House approves Davis amendment to increase access to broadband funding

A bipartisan amendment offered by U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL) to expand access to broadband funding in America’s underserved areas recently received approval from the U.S. House of Representatives. 

“The pandemic has shown us that there are huge disparities in access to high-speed broadband, which is a vital part of modern life,” said Rep. Davis on Aug. 5. “The critical changes I’m fighting for ensure farmers, school kids, patients, and everyone else can fully harness the power of the internet.”

Rep. Davis introduced the amendment with U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) and 36 of their colleagues.

Last month, the House adopted Davis’ amendment to H.R. 4502, the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Agriculture, Rural Development, Energy and Water Development, Financial Services and General Government, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2022.

The amendment revised Division B of the bill raising the Federal Communication Commission’s speed standard for what qualifies as broadband from 10 megabits per second download and 1 megabit per second upload to 25 megabits per second download and 3 megabits per second upload, according to the text of the amendment.

The increased speeds will expand the number of communities that qualify for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) ReConnect rural broadband program, according to information provided by Rep. Davis’ office.

In April, Rep. Davis joined dozens of his congressional colleagues in calling on House appropriators to increase funding for the USDA’s ReConnect Program and the rural broadband loan and grant program authorized by the 2018 Farm Bill, the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018. 

House-passed funding levels for the ReConnect Program reflect an increase of $165 million, although the appropriations process is still ongoing in Congress, according to the congressman’s office.