Congress Appropriates $7 Billion to Fund Broadband Initiatives

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP

On December 21, 2020, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, comprised of a $1.4 trillion omnibus spending package to fund the U.S. government in Fiscal Year 2021 and a $900 billion coronavirus relief package. The Act includes $7 billion in appropriations to fund broadband initiatives.

These initiatives include:

  • $3.2 billion for an emergency broadband benefit program to help low-income households connect, or remain connected, to broadband service.
  • $1.9 billion to fund the removal and replacement of communications equipment designated as unsecure from U.S. communications networks.
  • $1 billion for a dedicated Tribal broadband connectivity grant program.
  • $300 million to fund a broadband grant program to facilitate broadband infrastructure deployment in unserved areas.
  • $285 million to fund a newly created Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to support historically black colleges and universities, Tribal colleges and universities and minority-serving education institutions for purposes of expanding broadband availability at the schools and in the surrounding community.
  • $250 in new funding for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) COVID-19 Telehealth Program.
  • $65 million to fund the FCC’s development of more accurate broadband availability maps.

A more detailed summary of the broadband funding and other broadband-related provisions of the Act is available here.

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations. Attorney Advertising.

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