Contact: Lauren Gaydos, 703-351-2015
Arlington, Va., (May 18, 2021)—NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association today testified at two congressional hearings on the importance of future-proof, affordable broadband for rural Americans and the role of federal infrastructure investment.
NTCA Chief Executive Officer Shirley Bloomfield provided the perspective of broadband operators in testifying before a Senate Finance Committee hearing on infrastructure funding, and Lang Zimmerman, vice president of NTCA member Yelcot Telephone Company (Mountain Home, Ark.), testified before a House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing on how lessons from the pandemic should inform broadband policy going forward.
“The rural broadband industry and our nation as a whole have a great story of success to date in delivering high-speed broadband services, and that certainly has never been more important than it has over the last 15 months,” said Bloomfield in her testimony. “But we still have much more work to do both in deploying networks and delivering robust and affordable services for millions of Americans, and this is where public policy can play a really important role in helping build and sustain broadband in rural markets that are otherwise not able to justify these kinds of investments.”
Bloomfield specifically recommended that any broadband infrastructure plan aim to build and maintain lasting networks using future-proof technology such as fiber, coordinate among existing and new federal broadband programs, include clear service standards for providers to participate, leverage the expertise and experience of community-based providers and address barriers to broadband deployment such as permitting and supply chain delays.
In his testimony, Zimmerman said, “The pandemic has altered society as we know it and highlighted the importance of access to reliable, high-speed broadband connectivity. If I had to identify one lesson learned from the pandemic, it would be that investments in broadband infrastructure and affordability are essential so that everyone will experience the telehealth, telework, distance learning and other benefits of such connectivity.”
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NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association is the premier association representing nearly 850 independent, community-based telecommunications companies that are leading innovative change in smart rural communities across America. In an era of transformative technological developments, regulatory challenges and marketplace competition, NTCA members are advancing efforts to close the digital divide by delivering robust and high-quality services over future-proof networks. Their commitment to building sustainable networks makes rural communities fertile ground for innovation in economic development, e-commerce, health care, agriculture and education, and it contributes billions of dollars to the U.S. economy each year. Visit us at www.ntca.org.