House Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Committee are concerned over comments that Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo made about the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program during testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee hearing last week.
Raimondo went to Durham, NC, on Friday to launch the Administration’s Internet for All initiative. It will invest $45 billion with the goal of providing affordable, reliable, high-speed internet for everyone in the U.S. by the end of the decade. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will administer and implement the program. She said governors can send their letters of intent to receive the broadband money. Each state gets $5 million to help officials consult with residents and write its plan.
The Internet for All programs include three Notices of Funding Opportunity:
- Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program ($42.5 billion);
- Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program ($1 billion); and,
- State Digital Equity Act Programs ($1.5 billion).
McMorris Rodgers and Wicker wrote to Raimondo regarding her statement that areas already committed to receive federal broadband funding could be eligible for additional funds. Raimondo said that NTIA would consider an area “as unserved until [it is] actually served” when determining areas eligible for BEAD program funding. This raises the potential for overbuilding unfinished federally-subsidized projects, according to the lawmakers.
“Not only would this approach undermine the success of this program, it would ignore congressional intent, waste taxpayer dollars, complicate already-strained broadband supply chains and workforce shortages, and leave rural America further behind. Moreover, it could cause NTIA to misallocate money among the states, given that the [Infrastructure Law] requires NTIA to distribute funding based on the number of unserved locations in a state,” the members wrote. “NTIA has a tremendous opportunity to close the digital divide. But that requires the careful use of funds to ensure they do not duplicate and undermine other federal efforts to expand broadband access to unserved areas.”
In contrast, their Democratic counterparts in the House praised the Internet for All program. House Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) called it “a road map for ensuring that everyone – regardless of income or zip code – can both access and afford reliable high-speed internet service and we’re grateful for the hard work that went into it.” They’re pleased it promotes “strong labor standards,” and prioritizes “future-proof networks, digital inclusion, and competition, all while bringing local communities together around these transformational broadband projects.”
The Competitive Carriers Association said all three grant programs must support ubiquitous 5G and that means deploying both fiber and wireless technology. “Fiber is an important input to support the deployment of 5G and successor wireless technologies throughout the U.S., but in areas where fiber is not possible, wireless will play a key role. To meet the communications needs of Americans everywhere, it is important for policymakers to leverage the [Infrastructure Law] programs and all other tools and programs available to support ubiquitous access to fixed and mobile wireless services in the U.S.”
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
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