Texas Releases its 2022 Broadband Plan

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar released the initial 2022 Texas Broadband Plan on June 15. The new broadband plan, from Texas' Broadband Development Office (BDO) outlines the state's goals for improving broadband access and affordability. Most notably, Fierce reports, the BDO aims to develop a statewide broadband map by January 2023. The mapping focus stems from the BDO’s concern that the Federal Communications Commission’s current broadband maps “are not an accurate representation of the served, underserved and unserved areas in Texas.” The BDO formulated the state's report based on survey responses from over 16,000 Texas residents, as well as insights from various roundtable discussions. The report added the granular data from the BDO’s map “will help quantify the digital divide in ways that are impossible at the drafting of this initial plan.” The BDO also emphasized interagency cooperation, both on the state and federal levels, is critical to obtaining more broadband funding. Only 11 percent of elected Texas officials indicated they have enough financial resources to meet their community’s broadband needs.