Federal
House Commerce Committee questions National Telecommunications and Information Administration's Alan Davidson on Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment
'Tis the season for the House Commerce Committee to hold oversight hearings of federal telecommunications agencies. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) Alan Davidson took the hot seat, answering questions on implementation of the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, spectrum policy and more. The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) was a recurring topic of discussion throughout the hearing, and one Assistant Secretary Davidson raised in his opening statement.
The ACP Helps Millions Afford Internet. It Could Be Gone by Next Year
According to projections from the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society and the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, sometime around the middle of 2024, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) will run out of money.
How Monopolies and Maps Are Killing ‘Internet for All’
The Biden administration’s $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law devotes $65 billion to a moon shot mission, involving all 50 states and U.S. territories, to bridge the digital divide once and for all.
In a New York State of Digital Equity
In November 2023, the Empire State Development’s ConnectALL Office released the draft New York State Digital Equity Plan and sought public comment on how New York will bridge the digital divide in the state.
Rep Shri Thanedar (D-MI) Introduces The "Digital Literacy and Equity Commission" Bill to Enhance Digital Competence
Rep Shri Thanedar (D-MI) introduced a new bill, the "Digital Literacy and Equity Commission," aimed at enhancing digital literacy and addressing digital inequity across the United States. Without internet access, many students are falling behind due to online learning or an inability to complete schoolwork, known as the “homework gap.” Key aspects of the bill include:
-
Establishment of the Commission: A new commission to study and promote digital literacy.

Citizens Against Government Waste Reviews First 10 States' Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Proposals
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) included $42.45 billion for broadband funding across the country, made available through the National Technology and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) sent comments to the NTIA prior to the release of the agency’s guidance for the BEAD program, urging the agency to “take a vendor and technology neutral approach to issuing grant funding,” and avoid supporting government owned networks, among other recommendations. After these recommendations were

BEAD’s Middle Class Affordability Requirement
One of the most perplexing requirements for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program is that state broadband plans must include a middle-class affordability plan to make sure that all consumers have access to affordable broadband. I don’t know anybody who fully understands what this means.
The battle to stop broadband discrimination has only just begun
For the better part of a generation, low-income and minority US communities have struggled to gain access to affordable broadband.
Task Force for Reviewing the Connectivity and Technology Needs of Precision Agriculture in the United States
The Task Force for Reviewing the Connectivity and Technology Needs of Precision Agriculture in the United States finds that access to broadband infrastructure is not readily available in rural America, despite it having become a fundamental necessity. The Task Force seeks to address these gaps with recommendations that advise the federal government on ways it can improve access to reliable, scalable, and low latency broadband access, specifically on rural and agricultural lands.

FCC Proposes $22 Million in Fines for Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Defaults
In this Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NAL), the Federal Communications Commission identifies two Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) Phase I Auction (Auction 904) applicants that defaulted on their bids for support on August 10, 2022, and May 23, 2023, in apparent violation of the FCC’s rules (see applicants below). In light of the applicants’ defaults spanning 7,482 Census Block Groups (CBGs), this NAL proposes forfeitures for each of the two Auction 904 defaulters. The proposed forfeitures assessed here total $22,446,000.