State

Given the excess of $11 billion that the Federal Communications Commission currently has in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF), interested parties--particularly major broadband providers--have inquired whether the FCC will offer another round of award funding. However, for this to be feasible, the FCC would have to engage in a lot of internal review and restructuring of its reverse auction mechanism if it seeks to revitalize the RDOF.

Alabama Senate Majority Leader Clay Scofield (R-AL) says he gets asked by Alabamians about one topic more than most: High-speed internet and when they’ll have access to it. Alabama's goal is that new publicly funded projects have speeds of 100 megabits per second for downloads and 100 megabits per second for uploads. Getting that statewide will cost billions. In late August 2022, officials announced $26.6 million in Alabama Broadband Accessibility Fund grants to extend broadband internet access to about 15,000 homes, businesses and entities, including schools, in 10 counties.

Spectrum announced the launch of Spectrum Internet, Mobile, TV and Voice services to more than 2,670 homes and small businesses in rural Jefferson County (TX). Spectrum’s newly constructed fiber-optic network buildout is part of the company’s approximately $5 billion investment in unserved rural communities, which includes $1.2 billion won in the Federal Communications Commission’s Rural Digital opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction.

Indiana  Attorney General Todd Rokita announced a $15 million settlement with Frontier Communications to ensure that Hoosiers receive the services for which they have paid. The settlement especially benefits residents living in rural communities. In May 2021, Attorney General Rokita sued Frontier Communications alleging they violated the Indiana Deceptive Consumer Sales Act. The Federal Trade Commission and several other states also sued the company. Specifically, the lawsuit argued the company misrepresented internet speeds and reliability to consumers.

Nebraska adopted a state broadband plan in 2014 setting goals of extending broadband service and adoption to 90 percent of Nebraska households by 2020. Still short of its connectivity goals, the state ramped up efforts toward universal broadband during the COVID-19 pandemic, efforts fueled with federal support. The US Department of Treasury approved Nebraska's latest plans to connect everyone in the state. In May 2021, the state enacted the Nebraska Broadband Bridge Act, a law aimed at bringing fast, reliable broadband connectivity to an estimated 30,000 households.

The Office of the Attorney General for Connecticut announced a settlement with Frontier Communications worth over $60 million to dramatically expand access to high-speed internet for Frontier customers in economically distressed communities, end a hidden monthly $6.99 internet surcharge, and force significant improvements in Frontier’s marketing and customer service.

High-speed internet access is coming to more than 500 homes and small businesses in Livingston Parish, Louisiana. The state's Office of Broadband Development & Connectivity, ConnectLA, awarded Spectrum a $1.73 million grant to help fund the Livingston Parish broadband infrastructure expansion through the Granting Unserved Municipalities Broadband Opportunities (GUMBO).

To help coordinate broadband efforts at the state level, policymakers have turned to legislation and executive orders to create statewide broadband advisory boards, task forces, and other similar agencies. At its core, a broadband advisory board is made up of individuals from different sectors who advise state broadband programs, governors, or legislatures. However, not all advisory boards are the same.

Indiana Governor, Eric Holcomb (R-IN) and Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch (R-IN) are leading the largest broadband investment in the state's history. Ball State University researchers found that thousands of homes across the state--urban and rural, low-income, and non-English speaking--experience the brunt of lacking access to broadband internet access. To combat this, Lt. Gov Suzanne Crouch created the Office of Broadband Opportunities in 2018 to identify needs and eliminate roadblocks to broadband deployment and digital literacy in the state.

Gov Roy Cooper (D-NC) announced that nearly 85,000 households and more than 2,400 businesses in 69 North Carolina counties are set to receive access to high-speed internet thanks to more than $206 million of Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology (GREAT) grants. This is the state’s largest round of GREAT grant awards to date. With this announcement, over $260 million in GREAT grants have been awarded to providers since July 2022.