COMMERCE COMMITTEE APPROVES INOUYE BROADBAND DATA COLLECTION BILL
[SOURCE: US Senate Commerce Committee]
The Senate Commerce Committee unanimously approved a bill to improve the
quality of federal and state broadband data collection and encourage
initiatives that promote broadband deployment. The Broadband Data Improvement
Act specifically would: 1) Direct the Federal Communications Commission to
decide whether the current 200 kilobit standard for broadbandwhich was adopted
in 1999should be revised. It also would require the FCC to revise its
broadband reporting form to help identify which service tiers can be used by
consumers to reliably receive high-definition video content. 2) Direct the FCC
to revise existing broadband reporting obligations to require providers to
report the actual numbers of broadband connections either within a census
tract, 9-digit postal zip code, or 5-digit postal zip code. Under the current
system, if there is a single subscriber in a 5-digit zip code, it is assumed
there is broadband availability to all within the 5-digit zip code. 3) Direct
the FCC to conduct inquiries into the deployment of advanced telecommunications
services on an annual, rather than periodic, basis. 4) Direct the Census Bureau
to include a question in its American Community Survey that assesses levels of
residential computer use and determines levels of dial-up versus broadband
Internet subscribership. 5) Direct the Government Accountability Office (GAO)
to develop broadband measurements that may be used to provide consumers with
broadband connection cost and capability information and improve the process of
comparing the deployment and penetration of broadband in the United States with
other countries. 6) Direct the Small Business Administrations Office of
Advocacy to conduct a study evaluating the impact of broadband speed and price
on small businesses. 7) Authorize a 5-year, $40 million per year program that
would provide matching grants to state non-profit, public-private partnerships
in support of efforts to more accurately identify barriers to broadband
adoption throughout the state.
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=248887&Month=7&Year=2007
* U.S. Moves One Step Closer to Universal Broadband
http://www.freepress.net/press/release.php?id=256
* Public Knowledge Commends Senate Panel for Adopting Broadband Data Bill
http://www.publicknowledge.org/node/1108
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