Rural America could be in line for a big boost with more broadband internet being made available. Congressman Fred Upton is joining with House Majority Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina to sponsor the “Rural Broadband Acceleration Act” to speed up the rollout of high speed internet to areas where it does not exist nationwide. Upton says the goal is to get it passed quickly and have work underway this summer.
“For Michigan, it means over $100 million just in the first year to begin to make sure that these communities to get access to broadband.” said Upton. “It’s going to create literally hundreds of thousands of jobs.”
Upton and Clyburn note about 25% of homes in the U.S. have no access to the internet, which has become a big problem for students whose schools are closed in their attempts to use distance learning. Last month in an open letter to the Congress, the CEOs of more than 70 rural electric cooperatives committed to fiber-to-the-premise construction projects if the Clyburn-Upton proposal was adopted.
