The House passed a new version of a bill Tuesday meant to improve the accuracy of maps detailing where broadband is and isn't available in the US. The legislation is now on a fast track to the Senate, where it's expected to pass before going to President Donald Trump for signing, reports C|Net.
“Reliable access to broadband is no longer a luxury but a necessity for farmers, ranchers and their rural communities," says American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. "This legislation will create a more accurate National Broadband Map, which will help ensure resources are targeted to the areas that need it most."
Background:
The Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability (DATA) Act requires broadband providers to report more specific data to create a significantly more accurate and granular National Broadband Map. With more precise data, federal agencies can target funding to areas that need it most.
Current broadband coverage maps are inadequate because they rely on census block data to determine which areas are covered.
Census blocks are too large in rural and remote locations to accurately determine need. If even one household in a given census block is reported by a provider as being served, then the entire block is considered served.
Census blocks larger than two square miles comprise more than 64% of the US land area, so every rural area is impacted by this problem in some way.
