Mapping and Deploying High-Speed Broadband
The Bush administration recently declared it has largely succeeded in supplying affordable high-speed Internet access to all Americans, despite the fact that most Americans would probably describe their Internet access as slow, expensive, and frustrating. Most analysts are nowhere near as optimistic as Bush’s “Networked Nation: Broadband in America.” These analysts highlight that the U.S. has fallen to 15th in world rankings for broadband connectivity and that Americans pay much higher fees for much slower speeds than most of the industrial nations in the world. Misguided regulatory policies and substandard infrastructure have helped create a sub-par broadband network in the United States.
As we have discussed in the past, broadband is an essential component of economic development, long-term energy savings and health care cost containment. With studies showingeconomic growth happening disproportionately in communities with strong broadband deployment, the lack of affordable and accessible broadband Internet in much of the United States is unacceptable.
Since federal broadband policy is not working, states have taken steps to determine which areas and residents are under-served and created policies to make affordable and reliable broadband Internet a reality for their citizens. For example, California, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine,Maryland, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, and Vermont have created new bodies to focus on broadband. On the other hand, some states have adopted “state video franchising” legislation that has undercut local protections without creating the needed state regulations to bridge the digital divide. This Stateside Dispatch will highlight new state initiatives that are addressing these challenges of mapping broadband access, increasing broadband deployment in the states, and what standards video franchising bills should meet to maintain essential consumer protections.
Posted by emberuser 
