Vol 4 | Issue 7 | August 2019

Download PDF version here.

To sign up for BroadbandUSA’s newsletter, email broadbandusa@ntia.gov.

Rinaldo Calls for Increased Vigilance in the New Broadband Era

Acting Assistant Secretary Diane Rinaldo hailed the work of the Internet Governance Forum USA in a July 29 speech, congratulating the group on celebrating its 10^th anniversary. With great progress come challenges, Rinaldo told the IGF-USA 2019 meeting. The new era of connected devices demands an increased vigilance, she said. Since the early days of the Internet, NTIA has not shied away from confronting hard problems, she added. “We do not plan to stop now as we take on issues like cyber and supply chain security, secure 5G competition, and protecting American values online.” She also talked about NTIA’s continued work on the national broadband availability map, as directed by Congress, and work on smart cities concepts. Read her remarks here.

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas Releases Digital Divide Report at State Broadband Leaders Network Meeting

BroadbandUSA joined with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City for a State Broadband Leaders Network (SBLN), meeting July 31-August 1, 2019, in Kansas City, Missouri. The meeting allowed SBLN participants to discuss ways to engage policymakers and stakeholders, work with broadband task forces/councils, and learn about broadband data and mapping efforts. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City also released its report Disconnected: Seven Lessons on Fixing the Digital Divide at the meeting. To find your state broadband leader, see the State Broadband Programs map.

Broadband News and Updates

Federal News

• Smart City Expo Draws Broad Audience Trading Tips on Making Cities Smarter

• Congressional Research Service: The ReConnect Broadband Pilot Program

• Federal Register: U.S. Department of Labor: Apprenticeship Programs, Labor Standards for Registration, Amendment of Regulations

State News

• Pew Charitable Trusts: State Broadband Policy Explorer - Learn How States are Expanding Access to Broadband Through Laws

• Alabama: Broadband Mapping Effort to Ramp Up in Alabama — ‘Absolutely Essential’

• California: Farmers Call For Better Broadband in Rural California

• Georgia: Plan Approved To Spend Georgia Tax Money On Rural Internet Lines

• Indiana: Microsoft Rural Broadband Effort Getting Underway

• Iowa: The Cost of Things: For Some Iowans, No Internet Choice at Any Cost

• Michigan: Michigan Offering $20M to Carriers to Expand Rural Broadband

• Minnesota: Border to Border 2.0: Minnesota’s Broadband Reboot

• Pennsylvania: Research Predicts Possible Inaccuracy in Connectivity Speeds

• New Hampshire: N.H. Rural Communities Continue To Struggle With Access To Broadband

• South Dakota: State AG declines legislators’ request that he halt South Dakota broadband grants and South Dakota Supreme Court ruled against legislators

• Vermont: Technology: Broadband Expansion Will Take Wide-area Effort

• Virginia: FCC: $47.5 Million to Fund an Expansion of Broadband in Rural Virginia

• West Virginia: Manchin on Broadband: “Federal Coverage Maps are Fundamentally Flawed”

• Wyoming: State Updates Broadband Plan

Public Safety/FirstNet

• PSCR 2019 Covers ‘What’s Next’ For Public Safety Tech

• FirstNet Powers Forward With Focused Public Safety Engagements

• FirstNet Chair Keynotes 2019 PSCR Meeting

• Newport Beach, Ca, 3GPP Plenary Meetings Recap

Smart Communities

• What Is a Smart City and How Does One Plan For It?

• Tracking The Internet of Things for the Australian IT Community

• Six Ways That the IOT Can Benefit Cities

• A Secure Cloud Architecture for Smart Cities

• How Cities Can Create a Trustworthy Privacy Model

• GCTC: A Risk Management Approach to Cybersecurity and Privacy

• GCTC: Smart Building Blueprint

• GCTC: Municipal IoT Blueprint

Federal Funding

• FCC Makes $100 Million Available for Telehealth Experiments

• FCC: Creating the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund

• Funding: IMLS Awards $1.2 Million in Grants for Innovative Work at Small and Rural Libraries

• Grants.gov: Apprenticeships: Closing the Skills Gap Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration

Digital Equity

• Digital Inclusion in the Upper Midwest: Implications for Regional Development

• Digital Distress in the Upper Midwest

• An X-Ray of Broadband Access in the Upper Midwest

• At Last A Beginning

• Jobs for the Future’s Pre-Apprenticeship Framework

• JFF’s Center for Apprenticeship & Work-Based Learning

• JFF: Connecting Apprenticeships to the Young People Who Need Them Most -- The Role of Community-Based Organizations

• GAO Recommends FCC Assess Making Off-School Premises Available for Additional Support

Broadband Mapping

• Precise Broadband Maps Critical To Expanding Rural High-Speed Internet Access, Says Ernst

• NCTA: Crowdsourcing Broadband Data Should Only Be 'Supplement'

• Comcast Pushes Shapefile Broadband Mapping Approach

• USTelecom Readies Broadband Mapping Results

General News

• Amazon Plans Nationwide Broadband—With Both Home and Mobile Service

• Senators Propose $5 Billion Plan For Rural Broadband Buildout

• Microsoft, Watch Communications Ink Pact To Expand Airband Initiative In 3 States

Events

Aug. 5 – 8, 2019
National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) 2019 Legislative Summit, Nashville, TN.

Aug. 17, 2019
Office of Rep. Abigail Spanberger (VA-7) is hosting a Community Event to Attract Broadband Providers Panel: Broadband and How to Expand Broadband Service, Mineral, VA. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Aimee Meacham

Aug. 19, 2019
16th Annual Kentucky Cable and Telecommunications Conference, Lexington, KY. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Aimee Meacham

Aug. 21, 2019
Utilities Technology Council (UTC) Broadband Workshop, Kansas City, MO, BroadbandUSA speaker, Karen Perry

Aug. 28, 2019
USDA ReConnect Broadband Workshop, Independence, OR. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Karen Perry.

Aug. 29, 2019
USDA ReConnect Broadband Workshop, Madras, OR. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Karen Perry.

Sept. 10-12, 2019
Telecommunications Association of Maine and Telecommunications Association of New England, Rockland, ME. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Aimee Meacham

Sept. 16, 2019
Washington State Rural Broadband Workshop, Olympia, WA. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Karen Archer Perry

Sept. 17, 2019
Washington State Rural Broadband Workshop, Chehalis, WA. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Karen Archer Perry

Sept. 17 - 20, 2019
Broadband Training Opportunities for EPA’s College/Underserved Community Partnership Program (CUPP) Target schools: Clemson University, Tuskegee University and the University of West Alabama, Livingston, AL. BroadbandUSA Facilitators: Scott Woods, Don Williams

Sept. 18 - 19, 2019
Kansas Broadband and Technology Opportunities Conference, Wichita, KS. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Jean Rice

Sept. 19, 2019
Washington State Rural Broadband Workshop, Davenport, WA. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Karen Archer Perry

Sept. 23 - 26, 2019
National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors 2019 Annual Conference, Tampa, FL. BroadbandUSA Speaker: Scott Woods

Sept. 24, 2019
State Broadband Leaders Network Monthly Meeting, Virtual. BroadbandUSA Facilitator: Katherine Bates