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The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed into law by President Joe Biden on Nov. 15, 2021, was hailed by the White House and advocates as a historic investment to improve internet access in America.
As a researcher who studies internet policy and digital inequality, I believe the infrastructure plan should be celebrated as a historic moment for broadband, but not so much because of the money it brings to the table. Rather, it is because of the way the law treats internet access in America.
In the bill, Congress finally recognizes that “access to affordable, reliable, high-speed broadband is essential to full participation in modern life in the United States.” In other words, broadband access is like access to running water or electricity. It is essential infrastructure, the lack of which is a barrier to economic competitiveness and the “equitable distribution of essential public services, including health care and education.”
If decades of academic studies did not persuade Congress to enshrine this vision in law, the images of teachers in school parking lots and students outside fast-food restaurants connecting to remote classes during the COVID-19 pandemic probably did.
The bill goes further by acknowledging that the “digital divide disproportionately affects communities of color, lower-income areas, and rural areas,” and orders the Federal Communications Commission to take action against discrimination of access based on income level, race, ethnicity, color, religion or national origin. This is an important recognition of the role that broadband access plays in perpetuating cycles of poverty and community underdevelopment.
Read more at The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/infrastructure-law-high-speed-internet-is-as-essential-as-water-and-electricity-171782
Image Credits: https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/InfrastructureDeal-Broadband-Explainer/139f1939bcf24fc79dd3e93183987cd6/photo