The Wireless Internet Service Providers Association (WISPA) – Broadband Without Boundaries – welcomed representatives from more than 25 member companies as they spread out over Capitol Hill for the association’s annual day of advocacy last Wednesday, May 17. During the day-long event, WISP operators and broadband solutions providers met with over 50 different legislators.
They discussed how WISPs connect millions of Americans with reliable broadband service. WISPA members urged Congress to support policies that encourage small companies like WISPs to help bring connectivity to all Americans, regardless of location.
WISPA says it represents the interests of the evolving internet service provider ecosystem: small, innovative entrepreneurs who provide fixed broadband solutions to consumers, businesses, first responders, and community anchor institutions. WISPs serve 9 million Americans in unserved, under-resourced and Tribal territories of the country, quickly and affordably offering cost-effective, competitive and innovative service options where they did not previously exist. They use a variety of technologies – such as fiber; and exclusive-use licensed, licensed-by-rule and unlicensed wireless spectrum – to deliver reliable broadband.
The day of advocacy comes at a critical juncture for the industry. Government actors have become more actively involved to narrow or eliminate the lingering gap, notes WISPA. Programs like NTIA’s $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment grant rules “have strayed from congressional intent and, in a practical sense, have greatly inhibited state flexibility in eradicating the divide,” says the association. “The program’s breadth, complexity and rigid technical limitations significantly constrain who and what can be used by states to close the gap, essentially sidelining small ISPs like WISPs who are core participants in bringing connectivity to communities that lack reliable broadband.”
WISPA VP Government Affairs Matt Mandel said: “Our members want Congress to support policies that are tech-flexible and invite diverse solutions to answer our toughest connectivity challenges. Achieving this ensures connecting more Americans faster, more cost-effectively and with less waste – something WISPs do so well, 24/7/365.” Added Mandel, “WISPs are integral to their communities’ continued prosperity. Congress must make sure that policy, law and regulation work to foster that vital partnership.”
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