House Democrats Propose $98B in Broadband, NG-911 Funding

A simultaneous House Communications Subcommittee hearing on digital equity issues didn’t directly touch on the plan. Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., didn’t use the panel as previously intended to highlight his call for allocating proceeds from the FCC’s coming auction of spectrum on the 3.7-4.2 GHz C band for telecom projects (see 2001280003). New Senate-side C-band allocation legislation remained on lawmakers’ radar Wednesday (see 2001290049).

The infrastructure framework proposes more than $86 billion in broadband investments, including $80 billion in direct investment. It also proposes $12 billion in grants for implementing NG-911 technologies. The direct investment figure is double the $40 billion Democrats proposed in the Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s (Lift) America Act (HR-2741), as expected (see 2001240001). Democrats also want $5 billion in investment for a proposed NTIA-administered broadband infrastructure finance and innovation program that communities and public-private partnerships can use. The lawmakers proposed $1.4 billion in funding for digital equity investments.

The Democrats’ broadband loan funding plan appears to mirror what was proposed in the Broadband Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (HR-4127), while the digital equity language appears to expand on proposals in the Digital Equity Act (HR-4486/S-1167). Capitol Hill aides and lobbyists expect the full text of both bills to be included in eventual legislation based on the framework. Other broadband bills’ texts are likely to also be attached, including HR-1693, which would make deployment of Wi-Fi equipment on school buses eligible for E-rate funding.

The all-Democratic House Task Force on Rural Broadband is expected to soon release legislation aimed at “enabling all Americans to affordably reap the essential benefits of high-speed internet,” one Democratic Hill aide said. “We expect many” House Commerce members’ proposals “to be incorporated in the task force’s comprehensive legislation” and to be potentially added into a broader infrastructure bill. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, who formed the task force last May (see 1905130053), was among those lauding the infrastructure framework’s broadband proposals during a Wednesday news conference.

Hill Uncertainties

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and other Democratic leaders highlighted the framework’s potential to significantly upgrade U.S. infrastructure networks. They wouldn't say when they would be ready to file a legislative package.

“We'll go to the floor when we're ready," Pelosi told reporters. “We're not talking about next week.” An infrastructure funding package is “a big step, and a major expense,” she said. “We have to find the funding for it.”

Neal demurred from immediately identifying potential sources to pay for the package. "It's really important that we not volunteer a revenue stream until [President Donald Trump’s] administration reaches an agreement with us," Neal said. "I think that that will provide an opportunity for Republicans and Democrats, after our committee negotiates with them over what the revenue stream ought to be, to get on with what is a sorely needed investment.” Trump halted talks in May on ways to pay for additional broadband and other infrastructure projects because of House investigations into his administration (see 1905220076).

House Commerce ranking member Greg Walden, R-Ore., told reporters he thinks "we could certainly find common ground” on infrastructure. “It needs to be done in a smart way that doesn’t overbuild existing infrastructure and compete with the private sector that’s already there,” he said. “You need to be precise with where the money goes” and "that’s going to require improvements in federal agencies’ collection of broadband coverage data.”

NTCA “appreciates the attention paid in this infrastructure package to the need to address the digital divide,” said CEO Shirley Bloomfield. The Wireless ISP Association said “if enacted into law, [the Democrats' proposal] will go far in bridging the debilitating digital divide.” The plan “does not lay out any specifics," so WISPA hopes House leadership "recognizes that spectrum is infrastructure … and focuses on encouraging Federal officials to unleash more of it for consumers." The Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Coalition praised the “forward-looking approach to incorporating drones and other technologies into a long-term plan to invest in America’s infrastructure.”

Digital Equity

Doyle at the House Communications hearing noted digital equity goes beyond a “lack of access” to broadband. He cited broadband affordability as a “serious challenge to adoption” in low-income households, and “closing the affordability gap” is just one of many digital equity issues. Doyle questioned whether private-sector efforts are sustainable in the long term and whether 5G deployments would help reduce costs.

Walden and House Communications ranking member Bob Latta, R-Ohio, urged lawmakers to be cautious. “It’s only been a decade since broadband deployment has exploded into an everyday necessity, and without first addressing the lack of broadband availability, any federal resources put forward for broadband adoption could further enlarge the digital divide if not done carefully,” Walden said. ISPs “continue to make strides” in their efforts to connect low-income consumers to broadband and “I urge caution that we are not focusing on a one-size-fits-all solution with a heavy hand from Washington,” Latta said.

Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Calif., urged lawmakers to advance his HR-4486. The bill also got support from House Commerce Vice Chair Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y.; Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M.; Digital Inclusion Alliance Executive Director Angela Siefer and Georgetown Law Institute for Technology & Policy’s Gigi Sohn. Clarke urged lawmakers to examine affordability issues in both urban and rural areas.

Sohn urged lawmakers to be cautious about viewing 5G deployments as an answer to improving broadband adoption rates, saying much is “unknown and untested” about the technology. Wireless industry executives say 5G is “not going to be a whole lot better than 4G” in rural areas, she said in response to Doyle's query. Sohn later told Rep. John Shimkus, R-Ill., the race to 5G is “a marathon, not a sprint.” She’s “not anti-5G,” but “I think it would be unwise” to develop broadband adoption and digital equity policy “based on what 5G might be."