Low-income

Few people dispute the vital importance of affordability in closing the digital divide.

The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program—established by Congress in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act—gives priority to projects that will result in broadband internet access service being offered in areas where service wasn't available before. Given that federal funds will provide roughly 75 percent of the costs to deploy these networks,¹ the chances that competing networks will be built at any time in the foreseeable future are very slim.

In May 2022, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) published an oft-quoted report that described federal funding for broadband as a “fragmented, overlapping patchwork.” Despite more than 100 broadband-related programs investing millions of dollars into deployment, affordability, planning, digital skills, and connective devices, GAO found that “millions of Americans still lack broadband, and communities with limited resources may be most affected by fragmentation.” GAO asked the National Telecommunications and Information Administra

Internet service providers including Charter, Verizon and Comcast are shifting customers away from the Affordable Connectivity Program, an expired federal internet subsidy that helped low-income households pay for broadband. The $14.2 billion program, which went into effect in December 2021, served roughly

Lawmakers working to revamp an $8 billion-per-year broadband subsidy still haven’t come to an agreement, said Rep Bob Latta (R-OH). The Fifth Circuit ruled in July 2024 that the fund in its current state is unconstitutional, which the government intends to appeal. The Capitol Hill group includes members of both parties and chambers of Congress.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed a critical lack of digital equity in the United States, particularly in Indian Country. As previous Center for Indian Country Development (CICD) research has shown, before the pandemic households on federally recognized reservations were less likely to have home Internet and faced substantial

The Five Nine takes an in-depth look at an interesting question: “What is broadband without affordability?” The United States government is poised to spend more than $42 billion on broadband expansions across the country in a quest to bring internet connectivity to every citizen. But the recent collapse of the government’s Affordable Connectivity Program—which provided monthly subsidies to help eligible citizens pay for their broadband service—has raised a critical question.

The buildout of broadband is well underway in Vermont, with eight out of the state’s ten Communications Union Districts (CUDs) currently connecting customers. But for Vermonters who live more than 400 feet from the fiber line along the road, that connection can come at a cost that’s unaffordable.

In Montana, over 63,400 Broadband Serviceable Locations (BSLs) remain unserved and nearly 24,000 remain underserved. The Montana Broadband Office’s vision is to close the digital divide in support of Montana’s economic, workforce, health, and educational goals by ensuring reliable, affordable internet access for everyone in the state.

On September 9^th I testified to the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology at a hearing entitled “From Introduction to Implementation: A BEAD Program Progress Report.