House Farm Bill Would Redefine ‘Rural’ for Broadband Loans
Broadband loan programs for rural communities would be refocused to serve areas less populous than they now cover, according to draft legislation reauthorizing the five-year farm bill. Many House Agriculture Committee members praised the bipartisan draft bill as debate began Tuesday on the massive measure covering renewal of dozens of food programs. The broadband provisions are new; they have bipartisan support, it appears from members’ opening statements.
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The bill would redefine “eligible rural community” to exclude communities of more than 20,000, a widely endorsed change that would help extend broadband services to remote areas. Suburban areas, which often have multiple broadband service providers, also would be excluded. The bill would define an “incumbent service provider” as an entity providing broadband service to at least 5 percent of the service area.
These changes would provide a “strong foundation” in helping target loans to areas truly needing financial help to deploy broadband, said Rep. Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin, D-S.D. Many farm bill provisions reflect legislation (HR-2035) she proposed earlier this year, obtaining the endorsement of several rural House lawmakers. “We want to be able to improve access to telecom services,” Herseth-Sandlin said in her opening remarks.
Markup of the bill is expected to go long into Wednesday evening, Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., said at the conclusion of Tuesday’s opening remarks. “We'll see how long we, or I can hold out,” he said. Broadband provisions comprise only one section of the 11-title bill. It calls for setting up a National Center for Rural Telecommunications Assessment to assess broadband loan programs’ effectiveness. The center would report yearly to Congress on how well the programs working, assessing whether deployment is spreading to the most remote areas of the country. The bill calls for $1 million to run the center.
The bill would bar broadband loans to any community with more than three incumbent service providers. Nor could loans go for new construction of facilities in areas where more than 75 percent of households can get “affordable broadband service, on request, from at least one incumbent service provider,” the legislation says. The bill would quintuple the percentage of eligible subscriber lines an entity can serve to 10 percent from 2 percent. No more than 25 percent of loans could be made available within a fiscal year to entities that serve more than 2 percent of the phone subscriber lines in the U.S., the bill said.
The bill would require the Agriculture Department to set aside 10 percent of appropriated funds for broadband programs to eligible tribal communities. The agency would be able to spend as it wishes any program money left after June 30 each year. The agency would have to submit to the president and Congress a report describing a “comprehensive rural broadband strategy,” the bill said.
The Food, Agriculture, Conservation and Trade Act would be amended to allow loans and grants to schools and medical facilities that require advanced telecommunications services. The Community Connect program would get a $25 million authorization to provide broadband grants for telemedicine and distance learning. Grant recipients would be required to make matches of at least 15 percent with their own money.
The bill would reauthorize a Rural Utilities Service loan program to buy radio transmitters to increase rural coverage by the all hazards weather radio broadcast system of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The bill would authorize an appropriation of “such sums as necessary” for FY 2008-2012. In addition, loans to ensure expansion of 911 services in rural areas would be reauthorized. The loans, made through the Rural Electrification Act, are made to state and local governments, Indian tribes and other public authorities.