Collaboration a Must for National Broadband Plan, Say Cities
Cooperation among federal and local agencies and companies is vital to overcome broadband adoption barriers in cities, especially among disadvantaged communities, city and county officials said late Tuesday at an FCC broadband workshop.
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Affordability, availability and inclusion are critical to driving adoption, Chicago Chief Information Officer Hardik Bhatt said. Community need, cooperation, coordination, consolidation and cost savings are five best practices for improving broadband in Howard County, Md., said county Cable Administrator Lori Sherwood. “We need to coordinate to make the greatest use of each agency” and avoid redundancy, she said, proposing to establish a state and local government broadband policy task force. Sherwood noted the example of the One Maryland Broadband Consortium, comprised of 10 Maryland jurisdictions applying for $100 million in BTOP funding.
Bhatt proposed outreach, training and equipment programs. Cost is more likely the main reason for not having Internet at home in black and Hispanic neighborhoods, he said, citing a report commissioned by Chicago’s Department of Innovation and Technology.
Chicago’s strategies to improve broadband access and adoption are data collection and fostering demand for broadband by encouraging construction of smart buildings that are ready to connect, through vertical cabling standards, Bhatt said. Some funding for broadband survey and mapping from NTIA may help, but it’s not clear how that would play out, he said. He noted Digital Excellence in Chicago, an initiative aiming to ensure that “all Chicagoans have the technological tools to compete and thrive in the 21st century.” Currently, 32 percent of Chicagoans don’t have Internet access at home. This is most common among low-income families, minorities, people with disabilities, and seniors, he said.
The city of New York wants to make broadband services more transparent, accountable and accessible, Cosgrave said. The value of broadband adoption could be demonstrated through enhanced educational opportunities, workforce training, improved access to heath care and other critical services, he said. As part of the city’s Primary Care Information Project (PCIP), health care agencies have been using electronic health care records to improve health care in the disadvantaged communities, he said. Some 2,500 primary care providers will be using this electronic health care system by next year, he said. Offering self-management tools, including patient portals, to some 1 million patients is also on PCIP’s 2010 agenda, he said.
Public power systems in some areas in Lafayette, La., are meeting the new demands of their communities by providing broadband services where such services are unavailable, inadequate, or too expensive, said City-Parish President Joey Durel. The Lafayette Utilities System has been trying to develop a fiber-to-the-home system to provide communication services, including Internet, cable TV and telephone, to city residents, he said.
Computer ownership is crucial, said Gary Gordier, chief information officer and IT director for the city of El Paso, Tex. The city is offering computer training and computer loan programs, he said. The city of San Francisco has made use of donated PCs and equipment and tapped excess capacity on the city’s fiber network to give inner-city residents a fast connection, said the city’s CIO, Chris Vein.