The Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act (aka S.4131) is a must-read. The text of this bill is soul-crushing: it’s asking for $94 billion, of which $80 billion will be spent on deploying broadband infrastructure nationwide (prioritizing unserved and underserved rural, suburban, and urban areas).
America desperately needs a future-thinking broadband infrastructure policy. This isn’t it.
The bill perfectly articulates what America needs (and why), then it defines broadband as 25 down/3 up and goes on to read like a bunch of corporate handouts with some pandering to the underserved. I’ve read this bill a few times now, and the more I read it, the madder I get. Congresspeople!
The volume and velocity of data is increasing and will always increase. Our national broadband policy has to foster innovation, not hand out money for providing 25/3 access in a 500/500 world that is soon to be a 1000/1000 and beyond.
Author’s note: This is not a sponsored post. I am the author of this article and it expresses my own opinions. I am not, nor is my company, receiving compensation for it.