PCCA Journal|2
nd
Quarter 2015
41
»
Identify regulatory barriers unduly impeding broadband
deployment or competition;
»
Survey and report back on existing programs that cur-
rently support or could be modified to support broad-
band competition, deployment, or adoption; and
»
Take all necessary actions to remove these barriers and
re-align existing programs to increase broadband com-
petition, deployment, and adoption.
• The council will report back to the President, within 150
days, with the steps each agency will take to advance
these goals, including specific regulatory actions or budget
proposals.
»
These steps will build on and expand several actions
agencies have already taken, such as developing a com-
mon application form for wireless broadband provid-
ers to lease space for their rooftop antennas, sharing
of best practices for “dig once” policies by state and
municipal governments nationwide, and offering new
online tools for finding and leasing federal assets avail-
able for broadband networks.
Building on the FCC’s Landmark
Decision to Promote Local Choice
The FCC last month independently decided to take action
against two of the 19 state laws that restrict communities
from deciding what broadband solutions fit their needs. This
step forward helped unserved and under-served communi-
ties, many of whom have no way to stay economically com-
petitive absent a municipal provider of broadband.
• As a result, communities in two states, Tennessee and
North Carolina, will no longer be held back from setting up
municipal networks like successful examples in Chattanoo-
ga and Wilson, where those networks affordably deliver
broadband speeds around 100 times the national average.
Continued Support to Communities
& Competitors Expanding Broadband
Offerings
The administration continues to build on the momentum
we began earlier this year with the standup of Commerce’s
BroadbandUSA program. Later this year, the Department of
Agriculture will reopen a revamped broadband loan program,
which offers financing to eligible rural carriers that invest in
bringing high-speed broadband to unserved and under-served
rural areas.
• In March, the Department of Agriculture announced a total
of $35 million in broadband infrastructure loans in Arkan-
sas, New Mexico, and Iowa to deliver enhanced services to
help attract and grow businesses, as well as to improve ed-
ucational and health care services. Time and again, studies
show that affordable broadband offers increased economic
opportunities in rural areas, which is why Rural Develop-
ment is committed to delivering high-speed Internet service
to these communities.
• Through the BroadbandUSA program, the Department of
Commerce has followed through on its promise to support
more communities seeking to learn from the experts on how
to increase broadband investment and competition, includ-
ing through municipal broadband. Since January, Commerce
has provided ongoing one-on-one advice to communities
across the U.S. including in Ohio, Kansas, Florida, Califor-
nia, and West Virginia; organized a regional summit in Jack-
son, Mississippi; and held a national webinar to introduce
BroadbandUSA and present the new Guide to Public-Private
Partnerships for Broadband Investment.
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