The Digital Divide: What Is It, Where Is It, and Federal Assistance Programs

"As the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic began to unfold, many federal, local, and state governments, in addition to large and small businesses, implemented remote working or distance learning options to help abate the spread of the virus. As these decisions were made, some of the population had the option and the capability to shift activities online, while others did not. The digital divide has been used to characterize a gap between those Americans who have access to telecommunications and information technologies and those who do not. One subset of the digital divide debate concerns access to high-speed internet, also known as broadband. Broadband is provided by a variety of technologies (e.g., cable, telephone wire, fiber, satellite, and mobile and fixed wireless) that give users the ability to send and receive data at volumes and speeds that support a wide range of applications, including voice communications, entertainment, telemedicine, distance education, telework, ecommerce, civic engagement, public safety, and energy conservation.

Broadband technologies are currently being deployed, primarily by the private sector, throughout the United States. While the number of new broadband subscribers continues to grow, in general, rural areas—and tribal areas in particular—tend to lag behind urban and suburban areas in broadband deployment and the speed of service offered. Some policymakers, believing that disparities in broadband access across American society could have adverse economic and social consequences on those left behind, assert that the federal government should play a more active role to address the “digital divide” in broadband access, particularly in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which further revealed discrepancies in broadband availability and accessibility.

Federal support for broadband infrastructure occurs mainly through the Universal Service Fund (USF) programs under the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the broadband and telecommunications programs at the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and newly established broadband programs within the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (P.L. 116-260) at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The USF, which was originally designed to ensure rural, high-cost areas have access to voice service, is undergoing a major transition, which is targeted to the deployment, adoption, and utilization of both fixed and mobile broadband.As currently designed, the USF consists of four programs: the High Cost/Connect America Fund Program; the Schools and Libraries Program; the Rural Health Care Program; and the Low Income (Lifeline) Program. While the overall purpose of each program is to help ensure the universal availability of telecommunications and broadband services, each program addresses specific aspects of that goal to fulfill the universal service mandate and help to close the digital divide. The USDA, through its Rural Utilities Service, administers five programs that provide loans and grants to increase access to broadband service in rural areas.These programs include the Community Connect Program, the ReConnect Program, the Rural Broadband Access Program, the Telecommunications Infrastructure Program, and the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program. Three new broadband programs are to be administered by the NTIA—a pilot program to connect minority communities, a grant program to support broadband connectivity on tribal lands throughout the country, and a grant programto support broadband infrastructure deployment to areas lacking broadband..."
Digital Divide 

FCC Unveils Consumer Broadband Labels to Provide Greater Transparency to Consumers

"The Federal Communications Commission today announced new broadband labels to provide consumers of mobile and fixed broadband Internet service with easy-to-understand information about price and performance. These labels should help consumers make informed decisions about the purchase of broadband service.

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, joined by Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray, unveiled the new broadband labels today at an event attended by members of the FCC’s Consumer Advisory Committee. This committee, composed of consumer group and industry representatives, made a unanimous recommendation of the labels’ framework.

“These labels provide consumers clarity about the broadband service they are purchasing, not only helping them to make more informed choices but also preventing surprises when the first bill arrives,” said Chairman Wheeler. “Customers deserve to know the price they will actually pay for a service and to be fully aware of other components such as data limits and performance factors before they sign up for service.”..."
Broadband labels

FCC Releases Fifth "Measuing Broadband America" Report

"The Federal Communications Commission today released the results of its ongoing nationwide performance study of consumers’ fixed broadband Internet access service in its fifth “Measuring Broadband America” report. The report furthers the Commission’s efforts to provide greater transparency about network performance to help consumers make more informed choices about broadband services. This year’s report shows that broadband speed offerings to the average consumer continue to increase at a rapid pace, and broadband service providers generally are delivering actual speeds that meet or exceed advertised speeds. However, results are not uniform across technologies. The report finds a growing disparity in advertised download speeds between many DSL-based broadband services and most cable- and fiber-based broadband services.."
Broadband

Measuring Broadband America - 2012

"This 2013 Measuring Broadband America—February Report contains the most recent results from the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) Measuring Broadband America program. This program, whose first results were published in August 2011, is an ongoing, rigorous, nationwide study of residential broadband performance in the United States. This study, like those conducted before, involves actual performance tests for thousands of subscribers of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) serving well over 80 percent of the residential market..."
Measuring Broadband America - 2012

FCC Eight Broadband Progress Report

"...But as of now, our analysis of the best data available—the data collected by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) for the National Broadband Map—shows that approximately 19 million Americans live in areas still unserved by terrestrial-fixed broadband.3 For these and other reasons, we must conclude that broadband is not yet being deployed “to all Americans” in a reasonable and timely fashion..."

Measuring Broadband America - July 2012 Consumer wireline broadband performance in the U.S.

"This July 2012 Measuring Broadband America Report contains the most recent results from the Federal Communication Commission’s Measuring Broadband America program, an ongoing, rigorous, nationwide performance study of residential broadband performance in the United States. The study involves actual performance tests for thousands of subscribers of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) serving well over 80 percent of the residential market. Our initial Measuring Broadband America Report, released in August 2011, presented the first broad-scale study of actual home broadband performance throughout the United States..."

Measuring Broadband in America

"MEASURING BROADBAND AMERICA presents the results of the first nationwide performance study of residential wireline broadband service in the United States. The study examined service offerings from 13 of the largest wireline broadband providers using automated, direct measurements of broadband performance delivered to the homes of thousands of volunteers during March 2011..."

The Informtion Needs of Communities: the changing media landscapein a broadband age
"...This report looks not only at the changing face of media, but at the relevant policy and regulatory situation, including the FCC’s own track record. Our basic conclusion: with the media landscape shifting as fast as it has been, some current regulations are out of sync with the information needs of communities and the fluid nature of modern local media markets.

In crafting recommendations, this report started with the overriding premise that the First Amendment circumscribes the role government can play in improving local news. Beyond that, sound policy would recognize that government is simply not the main player in this drama."

Measuring Broadband America:A Report on Consumer Wireline Broadband Performance in the U.S.
"To make informed choices about purchasing and using broadband, consumers need to have access to basic information about broadband performance. Will a particular offering allow me to browse the web quickly and easily? Will it enable me to use new applications that help me maintain my health, search for a job, or take courses online? What should I look for in a provider if I want to watch high definition online video or play online video games? Does a given speed tier have sufficient upload capacity to enable video conferencing? Will a higher speed, higher priced service improve my Internet experience? Can I get by with a lower priced service? And does the speed a provider advertises match the actual speed I will receive at my home? To help answer these questions, this Report presents the results of the first rigorous,
nationwide study of actual home broadband performance in the United State..."

National Broadband Map
"The National Broadband Map is a tool to search, analyze and map broadband availability across the United States. Created and maintained by the NTIA, in collaboration with the FCC, and in partnership with 50 states, five territories and the District of Columbia."

NEW COMMERCE DEPARTMENT REPORT SHOWS BROADBAND ADOPTION RISES WHILE 'GAP' PERSISTS
"The Department of Commerce's Economics and Statistics Administration (ESA) and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today released a new report, “Digital Nation II,” that analyzes broadband Internet access and adoption across the United States. The study – the most comprehensive of its kind -- finds that socio-economic factors such as income and education levels, although strongly associated with broadband Internet use, are not the sole determinants of use; even after accounting for socioeconomic differences, significant gaps persist along racial, ethnic, and geographic lines. The report analyzes data collected through an Internet Usage Survey of 54,000 households conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau in October 2009. Earlier this year, NTIA released initial findings from the survey, showing that while virtually all demographic groups have experienced rising broadband Internet adoption at home, and 64 percent of households overall have broadband at home, historic disparities among demographic groups have persisted over time..."

Broadband Performance
"This paper analyzes residential consumer usage of broadband and the performance of fixed1 broadband connections in the U.S. The data and analyses in this paper were used to create
the National Broadband Availability Target described in the National Broadband Plan (NBP), and therefore represent key inputs into the calculation of the broadband availability gap. The paper also explains how networks have evolved and could evolve over time and what drives network usage and performance demands.

This paper is organized into three sections. The first section examines how residential consumers use their broadband service and classifies consumers into four distinct broadband use profiles. The second discusses the performance of U.S. broadband connections that consumers have purchased—today, in the past and projected for the near future. Finally, the paper explains how the data in the first two sections led to the National Broadband Plan’s National Broadband Availability Target..."

FCC LAUNCHES BROADBAND CONSUMER TOOLS
"Today, the Federal Communications Commission launched new digital tools
-- the Consumer Broadband Test and the Broadband Dead Zone Report -- that allow consumers
to test their broadband service and report areas where broadband is not available.
“Transparency empowers consumers, promotes innovation and investment, and encourages
competition,” said Chairman Julius Genachowski. “The FCC’s new digital tools will arm users
with real-time information about their broadband connection and the agency with useful data
about service across the country. By informing consumers about their broadband service quality,
these tools help eliminate confusion and make the market work more effectively.”

The Consumer Broadband Test measures broadband quality indicators such as speed and latency,
and reports that information to consumers and the FCC. The mobile version -- the FCC’s first
mobile app -- is available through the Apple and Android app stores. The fixed version is
available at www.broadband.gov. Two popular broadband testing tools are used in this beta
version -- the Ookla, Inc. Speed Test and the Network Diagnostic Tool (NDT) running on the
Measurement Lab (M-Lab) platform. In the future, the FCC anticipates making additional
broadband testing applications available for consumer use. The Commission does not endorse
any specific testing application..."

FCC LAUNCHES DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL BROADBAND PLAN
"The Federal Communications Commission today begins the process of
developing a national broadband plan that will seek to ensure that every American has access to broadband capability.

In the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 – known as the stimulus package – Congress charged the Commission with creating a national broadband plan. In a Notice of Inquiry adopted today, the Commission begins a proceeding to create that national broadband plan, seeking input from all stakeholders: consumers, industry, large and small businesses, non-profits, the disabilities community, governments at the federal, state, local and tribal levels, and all other interested parties.

The Commission must deliver the plan to Congress by Feb. 17, 2010. It will provide a roadmap toward achieving the goal of ensuring that all Americans reap the benefits of broadband..."