US Department of Commerce

Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Graves, Congressman Mike Doyle (D-PA), and Mayor Bill Peduto (D-PA) hosted a roundtable discussion to address the increasing need for high-speed, affordable internet access in the Pittsburgh (PA) area and across the US. At the Energy Innovation Center in Pittsburgh, Deputy Secretary Graves opened the roundtable by stressing the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic exposed how wide the digital divide is in America and how much Americans rely on broadband for schools, jobs and telemedicine.

The US Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $2.4 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to Ann Arbor SPARK, Ann Arbor (MI), to construct 20 miles of underground fiber optic cable in the cities of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti to attract and retain high-tech businesses, specifically in the growing mobility sector.

Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced that Zhongxing Telecommunications Equipment Corporation, of Shenzhen, China (“ZTE Corporation”) and ZTE Kangxun Telecommunications Ltd. of Hi-New Shenzhen, China (“ZTE Kangxun”) (collectively, “ZTE”) has agreed to severe additional penalties and compliance measures to replace the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) denial order imposed as a result of ZTE’s violations of its March 2017 settlement agreement.

The US Department of Commerce and the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) announced that all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands have accepted FirstNet and AT&T’s proposals to design and build a broadband network for the public safety community. Guam, the Pacific Territories of American Samoa, and the Mariana Islands have until March 12, 2018, to make their decision.