Verizon Supports Congressional Push for Rural Broadband
Congress is weighing at least a half-dozen bills to hasten broadband deployment in rural areas -- and Verizon supports some of those concepts, said Verizon Exec. Vp Tom Tauke in a briefing with reporters Mon. Tauke is enthusiastic about a project known as “Connect Ky.” which linked up potential broadband users with service providers to increase deployment to an anticipated 99-100% by year’s end, Tauke said.
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“It’s a model that can be used elsewhere,” Tauke said, saying mobile wireless is another service that rural America is adopting with growing enthusiasm. Rural businesses need both a fixed and mobile capability to be fully competitive, Tauke said. HR-2174, introduced last week by Rep. Salazar (D-Colo.), would do on a national level some of what the Ky. program did.
The bill would establish a $20 million broadband rural services fund to be administered by the Dept. of Agriculture. A new office devoted to rural broadband initiatives would assess all “relevant technologies” that can support broadband needs such as WiFi, WiMAX, DSL, cable, satellite, fiber and broadband over power line services. The new office would determine areas of the country with the greatest needs, identify providers that want to serve those areas and match them up. If subsidies are needed, the fund could provide them. The bill is similar to a measure (S-1032) introduced by Sen. Clinton (D-N.Y.).
Other bills under consideration include HR-2035, introduced by Rep. Herseth (D-S.D.), which clarifies that “unserved” means rural households that don’t have access to broadband services and aren’t located where any broadband facilities under construction would serve; and HR-1818, introduced by Rep. Matsui (D-Cal.), which would amend the tax code to provide for expensing of broadband Internet access expenditures. A bill (S-101) introduced by Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Stevens (R-Alaska) includes measures to increase broadband deployment, as does Rep. Boucher’s (D- Va.) bill (HR-2054).
Rural broadband deployment will be the focus of a hearing tomorrow (Wed.) before the House Small Business Rural Subcommittee where FCC Comr. Adelstein is scheduled to testify. Brian Mefford, pres.-Connect Ky., also is on the witness list to discuss his organization’s mapping program for linking up broadband users with providers. “More needs to be invested to ensure this innovation [broadband] spreads to all Americans,” Subcommittee Chmn. Shuler (D-N.C.) said in a prepared statement.
Rural lawmakers say broadband is critical for businesses in remote areas. Rep. Terry (R-Neb.) has talked about a small town in his state with a population of 298 where a butcher shop that upgraded to broadband grew from 3 to 50 employees selling boxed beef on the Internet. “That’s what it means to America,” Terry said at a recent House Telecom Subcommittee hearing on broadband issues. Terry said Neb. has nearly universal deployment of broadband in urban areas but outside of that “it’s like falling off a cliff.”