Telecom Titans Cut the Power on NY Plan for Affordable Internet courthousenews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from courthousenews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Published: May 25, 2021, 7:30am Editorial Note: Forbes Advisor may earn a commission on sales made from partner links on this page, but that doesn t affect our editors opinions or evaluations. SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE VIA GETTY IMAGES
As Americans retreated into their homes to wait out the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, it became apparent that many households weren’t ready for one aspect of working or learning from home: How much they’d need to use the internet.
For many families, the cost of getting online is a major barrier to internet access. Though broadband internet prices have gone down in recent years, high-speed service can still cost at least $45 per month, according to a study by the United States Telecom Association, which represents internet service providers. Half of people who didn’t have broadband service in 2019 blamed the cost, according to a study by the Pew Research Center.
Republicans say the proposed price controls and subsidies are more examples of the Democrats’ push for the biggest expansion of government since the New Deal.
“We all want to close the digital divide, but the only way to truly achieve this is to lead with solutions that drive results not more government centralized power,” said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, the top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over broadband expansion.
“The policies proposed by our Democratic colleagues and the Biden administration include federally regulating the rates that private companies can charge for broadband service,” she said.
Hearing on Broadband Equity: Addressing Disparities in Access and Affordability rstreet.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from rstreet.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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CORNERSTONE ADDS 2: Katelyn Bunning has departed Senate Minority Leader
Mitch McConnell’s office, where she rose through the ranks for more than a decade to become his legislative director, and joined Cornerstone Government Affairs as a lobbyist. Bunning, who McConnell called an “all-star” and a “key adviser” on whom relied on “extensively” during a farewell floor speech earlier this month, will lobby for a variety of clients across several policy areas, she told PI.