State and Local Leaders Form New Group to Tackle Broadband Gaps
Members of the NewDEAL Forum launched the task force this week. It’ll focus on issues like expanding high-speed internet access in rural areas and improving affordability.
Libraries Eligible for Billions in Federal Funding to Improve Connectivity for Residents
The Emergency Connectivity Fund Program, announced by the Federal Communications Commission, will help libraries purchase laptops, Wi-Fi hot spots and more for patrons.
Billions of Federal Dollars to Close Broadband Gaps are About to Start Flowing
The FCC has launched a program that provides $50 subsidies to help households pay internet bills and also approved rules for a $7 billion fund for libraries and schools.
3 Companies Settle Over Millions of Fake Comments on FCC’s Net Neutrality Rollback
Broadband companies funded an effort responsible for 8.5 million fraudulent comments supporting the repeal, according to a New York attorney general report.
Report: 77% of Americans Have Access to Low-Priced Broadband
The U.S. still faces challenges with slower speeds and a growing digital divide, but access is up from 50% in early 2020, which BroadbandNow says is “a major milestone.”
FCC Acting Chair Urges States to Nix Local Broadband Restrictions
More than 20 states make it difficult, if not impossible, for municipalities to establish broadband service. “We have to embrace all kinds of solutions,” said Jessica Rosenworcel during a Route Fifty panel.
Western Governors Are Leading the Charge on Broadband
COMMENTARY | In states across the West, governors are taking action to expand broadband access, pushing for more flexible funding, better mapping and faster infrastructure deployment.
Senators Grill Cabinet Secretaries on American Jobs Plan
The heads of environmental, transportation, housing and commerce departments laid out more details of the Biden administration’s infrastructure plan during a Tuesday hearing.
Lawmakers Urge Internet Companies to Join New Discount Broadband Program
The Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, slated to start at the end of April, will provide discounts on internet service to struggling households.
The FCC Wants Your Feedback to Improve Broadband Access
In an effort to create more accurate maps detailing broadband connections and service, the Federal Communications Commission is collecting first-hand accounts from users.
Biden Administration Preparing $3 Trillion Infrastructure and Jobs Plan, Reports Say
The president is expected to receive the plan this week, according to reports from The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Lawmakers in One State Hope to Create a New Broadband Office
About a quarter of New Mexico students don't have home internet access. Legislators are proposing to create a division in the state's IT department to help address this and other digital equity issues.
Rural Communities Are Finally Getting Attention. So Where Do We Go from Here?
COMMENTARY | Despite a recent groundswell of interest, rural America still has unique challenges ahead.
Internet and Phone Services in Rural Texas Threatened as State Slashes Subsidies for Providers
A state fund that subsidizes rural network service is bleeding money. Now the state is drastically cutting the amount of money that it typically pays out to these service providers.
Universal Service Fund Wants Automation Tools to Help Bring Broadband to Communities in Need
The corporation that manages the fund for the Federal Communications Commission is looking for a contractor to help automate its manual, time-consuming data verification process.
To Expand Broadband, States Should Figure Out Where It Isn't Available
A new report from the National Governors Association suggests states shouldn't just rely on the FCC to identify underserved areas, as well as use existing infrastructure and federal funding to increase connectivity in rural and low-income areas.
Ready or Not, 5G is Coming: Governments Need To Be Prepared Today
COMMENTARY | 5G will revolutionize government operations. State and local governments must start preparing for it now to ensure they can maximize its benefits.
States Launch Broadband Grant Programs with CARES Act Money
Experts say broadband infrastructure projects will be more helpful in improving connectivity in the long run than the type of WiFi deployments that were quickly rolled out at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
Top Tech Companies Begin Pushing Priorities for Biden Administration
Microsoft, IBM and other companies urged the president-elect to consider policies for boosting workforce development, solving the pandemic and addressing biometrics in surveillance.
The Current and Future State of State IT Operations
COMMENTARY | Future trends in state IT were highlighted during the 2020 NASCIO Annual Conference.
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies
Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link
If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.
Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.
If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.
Cookie List
A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:
Strictly Necessary Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Functional Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Performance Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Sale of Personal Data
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Social Media Cookies
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Targeting Cookies
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.