Infrastructure bill would give state, local governments freer hand with broadband cash, so rural might have to fight for it

The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the need to close the rural-urban digital divide, and many state and local governments plan to use billions of dollars in federal relief funds to do that. The $1 trillion infrastructure bill the Senate passed today would provide a big boost, and give governments more flexibility with it, Managing Editor Rich Ehisen reports for State Net Capitol Journal.

H.R. 3684 allocates $65 billion for broadband deployment and adoption in under-served areas, an amount that is "both much more than Congress has previously allocated specifically to broadband and substantially less than the $100 billion President Joe Biden was seeking," Ehisen reports. If passed as-is, $42 billion would likely be sent to states as block grants and $14 billion would permanently fund an emergency fund that helps low-income Americans pay internet bills.

Notably, the bill "grants state and local governments wide latitude to set their own priorities in funding broadband projects, a significant departure from the usual mandates for how federal funds are utilized," Ehisen reports. "It also allows funds to be allocated toward 'communities,' as defined by states themselves instead of the usual census blocks based on Federal Communications Commission data." That could mean rural areas shouldn't take for granted that they will get help from the bill, because it is not focused only on rural areas.