USTelecom, Ranching and Agriculture Industry Leaders to Congress: Finish Modernizing U.S. Broadband Maps

WASHINGTON, DC – USTelecom—The Broadband Association, the Rural & Agriculture Council of America, American Agri-Women, the American Dairy Coalition, the American Society of Agronomy, the Crop Science Society of America, the Intertribal Agriculture Council, the Soil Science Society of America, the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association and Women Involved in Farm Economics sent a new letter to Congressional leadership seeking $65 million in funding for the bipartisan Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability (DATA) Act, bipartisan legislation to modernize America’s outdated broadband coverage maps.

In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the coalition wrote:

“There is bipartisan agreement that our current broadband mapping process is fundamentally flawed, seriously overstating coverage in rural census blocks and leaving too many Americans without access to the service they deserve. If we are going to make progress to close the digital divide, we need better, more granular and more accurate maps showing where broadband currently exists – and crucially, where it does not. This data will help policymakers and providers determine where crucial resources can be spent most efficiently and, in turn, connect the most Americans.”

Read the full coalition letter to Congressional leadership HERE.