The FCC’s efforts to create an “E-rate 2.0”...

Monday at a Senate Communications Subcommittee field hearing in Little Rock, Ark. “We need to protect what we have already done, build on it, and put this program on a course to provide higher speeds and greater opportunities in the days ahead,” she said. The hearing was meant to examine ways to improve broadband, wireless and wireline communications in Arkansas (CD Aug 16 p12). Rosenworcel and Subcommittee Chairman Mark Pryor, D-Ark., were also expected to discuss the importance of affordable Internet access in schools during a meeting later Monday with Cabot, Ark., public school officials. The FCC issued an NPRM on E-rate reforms last month (CD July 22 p1). E-rate 2.0 “must be built on clear capacity goals,” with a requirement that every school have access to 100 Mbps per 1,000 students by the 2015 school year and 1 Gbps per 1,000 students by the end of the decade, Rosenworcel said. Libraries should have capacity on-par with the school capacity requirements, she said. The FCC should phase down the $600 million it spends on “outdated services” like paging and use those funds to fund additional high-capacity broadband, Rosenworcel said. The FCC also needs to simplify the E-rate application process based on input from stakeholders, Rosenworcel said. The NPRM seeks input on whether multi-year applications are feasible, and seeks ways to encourage more use of consortia applications, she said. Verizon has “invested in Arkansas,” including a Verizon Foundation-provided $50,000 grant to the Cotter, Ark., school district to support adapting broadband to support science, technology, engineering and math education, said David Russell, Verizon vice president-external affairs for its South region. AT&T has invested $480 million in Arkansas over the last four years, and is continuing to “build out and deliver these state-of-the-art, cutting-edge broadband technologies to Arkansas customers,” said AT&T Arkansas President Edward Drilling. Representatives from Comcast, Cox Communications and Suddenlink all said they have partnered in Connect2Compete, a program that offers low-cost Internet access to the families of children who participate in the Free School Lunch Program. Comcast’s Internet Essentials broadband adoption program has helped connect 750 eligible Arkansas families to the Internet, said Mike Wilson, Comcast senior director-government affairs. Len Pitcock, Cox director-government affairs for Arkansas, said the government should “focus its efforts in Arkansas and around the country on increasing broadband adoption through existing broadband providers rather than using taxpayer dollars to fund network construction and overbuilds in areas where broadband service is already available.” Suddenlink’s investments have allowed it to increase its broadband download speeds to 50 Mbps and 107 Mbps in Arkansas, said LaDawn Fuhr, Suddenlink manager-community and government relations for the mid-South. Other FCC initiatives will also benefit communications in Arkansas, with the 600 MHz spectrum that will be made available in the FCC’s upcoming incentive auction being “well-suited for rural applications,” Rosenworcel said. “It has great propagation characteristics because it can cover vast distances with limited tower construction.” Recent FCC overhauls to the USF allowed the agency to distribute additional funds from the Connect America Fund for price cap carriers -- and the FCC “should be willing to make further changes when doing so simplifies our rules, does not break our budget, and brings better service and more investment to rural communities -- Arkansas included,” Rosenworcel said. The FCC’s Healthcare Connect Fund will aid in the development of telemedicine, which will “connect rural healthcare institutions,” she said. The Healthcare Connect Fund will allow eligible healthcare providers to apply to receive funding to cover 65 percent of the cost of broadband services or healthcare provider-owned networks.