President Biden’s recent comment that “broadband is infrastructure” highlights a new federal commitment to treating broadband Internet service in the same way as water or electricity – as a necessity. In many disconnected communities across the nation, broadband infrastructure simply does not exist or is insufficient to meet the demands that modern Internet usage requires. […]
The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is a nonpartisan membership organization, think tank, and publisher that provides resources for government officials, executives, journalists, educators, and community leaders. On April 8, 2021, it hosted a webinar to address a pressing global policy issue – the digital divide. Over 400 local and state officials registered for the
In September, 2020 Verizon announced that it intended to acquire TracFone. Currently, TracFone is the largest prepaid wireless provider in the United States with around 21 Million customers. It is also one of the largest Lifeline providers in the country, accounting for almost 1.7 million subscribers. This is in stark contrast to Verizon, who only
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 provided $3.2 billion to create the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program (“EBB”). This program provides eligible households a $50 benefit ($75 on tribal lands) to purchase a broadband internet subscription. On February 25, 2021, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released the rules governing the program. These rules included consumer and
You can find a pdf of the press release here. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Lukas Pietrzak lukas@nextcenturycities.org Washington, D.C. (April 6, 2021) – Today, Next Century Cities (“NCC”) filed comments before the Federal Communications Commission (“Commission”) on how the Emergency Connectivity Fund, created by the American Rescue Plan Act, should be used. NCC’s comments
Through American Rescue Plan, Congress appropriated $7 billion for the Emergency Connectivity Fund for schools and libraries. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the agency tasked with developing rules for distributing the funds, sought public comment on its proposal to limit the funding for only educational purposes and exclude mobile phones from the list of eligible
On March 31, 2021, NCC hosted a member briefing to discuss the Emergency Broadband Benefit (“EBB”) and upcoming funding opportunities for communities. NCC Highlights. Lukas Pietrzak summarized NCC’s recent publications: Next Century Cities March 2021 Newsletter Report: Communities Responding to Natural Disasters Through Network Resilience Letter to President Biden and Vice President Harris NCC Steadily
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