Federal

The Small Business Broadband and Emerging Information Technology Enhancement Act of 2022 (S. 3906) would require the Small Business Administration to hire a coordinator for and train employees on broadband and emerging information technologies and to complete a study and report to Congress. The act also would require small business development centers to help entrepreneurs access broadband and other emerging information technologies. CBO estimates that enacting S. 3906 would not affect direct spending or revenues.

House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr.

Wisconsin government and industry stakeholders met to discuss how the state can best spend up to $1.2 billion Wisconsin may receive for expanding high-speed internet. The funding comes as around 1.3 million people in Wisconsin still can’t access or afford broadband service. Around 650,000 residents lack access to high-speed internet or speeds of 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload. The Wisconsin Broadband Office also estimates another 650,000 people statewide can’t afford broadband.

Officials from Washington County (PA) are pressing ahead with an ambitious internet access expansion plan by earmarking up to $50 million to connect 5,000 homes, schools, and businesses. The project, which is the latest phase of a plan to connect all of the county, will unfold over six to nine months, leverage additional capital funds from vendors, and target poorly served areas for service, including the eight municipalities comprising the McGuffey School District, which is the most underserved school system in the county. Altogether, 700 miles of fiber optic cable will be strung in the la

The Federal Communications Commission proposed a plan to extend certain Universal Service Fund support to eligible mobile and fixed carriers in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands to ensure consumers have access to advanced telecommunications services in the face of hurricanes and other natural disasters.

The Federal Communications Commission voted to launch a proceeding to explore repurposing up to 550 megahertz in the 12.7 to 13.25 GHz band (12.7 GHz band) for next-generation wireless services.

New federal programs and resources through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act  provide an unprecedented opportunity to build on the existing infrastructure and expertise of our nation’s libraries to inform state digital equity plans and accelerate broadband adoption and skills building for all nationwide. Libraries provide:

The Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB) was established by Act 71 (2021), legislation relating to accelerated community broadband deployment, to coordinate, facilitate, support, and accelerate the development and implementation of universal community broadband solutions. The board develops policies and programs to accelerate community efforts that advance the state’s goal of achieving universal access to reliable, high-quality, affordable, fixed broadband achieving speeds of at least 100 Mbps symmetrical. On October 26, the U.S.

The Federal Communications Commission rejected dozens of requests from broadband providers to keep confidential the method that the providers use to identify broadband coverage areas. This was prompted by the FCC requiring each provider to explain to the agency how it determined broadband coverage areas in the latest round of gathering data for the FCC broadband maps.

US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is providing $759 million to bring high-speed internet access to people living and working across 24 states, Puerto Rico, Guam and Palau.