Rep. Mike Thompson Applauds High-Speed Internet Access Expansion
October 28, 2011
FCC ‘Connect America Fund’ will Create Jobs, Expand Broadband to Rural Areas
Congressman Mike Thompson (CA-1) today applauded the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) vote to help expand broadband to millions of underserved Americans. The FCC reforms, approved yesterday, will pave the way for robust broadband coverage across rural America, ensuring the nearly 18 million people without broadband access have affordable and reliable service.
“Yesterday's vote will help expand broadband to rural America and means more jobs and greater access to high-speed internet for our schools, hospitals, libraries and community centers,” said Thompson. “The ‘Connect America Fund' will create rural anchor institutions throughout our district, allowing folks access to more educational opportunities, better job training and advanced telemedicine. In our digital world access to high-speed internet is essential to everything from running a business, to operating a health center or teaching in a 21st century classroom and yesterdays' announcement will help increase these possibilities in rural communities.”
In a significant step toward expanding access for Americans to high-speed Internet, wherever they live, the FCC voted unanimously to comprehensively reform its Universal Service Fund. Previously created to ensure every home in America has a telephone line, this system has been widely viewed as broken, and long overdue for reform. Efforts to expand high-speed Internet to rural America over the next six years will increase economic growth by $50 billion over that period, the FCC estimates.
These reforms create a new Connect America Fund with an annual budget of no more than $4.5 billion, which will extend broadband infrastructure to the millions of Americans who currently have no access to broadband. As a result, yesterday's action has the potential to be one of the biggest job creators in rural America in decades. The FCC estimates that approximately 500,000 jobs will be created over the next six years by expanding high-speed Internet access to over 7 million Americans living in rural areas. And by increasing the overall size of the U.S. marketplace, small Main Street businesses across the country will benefit from the opportunity to sell to new customers.
"Access Humboldt applauds the FCC action yesterday to establish the Connect America Fund which will help to support broadband communications access in remote rural places, such as the North Coast of California, that have not been well served by legacy providers and universal service mechanisms,” said Sean McLaughlin, Executive Director of Access Humboldt. “We particularly appreciate the constructive efforts of our Congressman Mike Thompson to support community broadband developments, such as recently funded projects of the Yurok and Karuk Tribes, which will help our local communities to develop appropriate local solutions to meet local needs."
"The Broadband Alliance of Mendocino County is grateful to the FCC for their significant action to connect all Americans, especially in rural areas, to high-speed Internet. Without the government's monetary support, it cannot happen. Broadband access is as important as being connected to the electrical grid," said Jim Moorehead, Steering Committee Chair of the Mendocino Broadband Alliance. "We trust that the FCC will truly make this UNIVERSAL to make sure ALL residences and businesses are connected with the minimum downloads specified in the National Broadband Plan. It is an imperative to offer this equality of access for all no matter where they are since so much communication with government and most businesses in being required to be done online. Choosing a rural lifestyle should not penalize areas like Mendocino County where currently only approximately 50% have access to true high-speed Internet. BAMC is doing its part and we appreciate being supported in this work by the FCC."
Congressman Mike Thompson is proud to represent California's 1st Congressional District, which includes the Counties of Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Sonoma, Napa, and Yolo. He is a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Rep. Thompson is also a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition and sits on the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Wine Caucus.
“Yesterday's vote will help expand broadband to rural America and means more jobs and greater access to high-speed internet for our schools, hospitals, libraries and community centers,” said Thompson. “The ‘Connect America Fund' will create rural anchor institutions throughout our district, allowing folks access to more educational opportunities, better job training and advanced telemedicine. In our digital world access to high-speed internet is essential to everything from running a business, to operating a health center or teaching in a 21st century classroom and yesterdays' announcement will help increase these possibilities in rural communities.”
In a significant step toward expanding access for Americans to high-speed Internet, wherever they live, the FCC voted unanimously to comprehensively reform its Universal Service Fund. Previously created to ensure every home in America has a telephone line, this system has been widely viewed as broken, and long overdue for reform. Efforts to expand high-speed Internet to rural America over the next six years will increase economic growth by $50 billion over that period, the FCC estimates.
These reforms create a new Connect America Fund with an annual budget of no more than $4.5 billion, which will extend broadband infrastructure to the millions of Americans who currently have no access to broadband. As a result, yesterday's action has the potential to be one of the biggest job creators in rural America in decades. The FCC estimates that approximately 500,000 jobs will be created over the next six years by expanding high-speed Internet access to over 7 million Americans living in rural areas. And by increasing the overall size of the U.S. marketplace, small Main Street businesses across the country will benefit from the opportunity to sell to new customers.
"Access Humboldt applauds the FCC action yesterday to establish the Connect America Fund which will help to support broadband communications access in remote rural places, such as the North Coast of California, that have not been well served by legacy providers and universal service mechanisms,” said Sean McLaughlin, Executive Director of Access Humboldt. “We particularly appreciate the constructive efforts of our Congressman Mike Thompson to support community broadband developments, such as recently funded projects of the Yurok and Karuk Tribes, which will help our local communities to develop appropriate local solutions to meet local needs."
"The Broadband Alliance of Mendocino County is grateful to the FCC for their significant action to connect all Americans, especially in rural areas, to high-speed Internet. Without the government's monetary support, it cannot happen. Broadband access is as important as being connected to the electrical grid," said Jim Moorehead, Steering Committee Chair of the Mendocino Broadband Alliance. "We trust that the FCC will truly make this UNIVERSAL to make sure ALL residences and businesses are connected with the minimum downloads specified in the National Broadband Plan. It is an imperative to offer this equality of access for all no matter where they are since so much communication with government and most businesses in being required to be done online. Choosing a rural lifestyle should not penalize areas like Mendocino County where currently only approximately 50% have access to true high-speed Internet. BAMC is doing its part and we appreciate being supported in this work by the FCC."
Congressman Mike Thompson is proud to represent California's 1st Congressional District, which includes the Counties of Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Sonoma, Napa, and Yolo. He is a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Rep. Thompson is also a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition and sits on the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Wine Caucus.
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