Meuser Introduces Bill to Ensure States Receive Fair Share of Federal Funding for Broadband
WASHINGTON, D.C. — This week, Representatives Dan Meuser(R-PA) and Susie Lee (D-NV) introduced H.R. 3609, the Accurate Map for Broadband Investment Act.
This bipartisan legislation ensures that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has time to update and fix the deeply flawed National Broadband Map before the Department of Commerce fully allocates broadband infrastructure funding. This mapping plays a major role in determining state-by-state allocation of broadband infrastructure funding through the $42 billion Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment Program (BEAD). The current version of the map could cause many states to lose out on potentially hundreds of millions of dollars of federal funding they are owed under the law.
“In the 21st century, access to reliable high-speed internet should be the rule and not the exception,” Rep. Meuser said. “Unfortunately, far too many Pennsylvanians and others living in rural communities across the country lack sufficient access to broadband, which is unacceptable. And while Congress has made strides to expand coverage, the National Broadband Map, which is used to allocate federal dollars to address the issue, is severely flawed. Rural communities, like those in my District, are significantly underrepresented on the current map, meaning they will miss out on vital funding. This bill will help ensure the FCC has time to correct the flawed map before federal funds are fully dispersed. I thank Congresswoman Lee for joining me in my efforts to make certain all communities that currently lack access to broadband are appropriately represented on the map to ensure they receive fair federal funding.”
“Last Congress, I helped pass the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This Congress, I’m making sure that Nevada gets its fair share of its broadband funding,” said Rep. Lee. “I’m proud to join Rep. Meuser in introducing legislation that will help states like Nevada secure our share of federal dollars for the communities that need access to high-speed internet the most.”
U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and John Thune (R-SD) introduced the companion bill in the Senate.
Text of the legislation can be found here.
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