Vol 5 | Issue 8 | August 2020

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Policy Corner: NTIA’s National Broadband Availability Map Hits New Milestones
By Doug Kinkoph, Associate Administrator performing the delegated duties of the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information

I am excited to report on the continued growth of our National Broadband Availability Map (NBAM). As it currently stands, 22 states are partnering with NTIA to bring extensive data visualization and analytics tools to bare in the fight to fill in the digital divide. Indiana, Georgia, Wyoming, and Washington State join the other 18 participating states that have announced since the launch of the NBAM. The NBAM combines federal, state, and private data to better inform broadband projects and funding decisions. To learn more about the project and to see if your state is among those participating, visit the NBAM page on our BroadbandUSA website.

Broadband News and Updates

Federal News

• NTIA: American Broadband Initiative Progress Report

  • NTIA Holds Cyberinfrastructure webinar with HBCUs and TCUs

  • NTIA Files Petition with FCC as part of President’s Executive Order on Internet Freedom

• FCC: FCC Authorizes Over $20 Million For Rural Broadband

  • WCB Seeks Comment on Proposed Eligible Services List for E-Rate

• USDA: Trump Administration Invests $86 Million in Rural Broadband Service in Eight States

  • Trump Administration Invests More Than $16 Million in High-Speed Broadband in Rural Mississippi

• IMLS: National Leadership Grants for Libraries

  • Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program

• Interior: 2020 National Tribal Broadband Virtual Summit September 21-25 Pre-Registration is Now Open

  • Call For Presentations for Creative Connections Tribal Summit

  • Branch of Geospatial Support Update

• Energy: Report: Fiber Optics Feasibility Assessment

State News

• Alaska: Alaska Communications Broadband Expansion is State’s Largest, Thanks in Part to CAF II

• Georgia: State Launches Broadband Availability Map

• Idaho:Idaho Commerce Announces Broadband Grant Review Committee

• Illinois:State of Illinois Announces $300,000 Public Private Investment to Support Community Driven Broadband Plans

• Iowa:Notice of Funding Availability #003 - Federally-Funded Opportunity

• Maine:Mainers Vote Overwhelmingly Approve Broadband, Transportation Bonds

• Missouri:Missouri Announces $50 Million Program for Broadband Expansion, Including Telehealth

• New Jersey:Governor Murphy Unveils Plan to Address Digital Divide Ahead of 2020-2021 School Year

• New York: Niagara, Orleans Counties Expanding Wi-Fi Hotspots

• Ohio: Ohio Advances Plan for First State Broadband Grant Program

• Pennsylvania:Rural Broadband Tops Pennsylvania Legislative Agenda

• South Dakota:South Dakota Gains Ground on Better Broadband

• Washington:$18 Million Available to Bring Broadband to Unserved Washington Communities

• Wisconsin:Gov. Evers Signs Executive Order Creating Task Force on Broadband Access

Digital Inclusion

• Leaders Say Black, Tribal Colleges Need More Than Broadband

• Lack of Broadband Handcuffs At-Home Schooling in Ohio

• Chicago Wants to Make Its Student Broadband Program Permanent

• Schools Confront Broadband Access Crisis

• The New Landscape of Digital Literacy

• Washington Schools to Launch One-to-One Tech Program

• Cleveland Foundation, Cuyahoga County and T-Mobile partner to launch the Greater Cleveland Digital Equity Fund

• Apple expands partnership with HBCUs

Local

• Pennsylvania County Uses Federal COVID Funding for Broadband

• Mayor de Blasio and Taskforce on Racial Inclusion and Equity Announce Accelerated Internet Master Plan to Support Communities Hardest-Hit by COVID-19

• Schools Get $50 Million More in Emergency Funding to Help Close ‘Digital Divide’

• Broadband Authority Announces Phased Countywide Connection Plan

• $2.5MM Covington Connect to Close Digital Divide

Public Safety/FirstNet

• The First Responder Network Authority Technology Domain: User Experience

• Meet the Public Safety Advocacy Team in the Central Region

• US Dept. of Commerce Awards $1 Million for R2 Network Challenge for Innovation in Disaster Response, Resiliency Tech

• How Peer-to-Peer Texting Could Play a Role in Disaster and Pandemic Response

• Stark County, Ohio, Moves Toward Text-to-911 Services

• The FirstNet Network Expands Across North Carolina to Advance Public Safety Communications Capabilities

• The FirstNet Network Expands Across New Jersey, Advances Public Safety Communications Capabilities

General News

• The Digital Divide and the Pandemic: Working from Home and Broadband and Internet Access

• Senators Move to Boost State and Local Cybersecurity As Part of Annual Defense Bill

• Facebook Built a New Fiber-Spinning Robot to Make Internet Service Cheaper

• Lessons From the Pandemic: Broadband Policy After COVID-19

• NASCIO Renews Call for IT and Cybersecurity Aid to States in Pandemic Relief Bill

NTIA Events

BroadbandUSA Practical Broadband Conversations Webinar Series

BroadbandUSA will not be hosting a webinar in August. The next webinar will be on Wednesday, September 16, 2020 at 2 pm ET. Stay tuned for more information!
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.