Western Governors encourage the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to continue innovative usage of the Educational Broadband Service (EBS) spectrum to support rural connectivity efforts in the West.
WGA Chair and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Vice Chair and Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, in outreach to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and his fellow commissioners, note that because many rural communities in the West lack adequate internet access “it is incumbent upon the FCC to consider how innovative spectrum usage can support rural connectivity efforts.”
The Governors commend the FCC for including a local priority filing window for Tribal Nations in rural areas in its Report and Order (R&O) issued in June, 2019. However, the Governors’ request that the FCC at its July 10, 2019 meeting consider extending a similar priority filing designation to rural educational institutions. By doing so, the FCC enables those licensees to partner with wireless internet service providers to build out broadband networks to otherwise unserved or underserved communities.
"Innovative partnerships such as these are an effective tool for closing the digital divide in rural areas that lack the business case for traditional broadband investment," the Governors assert in the July 9, 2019 oureach.
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