Wheeler Backs Closing Rural Gap for E-rate Schools, Libraries.
Despite its July E-rate order, FCC work to bring 21st century technology to schools and libraries is “not over,” said Chairman Tom Wheeler Monday. He said the agency will focus on closing the fiber gap in rural areas and dealing with the high cost of buildout.
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Bringing the connectivity of rural schools and libraries up to par with those in urban areas can be accomplished “within the confines of the current E-rate structure by considering rules to provide better incentives for buildout in areas with high upfront costs,” Wheeler said at the 2014 Educational Technology Summit. He acknowledged the higher cost of bringing fiber to rural areas, but said, “in many cases broadband service providers can do a lot better for our nation’s schools and libraries.” He said Congress directed that E-rate schools and libraries pay cheaper rates for services than others and that the agency and providers “have a statutory responsibility to assure that the E-rate is the lowest possible rate."
Wheeler said the agency should examine its programs “to better incentivize buildout to rural schools and libraries.” While he gave few specifics, Wheeler said adjusting rules “make it more likely that school districts and libraries will receive bids to build in areas where they currently have no high-speed options.” Wheeler also said the Connect America Fund’s success should be judged on “how it solves the rural fiber gap for rural schools and libraries.” Closing the gap, he said, is also “a matter of having sufficient funding."
For communities with schools and libraries connected to high-capacity broadband, “the opportunities are boundless,” Wheeler said. “But for those who remain tethered to connectivity of the 20th century, the future is not nearly as bright."
Further reforms would come on top of the July order, which set a $1 billion goal for funding Wi-Fi connections within schools and libraries, among other reforms. Citing FCC figures, Wheeler said 40 percent of rural schools lack access to fiber networks, with only about a third taking advantage of it because of high costs. Seventy-five percent of rural schools do not meet the agency’s short-term goal of 100 Mbps per 1,000 students, Wheeler said.
Pointing to the high cost for schools and libraries to get fiber, Wheeler said a small rural school in South Dakota faced a $6,000 per-month bill for a high-speed connection. In terms of Internet connections, he said statewide networks pay from $1 per Mbps per month to more than $15 for the same service.