Level of Government

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) highlighted the recent investment of billions in grants and loans to provide reliable, affordable high-speed internet to thousands of rural residents, farmers, and business owners across rural America.

J.D. Vance, the Ohio GOP senator announced as Donald Trump's running mate for the presidency, isn't expected to have a broad impact on US telecommunications policies. But he could have something to say about how the country helps consumers afford access to critical broadband services.

San Francisco, Oakland, and Fremont (CA) all received a federal grant for $32 million to expand their internet access. The grant is hoping to serve people who lack fast internet service, and create more options for accessing the web. The grant comes from a program by the California Public Utilities Commission to expand broadband infrastructure across the state for underserved communities.

A new report funded by the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) through Massachusetts ARPA State Fiscal Recovery Funds examines access to information technology in Worcester, and the “capacity needed for full participation in our society, democracy, and economy,” which is part of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NOIA) definition of “Digital Equity.” The City of Worcester is a member of the Municipal Digital Equity Planning Program through the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI).

Although broadband internet access is a functional prerequisite for modern civic and economic life, significant inequities in broadband access remain. The Federal Communications Commission’s most recent report on the state of broadband in America (2021 Broadband Deployment Report) finds that millions of Americans lack access to reliable broadband service, and that millions more must procure broadband service from a local monopolist. U.S.

We respectfully request that the Office of Special Counsel, Office of Government Ethics, and Office of the Inspector General of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) investigate possible ethics violations by Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr. We are concerned that Commissioner Carr may be misusing his official position as an executive-level employee of the FCC to craft and advance a political playbook to influence the presidential election in favor of Donald Trump, in violation of the Hatch Act (5 U.S.C.

I want to extend my deep thanks and appreciation to Lauren Garry for serving as a Legal Advisor in my office. I am grateful that she agreed to work for me for a year, and I am very pleased that the FCC and the public will continue to benefit from her service at the agency. Over the course of her detail, Lauren has been a tremendous asset to me and my office, and she has tackled some of the agency’s most challenging matters. I will miss having her wise counsel on so many issues that are meaningful to the American public.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) awarded more than $20.5 million to Michigan to implement their Digital Equity Plan.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announces 97 communities that have been selected to participate in the ConnectHomeUSA (CHUSA) initiative, bringing training and technical assistance to help communities access affordable internet access, affordable devices, and digital skills training.

There’s been much handwringing this year over the prospect of defaults in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) program, but very little empirical analysis of the actual extent of default that has occurred to date or data-driven projections of what’s likely to occur in the future. It’s time to dig deeper to figure out what’s going on at the local level. The FCC authorized 379 companies to receive $6 billion in RDOF support over a ten-year term, covering just under 3.5 million locations in 48 states and one territory.