Vol 5 | Issue 11 | November 2020

Policy Corner: BroadbandUSA’s New Digital Inclusion Webpage
By Adam Candeub, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information, performing the delegated duties of the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information

October marked the launch of a new Digital Inclusion section to the BroadbandUSA website. While our team at NTIA has always been dedicated to promoting digital inclusion, we wanted to create a tool similar to our one-stop broadband funding resources. Now you can use the BroadbandUSA website to easily access state and local programs using an interactive map as well as federal funding information. It also includes a link to BroadbandUSA’s digital inclusion publications list, a comprehensive guide to digital inclusion programs across the federal government. I encourage anyone passionate about digital inclusion and closing the digital divide to explore our new resource. As always, NTIA will continue working hard to help expand broadband access and adoption, and we appreciate all the work you do to further that goal as well.

Broadband News and Updates

Federal News

• NTIA: New Digital Inclusion Resource Page on BroadbandUSA Website

  • NTIA Trusted Propagation Models Help Expand Commercial Wireless Services

  • NTIA Updates State Leaders on National Broadband Availability Map Progress

  • NTIA and USDA Hosted HBCU Broadband Funding Webinar Series

• EDA: U.S. Department of Commerce Launches $25 Million SPRINT Challenge to Address Coronavirus Pandemic Through Entrepreneurship and Innovation

• FCC: FCC Announces List of Eligible Areas for RDOF Auction Bidding

  • Auction 904 Qualified Bidders

• USDA: USDA Launches Webpage to Announce Rural Broadband Projects Seeking Funds Under the Electric Program

  • Community Connect Grant accepting applications until December 23, 2020

• ARC: In October 2020, ARC invested $43.3 million into Appalachia's coal-impacted communities via the POWER Initiative.

• BIA: Bureau of Indian Education Equips Its 25 Longest School Bus Routes with Wi-Fi to Aid Student Learning

• USAID: USAID and Federal Communications Commission Sign MoU on 5G Coordination

• USPS: Next Generation Connectivity: Postal Service Roles in 5G and Broadband Deployment

State News

• Alabama: In The Midst Of Pandemic, Alabama Connects 100,000—And Counting—Low-Income Students To Distance Learning

• Arkansas: Arkansas Rural Connect Grant Recipients

• Connecticut: Atlantic Broadband Is the First Internet Provider to Connect Customers Under the State’s “Everybody Learns” Initiative

• Georgia: Meeting Demand for Broadband in Rural Georgia Tough Task

• Hawaii: Hawaii to Close Fiber-Optic Gap as Project Nears Completion

• Idaho: $2 Million In CARES Funding Going To Idaho Libraries To Boost Broadband 24/7 In Small/Rural Communities

• Illinois: Pritzker Announces $50 Million Second Round of Connect IL Grants in Staunton

• Kansas: Gov. Laura Kelly Signals New Wave of Broadband Development in Kansas

  • Gov. Kelly Announces Broadband Projects, Plan For Future

• Michigan: Gov. Whitmer Announces Initiatives to Increase High-Speed Internet in Michigan

  • Connected Nation Offers Michigan Broadband Coverage Maps

• Mississippi: Deploy Dark Fibers To Meet Broadband Need, Policy Makers Say in Zoom Call

• North Carolina: Governor Cooper Announces Nearly $40 Million To Connect Students And Communities To High-Speed Internet, Help Educators With Remote Learning

• Puerto Rico: Puerto Rico Government Seeks to Expand Broadband Services to Rural Areas

• South Carolina: Broadband help passes on S. Carolina Legislature’s final day

• South Dakota: Governor Noem Announces K-12 Connect

• Texas: Lawmakers Say Texas Needs A Statewide Broadband Plan

• Virginia: Virginia Becomes Latest State to Rush for Broadband Relief

  • Teleworking in a parking lot. School on a flash drive. The coronavirus prompts new urgency for rural Internet access.

• Washington: Washington State’s Broadband Guru on an Internet Moonshot and Being a Metaphorical Prom King

• West Virginia: West Virginia Governor Announces Broadband Expansion

Digital Inclusion

• K-12 Schools Scramble for Tech Equipment This Fall

• Wi-Fi Buses Were a Quick Solution for Student Internet Access, But as Schools Reopen They Need Their Buses Back

• Long Beach Announces New Digital Inclusion Resources Hotline

• Duluth Digital Inclusion Partnership Announces Plans For Grant Money

• Mayor Garcetti Announces Free Internet Access To Residents In Four Public Housing Communities

• Digital Inclusion and Parity: Implications for Community Development

• USDA Rural Development Announces Funding for Digital Job Training Program for Military Spouses, Veterans, and Families

Local

• Missouri School District to Receive Telemedicine Technology

• Wireless Broadband to Arrive in Rural Mercer County, PA

• How Do Cities Pay for New Technology? Not Always with Money.

• St. Croix County Named to Broadband Connectors Pilot Program

• Seven Local Governments Sign Up for CivStart Tech Program

HBCUs/TCUs

• How one of the oldest tribal colleges in the U.S. opened for students during a pandemic

• Google Invests $1M in Digital-Skills Training at Black Universities

• An Investment in HBCUs is an Investment in America

Public Safety/FirstNet

• FirstNet Expands Responder Communications in Sawyer Area

• Mobile Integrated Healthcare program relies on FirstNet in Chesapeake, Virginia

• Building Meaningful Public Safety Partnerships—One Engagement at a Time

• U.S. Army Contracts with FirstNet to Support Public-Safety Personnel at 72 Installations

• Text Alert System Goes Online in South Dakota City, County

General News

• Bridging the 4G/5G Gap: Telecommunications Roadmap for Implementation

• FCC to Delay $9 Billion Rural Broadband Push to Fix Data Flaws

• U.S. and U.K. Announce AI Partnership

NTIA Events

November 18, 2020
BroadbandUSA Practical Broadband Conversations Webinar Series
Topic: How Broadband Enhances Local Economies
Time: 2:00 PM Eastern
While communities adapt to the challenges brought about by the coronavirus pandemic, economic development in rural America has been hard hit, the difficulty exacerbated by the lack of broadband. Join BroadbandUSA on November 18 to hear how communities and broadband providers are working together to expand broadband access to residents and businesses to build resilient economies. Learn about the partnerships they developed, the plans they implemented, and how other communities can learn to stabilize and strengthen economies through increased broadband adoption.

Speakers:

• Laruen Mathena, Director of Economic Development, Mid-Atlantic Broadband

• Indraneel Kumar, PhD, AICP, Principal Regional Planner, Purdue Center for Regional Development

• Josh Seidemann, Vice President of Policy, NCTA – The Rural Broadband Association

Visit our Webinar Archives for past presentations, transcripts and audio recordings.

Contact Us:If you are interested in receiving technical assistance, please email broadbandusa@ntia.gov or call 202-482-2048. For more information, visit our website at broadbandusa.ntia.doc.gov.