California CIO Amy Tong this week unveiled a state IT modernization plan, creation of a new technology innovation office, and a series of broadband initiatives at the California Department of Technology’s (CDT) annual Vendor Day program.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released the Final Rule for its Connecting Minority Communities (CMC) Pilot Program this week, to provide $268 million to historically Black Colleges or Universities (HBCUs), Tribal Colleges or Universities (TCUs), and minority-serving institutions (MSIs) to expand their broadband.

Witnesses at today’s House Small Business Committee hearing stressed that community-based broadband expansion solutions are key to ensuring small businesses can best utilize broadband capabilities.

Sens. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Angus King, I-Maine, introduced a bipartisan bill that aims to close the digital divide and promote “digital equity” utilizing $250 million in annual grants, according to a press release.

Nongovernmental entities can now apply for some of the $5 million set aside to fund projects that will bring high-speed broadband infrastructure to underserved communities in Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Wolf’s office announced.

Municipal modernization efforts, particularly when deploying emerging technologies like 5G and broadband, don’t come without challenges. For the city of San Jose, Calif., it’s about overcoming challenges that ensure the residents are not left behind.

The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) announced that 2.3 million households have enrolled in the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) Program in its first three weeks.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a radical shift in how Americans worked, learned, and interacted with the government. As a result of those changes, state and local government (SLG) policymakers focused heavily on expanding access to affordable, highspeed broadband services.

Vice President Kamala Harris announced the availability of nearly $1 billion in U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) grants to expand broadband access and adoption on Tribal lands.

If state IT leaders want to close the broadband divide, they need to work with Federal, state, and local governments, as well as private sector partners to get it done.