Senate Broadband Caucus Leaders Urge Trump to Propose 'Dedicated' Broadband Funding
The five co-chairmen of the Senate Broadband Caucus urged the Trump administration Wednesday to include “dedicated” stand-alone funding for broadband deployment in its anticipated infrastructure deployment legislative package. Grace Koh, National Economic Council technology, telecom and cybersecurity assistant, cautioned last…
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month that the coming legislative proposal is unlikely to contain stand-alone broadband funding, saying broadband would be an "asset class" eligible for general infrastructure funding (see 1712070016). Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters Wednesday he expects the committee to hold a hearing on broadband issues “as soon as we have a proposal from the administration.” Congressional Republicans “expect to have that [proposal] at or around the time of” Trump's Jan. 30 State of the Union address, Thune said. Senate Commerce provided “a lot of ideas” to the administration and hopes the president’s proposal addresses broadband along with transportation infrastructure improvements, he said. “Our rural communities have connectivity needs that are not being met, limiting economic opportunity and growth," said Senate Broadband Caucus co-chairs John Boozman, R-Ark.; Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.; Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D.; Angus King, I-Maine; and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., in a letter to Trump. "Prioritizing direct funding support for broadband deployment in an infrastructure package will help close the digital divide and ensure our country maintains its global competitiveness." There's “strong bipartisan support for including broadband funding in an infrastructure package,” the senators said. “Boosting current investments in broadband deployment will provide new economic opportunities in communities that are struggling to compete.”