Level of Government

The Digital Equity Act, with an allocated $2.75 billion budget, is the largest investment in digital inclusion efforts to date. Along with the other broadband provisions in the law, the DEA is the most active systemic approach to closing the digital divide in US history. There is great potential that this essential funding, which will support communities across the country in closing the digital divide, is at risk of being cut, paused, or endlessly delayed.

The Universal Service Fund has done little or nothing for universal service. Mobile phones and the internet have become ubiquitous in rural areas and among those of low income. Most schools, libraries, and healthcare facilities have been hooked up for years (to the dismay of many teachers). This is thanks to the alacrity of today’s high technology, massive private investments, profound improvements in service quality and proficiency, and constantly falling prices.

The Federal Communications Commission proposed rules to help ensure that emerging Next Generation 911 networks are reliable and interoperable, which will help first responders save lives. The nation is transitioning from legacy 911 technology to NG911, which will use Internet Protocol-based infrastructure to support new 911 capabilities, including text, video, and data.

The Federal Communications Commission proposed improvements to its wireless 911 location accuracy rules, which reduce emergency response times and ultimately save lives by enabling 911 call centers and first responders to quickly identify the location of people who call 911 from wireless phones. In a Sixth Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the FCC is proposing measures to address concerns  about precision while balancing the needs of industry and promoting technical flexibility and innovation, including seeking comment on:

Sen Tom Cotton (R-AR) introduced the Cellphone Jamming Reform Act of 2025, legislation which would prevent inmates from using contraband cellphones in prison facilities by allowing state and federal prisons to use cellphone jamming systems. Rep David Kustoff (R-TN-8) is leading companion legislation in the House. The bill would prevent the Federal Communications Commission from stopping the use of jamming equipment in state and federal prisons. 

The state of California is opening its Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program application window for prequalification and application submissions, and ending on October 2 for submission of the final proposal to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which administers the program federally. The BEAD Program has allocated $1.86 billion to California for bringing high-speed internet to unserved and underserved residents. Applicants must meet a 25 percent match requirement on proposals.

These comments are submitted to emphasize the unprecedented nature of this news distortion proceeding, and to express our strong concern that the Federal Communications Commission may be seeking to censor the news media in a manner antithetical to the First Amendment. The undersigned commenters comprise a bipartisan group of former FCC Chairs and Commissioners.

Missouri was the first state to ask the Federal Communications Commission to return Rural Digital Opportunity Fund broadband funding awarded to providers in the state who later defaulted on their awards.

It was to be one hour of oral arguments about the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) Universal Service Fund (USF) program, considering whether Congress delegated too much of its authority when it created the program in the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Instead, U.S. Supreme Court justices spent more than two and a half hours peppering attorneys with questions about the nature of USF, whether the statute fails to set limits on the amount of funding it can collect and whether those fees are, in fact, taxes on the American public that Congress never debated.

This country has long valued ensuring connectivity for all—regardless of income, location, or circumstance. The Universal Service Fund or USF has been an essential part of that promise, providing the funding necessary to connect millions of Americans. Whether through a phone line, broadband connection, or both, access to communications has been critical for economic opportunity and equality. When we invest in connectivity, we invest in people. We invest in their futures.