UNITED STATES CONGRESSMAN MIKE McINTYRE

July 10, 2009

Subcommittee Reviews Federal Rural Broadband Programs

Washington, D.C. - Yesterday, Congressman Mike McIntyre, Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Rural Development, Biotechnology, Specialty Crops, and Foreign Agriculture, held a hearing to review Federal efforts to expand broadband access in rural areas.

The Subcommittee heard testimony from officials representing the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Department of Commerce, as well as from telecommunications companies and organizations.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provided the USDA’s Rural Utilities Service and the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration with $7.2 billion total to expand access to broadband services in the United States. The 2008 Farm Bill reauthorized the USDA broadband loan program and improved the criteria used by USDA to select broadband projects for loans, loan and grant combinations, and grants.

“Access to high speed broad Internet is vital to our everyday lives, providing access to job opportunities, education, medical care, and the global marketplace. Countless citizens in rural America are unable to access broadband despite a strong desire to receive the service,” Subcommittee Chairman McIntyre said. “I appreciate the commitment made by Deputy Under Secretary Cook today to review the current definition of remote areas that qualify for USDA grant money, which is extremely limited and fails to adequately capture all the areas where no broadband access exists. I look forward to working with her to ensure that funds available to expand the reach of broadband get to the unserved rural areas where they are needed.”