Infrastructure week finally arrived in Washington, D.C. with the Senate’s approval of the $1 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act on Tuesday morning. The bill – whose main tech-related titles include $65 billion for broadband and around $2 billion for cybersecurity – cleared the Senate by a vote of 69-30.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation July 20 to help bridge the digital divide in the state by investing $6 billion in expanding broadband infrastructure and services for unserved and underserved communities.
The state of Maryland will award $29,472,131 in grant funding to expand broadband internet access for over 12,000 households in 18 counties, Gov. Larry Hogan announced.
Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced that the commonwealth will use $700 million in Federal funding to achieve “universal broadband” by 2024.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state Senate and Assembly leaders have reached an agreement that backs a proposed $5.25 billion plan to expand the state’s broadband fiber infrastructure and increase internet connectivity for all Californians.
A wide-ranging executive order released by the Biden administration on June 9 is seeking to revive an Obama-era push for more public disclosure of broadband service performance and contract terms – an effort that fell by the wayside during the Trump administration.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced an interagency agreement to coordinate the distribution of Federal broadband deployment funds.
The National Science Foundation (NSF), in coordination with a consortium of 35 wireless communication corporations, announced the fourth testbed in a diverse portfolio of large-scale wireless research platforms located throughout the United States. This wireless research platform is intended to drive innovation in rural broadband connectivity in Ames, Iowa.
Reps. Tom O’Halleran, D-Ariz., and John Curtis, R-Utah, have introduced the Accelerating Rural Broadband Deployment Act, which would increase internet access in rural America by relaxing government regulations. Sens. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and Steve Daines, R-Mont., introduced a companion bill in April of this year.
The House Appropriations Committee released a draft of the fiscal year (FY) 2022 Financial Services and General Government funding bill, to be considered by a subcommittee on June 25.
