decides to save it. While there are myriad efforts underway to compromise on a path forward, saving the program is still seen as unlikely. "As time goes on, the ISPs and ACP recipients will adjust to a post ACP world, with new funding and new requirements adding to what is already an administrative and customer service challenge," said Blair Levin in an analyst note for New Street Research. The latest and ongoing paths under consideration are:

• On May 20, House Rep. Brandon Williams (R-NY) announced new legislation to fund the ACP with $6 billion, with alterations. Dubbed the Affordable Connectivity Program Improvement and Extension Act of 2024, the legislation would refund the ACP with $6 billion by amending the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024.
• Efforts are still somewhat underway to fund the ACP via spectrum legislation, through a proposal from Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA). However, a Senate markup session on that bill was twice delayed, and leading Democrats and Republicans remain at odds, with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), an ACP opponent, proposing an amendment to slash the benefit in urban areas and spend half of ACP's budget on auditing.
• Following the failure to amend the FAA bill, Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) introduced that amendment as a standalone bill in the Senate. As of this writing, the bill text had yet to be published, but the legislation had five bipartisan co-sponsors, including: Senators JD Vance (R-OH), Steve Daines (R-MT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Peter Welch (D-VT) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV).
• The ACP Extension Act, a bill in the House to fund the program with $7 billion—introduced by Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY) in January—still has the most visible bipartisan support, with 230 co-sponsors, including 24 Republicans, according to congress.gov. But neither that bill, nor a discharge petition to vote on the bill without the blessing of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), has seen movement, despite technically having enough support to pass the House.

The Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act (IIJA) became law in November 2021, allocating billions of dollars for upgrades and expansion of the nation’s infrastructure. Funding was awarded to various sectors including $65 billion for broadband. The funding is designed to ensure wide broadband access and to promote digital inclusion so that “individuals and communities have the information technology capacity that is needed for full participation in the society and economy of the United States.” In this article, we examine IIJA program funding distribution in the states in the Federal Reserve’s Eleventh District (Texas, Louisiana and New Mexico) and shed light on the reasons behind grant variations across states. We found that:

• Texas leads both the district and country in total Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) funding to date, with over $3.3 billion allocated to the state.
• On a per capita basis, New Mexico is leading the Eleventh District states with $487 per resident, followed by Louisiana at $297 and Texas at $114.
• Differences in per capita funding can be due to various factors such as funding formulas, program requirements and the competitive grant application process.
• As of the time of this report, funding opportunities for communities include the BEAD program and digital equity subprograms.

Bob Latta (R-OH5) introduced a Congressional Resolution disapproving of the Federal Communications Commission’s recently announced rule to reclassify broadband under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, essentially reclassifying broadband as a public utility: “It’s incredulous we’re having the debate again about the FCC’s so-called ‘net neutrality’ order when its repeal in 2017 led to lower prices, faster Internet speeds, and increased investment in broadband networks. Once again, the Biden administration is prioritizing heavy-handed government control, made evident in the FCC’s latest push to control the Internet. That’s why I’m introducing a Congressional Resolution Act today to overturn this misguided decision and to keep the agency from imposing stifling regulations that will hinder our ability to expand broadband Internet access and close the digital divide.”

The Federal Communications Commission proposed new rules to ensure that wireless equipment authorizations are not compromised by entities that have been found to pose national security concerns. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will launch a proceeding to ensure that telecommunications certification bodies (TCBs) and measurement facilities (test labs) that participate in the Commission’s equipment authorization program are not influenced by untrustworthy actors. This new proceeding would permanently prohibit entities on the FCC’s Covered List from playing any role in the equipment authorization program while also providing the FCC and its national security partners the necessary tools to safeguard this important process.