House Small-Business Lawmakers Get Pennsylvania Feedback on Rural Broadband Issues
Southern Pennsylvania community leaders and stakeholders said House Small Business Rural Development Subcommittee members should consider changes to federal broadband programs, during a Monday hearing in Gettysburg. Witnesses cited overlapping FCC and Department of Agriculture mandates on broadband funding and pointed to state-level initiatives as both a positive and negative development. House Communications Subcommittee leaders are working on a combined broadband mapping legislative package that's expected to be filed using Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability (Data) Act (HR-4229) as its vehicle (see 1909250063).
“We’ve heard from small telecom providers that serve rural areas that recent improvements to” FCC and USDA funding programs “helped,” said House Small Business Rural Development ranking member John Joyce, R-Pa., in a written opening statement. “There’s more to be done, and we will work for improvements to be made in upcoming legislation.” Large telecoms “have little incentive to invest in broadband infrastructure in areas with low population density,” while smaller carriers that are more likely to invest aren't able to “disseminate the high costs of deployment or leverage economies of scale” without FCC and USDA assistance, Joyce said.
The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau backs the Broadband Data Improvement Act (HR-3162), which “would improve the accuracy of broadband coverage maps and better direct federal funds for broadband buildout,” said Adams County Farm Bureau President Brock Widerman. “More granular and accurate maps are critical to successfully target and distribute federal broadband program” funds. HR-3162/S-1522 would direct federal funds to build out broadband infrastructure and require ISPs report more-accurate data on locations they serve to help improve the national broadband map (see 1905160087). The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau “supports using a combination of tax incentives, grants and/or regulation to increase the use of broadband access in rural areas,” Widerman said.
Congress should “consider reviewing the ownership requirement for broadband infrastructure investments implemented by” the Commerce Department Economic Development Administration and the Application Regional Commission,” said South Alleghenies Planning and Development Commission Director-Planning and Community Development Brandon Carson. “More clear and concise guidance for EDA and ARC funded broadband projects would allow applicants and grantees to plan for and better navigate the federal regulations to successfully complete high-speed deployments.” ARC's “unfair competition” rule language is “broad and open to interpretation,” Carson said. “There is an opportunity to set additional parameters to provide clarity and offer ARC with guidance on better ways to implement these types of projects when there are incumbent providers offering services in portions of the proposed coverage area.”
Franklin County Area Development Corporation President Mike Ross said Pennsylvania's broadband investment incentive program is an example of government activity aimed at addressing rural broadband barriers. The initiative, which Gov. Tom Wolf (D) created last year, aimed to provide $35 million in financial incentives through the Pennsylvania Transportation Department to private companies bidding on state-level service areas in the FCC Connect America Fund phase 2 auction (see 1803200011). “Any provider participating in Pennsylvania’s incentive program was required to exceed the FCC’s requirements and to meet the Governor’s goal of providing 100 [Mbps] or more service by June 2022,” Ross said.
New Oxford Middle School teacher Anthony Angelini criticized the Pennsylvania legislature for passing its 2019 Act 64, which allows public schools to seek permission to use a “flexible instructional day” model during inclement weather or other instances when the building can't open, because it “has the potential to widen the digital divide.” The statute assumes “that students will be able to access digital platforms, online resources, and collaborative tools from home” when that's not always possible, Angelini said.