House Members Divide on Broadband Affordability, Equity

Biden trumpeted the need for bipartisan compromise amid growing signs that Democrats will have to advance a legislative package via budget reconciliation (see 2103160001). “I’m willing to hear ideas from both sides, I’m meeting with Republican friends in the Congress” to determine “how much they’re willing to go” for a deal, he said during an event Thursday in Lake Charles, Louisiana. “I’m not ready to have another period where America has another ‘infrastructure month’” that “doesn’t change a damn thing.” Vice President Kamala Harris is beginning to speak with lawmakers as part of her new role in shepherding the $100 billion broadband part of Biden’s infrastructure proposal through Congress (see 2104290076). She told reporters she wants lawmakers to reach a "reasonable consensus."

The prospects for broadband affordability and equity language in the Biden plan and congressional Democrats’ bills -- the Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act (HR-1783/S-745) and Leading Infrastructure for Tomorrow’s America Act (HR-1848) -- remain murky in any scenario that doesn’t involve budget reconciliation, lobbyists said. Senate Republicans' infrastructure counterproposal includes $65 billion for broadband but doesn't address equity (see 2104220067).

Senate Communications Subcommittee Chairman Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., told us it’s crucial lawmakers retain affordability language in an infrastructure language. He noted his virtual guest at Biden’s speech to Congress last week was a Navajo high school student from Counselor, New Mexico, who “could not even participate … because it would have taken too much of the data that she has on her mobile plan. If she can’t afford it, she can’t use it, and it’s not available to people, that’s a problem.”

Democrats

House Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone of New Jersey and other Democrats during the hearing touted the Biden plan, HR-1783/S-745 and HR-1848 as effective ways of addressing affordability and equity issues. HR-1783/S-745 and HR-1848 would create a permanent replacement for the COVID-19 emergency broadband benefit program and establish digital equity investment programs (see 2103110060).

National Urban League Senior Vice President-Advocacy and Policy Joi Chaney, Public Knowledge CEO Chris Lewis and Next Century Cities Executive Director Francella Ochillo supported the Democrats’ bills, as expected (see 2105050066). The existing EBB program "addresses affordability, but our goal is not to return to pre-pandemic inequity once the emergency is over," Chaney said. "We need to find programs that provide long-term sustainable support for the poorest Americans."

“I hope we can all work together to make” the EBB program “a success, but affordability is going to continue to be a problem for some families even after that program ends,” Pallone said. “For too long, the term digital divide has been used to characterize the differences in quality and speed of internet networks in rural areas, compared to those in urban areas. There is no doubt that government must step in and invest where the marketplace doesn’t support the business case.”

Bills like HR-1783 /S-745 and HR-1848 are a “once-in-a-generation investment we need” to address “deep-seated inequities in our society,” said Communications Chairman Mike Doyle, D-Pa. He’s “pleased to see so many” ISPs participating in EBB and other programs to help low-income Americans retain connectivity during COVID-19, but lawmakers “need to look beyond” means-tested programs. Congress also needs to “create a permanent program to provide broadband connectivity” to people in need, Doyle said.

Doyle and Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., cited language from the Community Broadband Act (HR-1631/S-1460) included in HR-1848 that would guarantee municipalities and other local governments retain the right to build networks (see 2103090061). “The digital divide is a national embarrassment, and we have to solve it,” Eshoo said. “Community broadband is an important part of the solution because it’s already working.”

Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., was among those who want an infrastructure bill to address the impact of past digital redlining on communities of color. “Congress must take urgent action to prohibit the discriminatory deployment of broadband by ISPs based on” an area's income level, predominant racial or ethnic composition and other factors, she said.

Republicans

House Commerce ranking member Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington and other Republicans agreed broadband affordability is important but argued the Democrats’ proposals won’t help. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said earlier this week it’s unlikely any Republicans in that chamber will back the existing Democratic-led proposals (see 2105030063). Several Republicans cited a set of 28 broadband bills party members proposed in February (see 2102160067) as an alternative package.

“We all want to close the digital divide, but the only way to truly achieve this is to lead with solutions that drive results, not more government centralized power,” McMorris Rodgers said. Democrats’ proposals “include federally regulating the rates that private companies can charge for broadband service. They would prioritize inefficient, government-run networks at expense of private networks with a record of success and create arbitrary speed thresholds, that favor fiber-only projects, with no restrictions to prevent overbuilding in areas where broadband already exists.”

“We must continue to support policies that will help all Americans get connected,” said Communications ranking member Bob Latta, R-Ohio. “We must study the landscape of what our country looks like after the billions of dollars made available in funding is distributed. Congress cannot continue to blindly spend billions. ... There is not a clear indication of what factors contribute to non-adoption.”

Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., is concerned Democrats’ plans are “really focused” on fiber at the expense of 5G and other forms that could be used in hard-to-reach areas. Phoenix Center Chief Economist George Ford worried “that in 10 years, we’re going to be kicking ourselves” for building “all this fiber” when technologies like 5G can provide an effective alternative. ISPs have been making similar arguments to lawmakers since Democrats first unveiled their proposals (see 2104150057). Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., noted concerns with the Biden plan’s call for 100 Mbps symmetrical, which Ford said would be counterproductive.

Latta and other Republicans countered Democrats’ claims of a broadband affordability crisis, partly citing FCC data that found average broadband prices in urban areas declined 36% between 2015 and 2020. "Thanks to competitive pressures, innovation and a light-touch regulatory environment, broadband prices have seen a significant decline over the past decade," McMorris Rodgers said. Ford argued pumping more money into an EBB replacement past the pandemic will likely have an impact “somewhat like” Lifeline: There will likely be some increase in adoption, not enough to not leave lawmakers “disappointed.”