Category Archives: Digital Divide

Looking at State of Digital Inclusion in the States

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NDIA’s State of Digital Inclusion in the States provides a comprehensive and ongoing assessment and celebration of states’ digital inclusion work. NDIA’s prior efforts to learn about state digital inclusion initiatives (previously titled the ‘Digital Equity Scorecard’) were heavily focused on digital skills.

They look at six indicators:

  • Indicator 1: The state dedicates human or financial resources to digital inclusion and found
    39 States have at least one dedicated staff person whose primary role is to advance digital inclusion initiatives
  • Indicator 2: The state contributes to the digital inclusion ecosystem and has established a mechanism for ongoing public feedback and found
    7 States participate in a digital inclusion coalition.
  • Indicator 3: The state connects residents with digital skills resources for education and training opportunities and found
    33 States share digital skills resources on publicly accessible platforms 33 3.1 . Does the state share digital skills resources
  • Indicator 4: The state creates and contributes to pathways for device access or low-cost device ownership and found
    13 States contribute to the supply, preparation, or deployment of devices for public benefit
  • Indicator 5: The state supports affordability through competition and consumer assistance and found
    35 States permit public providers, public-private provider partnerships, and cooperatively organized providers to deliver broadband service without imposing significant regulatory barriers
  • Indicator 6: The state shares digital inclusion data with the community and uses it to inform its work and found
    11 States host publicly available demographic data or data visualizations related to the social determinants of digital equity

Also, the report mentions Minnesota…

The Minnesota State legislature recently repealed barriers to local governments seeking to provide broadband services to residents. The new law removes requirements for municipalities to obtain supermajority approval via a local referendum to purchase or construct networks. The law also allows municipalities to provide broadband service in areas where other providers offer comparable service, which will promote market competition

The role of libraries in community digital equity initiatives and coalitions

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It’s been a long time since I worked a Reference Desk, but I cannot resist an opportunity to mention the role the local library can (and often does) play in digital equity. Today I’m sharing an abstract from Colin Rhinesmith’s paper, Public Libraries, Digital Equity Coalitions, and the Public Good…

Public libraries play a critical role in addressing the digital divide and advancing digital equity in their communities. However, little is known about their participation in digital equity coalitions and what this information might tell us about public libraries as partners in community-wide efforts to advance the public good. This paper seeks to address this gap in the literature by presenting findings from a pilot study of public libraries working with digital equity coalitions in the U.S. The findings from the survey revealed that public libraries support the public good through: (1) convening and leading digital equity coalitions; (2) participating in coalition action planning and advocacy to advance digital equity; and (3) actively centering equity, as opposed to equality, and social justice in their efforts to create and sustain healthy digital equity ecosystems. These findings suggest that if public libraries are to effectively lead and actively participate in digital equity coalitions they must not take a neutral stance to librarianship. The findings have implications for public libraries, coalitions, and policymakers interested in understanding how public libraries can support digital equity coalitions. This issue is relevant and timely, as the National Telecommunications and Information Administration has allocated $2.75 billion to advance digital equity over the next five years. The agency has also recognized that community coalitions will play an important role in the success of this federal initiative.

Libraries are good partners!

What is the human infrastructure of broadband? Ask the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society

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The Benton Institute for Broadband and Society looks at the human infrastructure of broadband. In other words, the people who help other people use technology. It’s a good reminder that technology itself always necessary but often not sufficient to improving digital equity. It will be interesting to see what comes through this perspective…

The human infrastructure of broadband helps people—including, but not limited to, traditionally marginalized groups—access and make meaningful use of broadband. Whether it is a librarian helping a veteran fill out an online benefits application at a public computer, a digital navigator assisting a senior citizen in signing up for affordable home broadband, a digital skills trainer teaching social media privacy in Spanish, or a device refurbisher helping students find devices to use at home—all comprise the human infrastructure of broadband.

The term “infrastructure” underlines that the work of these librarians, digital navigators, digital skills trainers, device refurbishers, and others is foundational. The work of connecting people to devices, broadband service, and skills is the undergirding that will allow a digital society and economy to flourish and benefit us all.

 

The Human Infrastructure of Broadband At Work: The Three Cs

As part of our research, we analyzed the goals of the organizations that formed the human infrastructure of broadband. We found projects that either are centrally concerned with digital equity in and of itself or focus on digital equity because it is instrumental to achieving broader social goals. The two program models, core and complementary, categorize projects according to this difference in mission. We also found programs that brought together multiple organizations. The coalition program model may not provide direct services but helps coordinate work, pool resources, and leverage collective capacity, particularly to advocate for their members. The organizations that make up a coalition may be classified as core or complementary, but assembled together, they focus on digital equity. Delineating these models and their subtypes clarifies their comparative advantages and limitations and points to avenues for garnering resources and support.

To provide concrete examples of core, complementary, and coalition models, we are releasing a series of organizational profiles that delve deeply into how these program models and their subtypes function, the problems they are best suited to solve or populations they are best suited to reach, and the support they need to succeed. The profiles are diverse in terms of sources of funding, geographic location, and tenure in the digital inclusion field.

 

Benton outlines reasons Congress should revisit strategies for affordable broadband

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The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society outlines reasons Congress should make affordable broadband a priority in 2025…

The ACP’s purpose was well-founded. The program addressed the main cause of the digital divide: internet service is too expensive for low-income households.

The ACP was evenly distributed. ACP benefits helped people across rural and urban areas and Republican and Democratic districts.

The ACP was well-targeted. The program primarily helped households who needed it most. Most of the households enrolled in ACP because they participated in other assistance programs, like Medicaid, SNAP, and Lifeline. That meant their annual incomes were generally at or below $20,000.

The ACP’s impact benefits everyone, regardless of income. The program promoted investment in broadband infrastructure, benefiting everyone whether they participated in the ACP or not.

The ACP was popular: The program was user-friendly, got people online for the first time, and was integral to America’s technological future. For all these reasons, the ACP had overwhelming support among voters, advocates, industry, state officials, and, as we noted, Members of Congress.

In 2024, Congress dropped the ball on affordable broadband. But in this new year, in this new Congress, we need to connect everyone.

Local Estimates of Internet Adoption (Project LEIA) percent and ranking by County in MN

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In early December 2024, the NTIA unveiled their Local Estimates of Internet Adoption (Project LEIA) Interactive Map…

This map uses Project LEIA experimental estimates to depict household wired Internet adoption for every county in the United States in 2022. Counties with relatively higher adoption rates are filled with a darker shade of purple, while lighter shades indicate lower adoption rates. The interactive tool supports zooming and panning around the map to focus on areas of interest. Tapping or clicking on a county will open a pop-up box with more information, including the name of the county, the estimated percent of households with wired Internet service, and the margin of error for that estimate. On browsers that support it, a button to toggle full screen mode will also appear under the zoom buttons in the upper left corner.

The first question is – how is this different from the MN ranking I used for the 2024 MN Broadband County Profiles? Two big ways:

  • This map looks at adoption, not access, it looks at how many households subscribe to broadband – not how many have access to subscribe.
  • This map is uses data from 2022.

While having access is required to subscribing, people choose not to subscribe because it’s too expensive (that may include cost of device) for them and/or they don’t see a need for broadband. So looking at adoption rates in your county, consider how adoption compares to access and think about what roadblocks are likely for your neighbors. What could help – access, more community education classes, free computer distribution opportunities or monthly broadband subsidies?

Counties by Rank (download spreadsheet)

county LEIA percentage Rank
Dakota 84.1 1
Washington 82.8 2
Scott 82.3 3
Stevens 82.2 4
Hennepin 82.1 5
Anoka 81.7 6
Carver 81.2 7
Ramsey 80.1 8
Sherburne 79.8 9
Olmsted 79.7 10
Big Stone 79.4 11
Dodge 78.9 12
Winona 77.2 13
Hubbard 77 14
Nicollet 77 15
Houston 76.7 16
Wilkin 76.6 17
Douglas 76.4 18
Pennington 76.4 19
Grant 76.4 20
Beltrami 76.3 21
Cook 76.3 22
Blue Earth 76 23
Lac qui Parle 75.8 24
Stearns 75.6 25
Chisago 75.5 26
Red Lake 75.5 27
Wabasha 75.4 28
Wright 75.4 29
Clearwater 75.3 30
Rock 75.3 31
Lincoln 74.8 32
Crow Wing 74.6 33
Nobles 74.5 34
Lyon 74.3 35
Steele 74.3 36
Clay 74.2 37
Itasca 73.7 38
Faribault 73.6 39
Rice 73.3 40
Mower 73.1 41
Swift 72.6 42
Waseca 72.6 43
Benton 72.5 44
Traverse 71.3 45
Brown 71.1 46
Koochiching 71 47
McLeod 70.9 48
Le Sueur 70.8 49
Roseau 70.5 50
Watonwan 70.5 51
Becker 70.2 52
Polk 69.9 53
Isanti 69.8 54
Cass 69 55
Marshall 69 56
Meeker 69 57
Otter Tail 68.9 58
St. Louis 68.9 59
Pope 68.3 60
Freeborn 67.9 61
Jackson 67.8 62
Fillmore 67.7 63
Kandiyohi 67 64
Pipestone 66.8 65
Lake 66.3 66
Wadena 66.3 67
Cottonwood 66 68
Chippewa 65.8 69
Mille Lacs 65.6 70
Norman 65.6 71
Goodhue 65.5 72
Martin 65.4 73
Morrison 65.4 74
Yellow Medicine 65.2 75
Murray 64.8 76
Lake of the Woods 64.5 77
Redwood 64.4 78
Sibley 64.1 79
Renville 63 80
Carlton 62.3 81
Aitkin 61.9 82
Kittson 59.3 83
Mahnomen 56.7 84
Kanabec 52.7 85
Pine 52.2 86
Todd 47.4 87

EVENT: MN OBD BEAD Program, 2025 Update in Minnesota notes and video

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Today the Office of Broadband Development (OBD) presented on BEAD…

OBD will be providing up to date information on the BEAD program, including the upcoming pre-qualification process, and an overview of the anticipated BEAD timeline in Minnesota. There will also be time for Q+A from attendees, and a preview of resources available for 2025.
The OBD BEAD webpage is being updated with additional resources, so please be sure to check that ahead of the webinar.

Notes:

It’s important for everyone to get pre-qualified.

The first round is your time to create your own project areas; after that OBD will need to define them. Also, first round is best for fiber.

OBD will be hosting Tuesdays at 11am and run from January 14 to April 1. Registration is open for the sessions below, these will also be posted to the webpage, and sent out in an email blast:

Questions:

How do you define project areas?
Census block groups.

Are joint powers considered eligible organizations for Digital Opportunity grants?
There’s a combination of elements. We’ll take it into consideration.

When will final BEAD eligibility map come out?
Maybe Jan 20 but we don’t know. We’re hoping mid-February.

Biden Recommendations for $250 Million Digital Equity Act awards includes 2 MN groups

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NTIA reports…

Today, the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has recommended for award more than $250 million to 24 organizations to support digital skills and inclusion projects in communities across the country. These investments will empower individuals and communities across the nation with the essential skills they need to thrive in today’s connected world.

This funding comes from the $1.25 billion Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program, one of three Digital Equity Act grant programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.  …

More information about these awards can be found below and on our website.

That includes two awards in Minnesota...

  • Hmong American Partnership
    $7.3 million
    The proposed project activities include: digital literacy training for skills such as internet navigation, cloud computing, cybersecurity, financial literacy, and digital civic engagement; device distribution and internet access through Digital Hubs such as libraries and community centers; and community workshops and mentorships on digital literacy.
  • Minnesota State Colleges & Universities
    $7.3 million
    The proposed project activities include: Digital literacy expansion and instruction in college curriculum, train-the-trainer activities, digital navigation services, device distribution, and vouchers to connect unconnected.

Case study finds rural broadband requires: Alignment, Sustainability and Learning

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Last summer, the Communities Strategies Group released a case study (Making Broadband Work for Rural Communities and Native Nations) that looked barriers to better broadband in rural areas. They called out three issues:

  • Alignment: Misalignment among people, agencies, and organizations can create barriers to broadband deployment and use at all levels. For example, it makes sense for states and Native nations to align digital equity plans, but the recent timing of funding availability under the Digital Equity Act meant that states’ plans were finalized before Native nations were able to access funding for planning, leading to missed opportunities for alignment and cooperation.
  • Sustainability: The current market-based approach to broadband has not worked for the most remote rural communities and Native nations because they simply do not have enough density of customers to allow private ISPs to make a profit. Acknowledging that broadband is an essential utility, as described above, should allow governments and communities to shift their thinking to find ways to provide affordable, sustainable connectivity to people and businesses. For example, a century ago, communities came together to form rural electric cooperatives to bring electrification to remote communities that private corporations were not likely to serve. This could be a model for broadband connectivity in remote areas today.
  • Learning: The many new broadband and digital inclusion projects currently underway provide fertile ground for learning about what works to bring effective connectivity to rural communities and Native nations—and leverage that connectivity to drive equitable rural prosperity. But without intentional efforts to learn from this experience— and the efforts centered on COVID-19 pandemic response—governments and practitioners may end up repeating mistakes or continuing efforts that need to shift. For example, local practitioners report significant challenges where a single corporation owns broadband infrastructure but lacks the motivation to serve all of a local community or allow other ISPs to use the infrastructure. Learning from this experience could help communities move toward systems of cooperative or public ownership of infrastructure that encourages “coopetition” and ultimately serves the community better. Communities of practice for government entities (e.g., local governments, state and local federal offices like USDA Cooperative Extension), educational institutions (e.g,, Tribal Colleges and Universities, Historically Black Colleges and Universities), and community-based organizations (e.g., libraries and other organizations that provide digital navigation services) could be an important tool to exchange information, document what works, and ultimately increase the effectiveness and impact of efforts to move toward digital equity for rural communities and Native nations.

NTIA awards $60.6 Million in Digital Equity Capacity Grant (North Dakota gets $4.5M)

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It’s not Minnesota, but during the holiday season we can celebrate with our neighbors to the west. The National Telecommunications and Infromation Administration reports…

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) today has approved and recommended for award applications from Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Maryland, North Dakota, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, allowing them to request access to more than $60.6 million to implement their Digital Equity Plans.

Here’s what’s happening in North Dakota…

North Dakota will use $4,549,772 in funding to implement key digital equity initiatives, including:

  • Providing funding to state agencies to expand and/or adjusting existing digital equity programs and resources; and

  • Convening Internet service providers to establish objectives for a cybersecurity certification program, then identifying a subrecipient to finalize development of the certification program.

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) set to connect barracks-type housing to broadband

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The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society reports…

This week, Congress passed the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025, this year’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The law authorizes $895.2 billion for Department of Defense programs, defense-related activities, and national security programs in the Department of Energy and the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. Included in the law are provisions to rural telecommunications networks more secure and internet access service affordable for members of the armed service while addressing issues around artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.

This includes…

Free Internet Access for Members of the Armed Forces

The Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act amends existing law to allow military departments to provide members of the armed services that reside in “military unaccompanied housing” (think a barracks or a dormitory not suitable for a dependant).

Within three months, the Secretary of Defense will issue a guidance to implement this new policy, ensuring that service members have reasonable access to 100/20 Megabits per second (Mbps) broadband internet access service that maximizes access to individual rooms and spaces with appropriate restrictions.

Internet access can play a vital role in service members’ lives including distance education for professional military education.

Education Superhighway recommends broadband subsidies for homes that need it

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In a recent report Education Superhighway recommends broadband subsidies for homes that need it…

To ensure every household has reliable, affordable internet, Congress should create a new permanent broadband affordability program targeted toward those who truly need it. The benefit should only apply to entry-level home
broadband plans, and it can be revenue-neutral, fully funded by repurposing USF High Cost Program funds as they expire. The new program would provide greater
stability to under-resourced households and ensure that states that included the ACP as a tool for addressing broadband affordability in their BEAD and Digital
Equity Act plans have a viable alternative. The benefit should be:

1. Focused on 16.3 million unconnected households and 3 million likely to be disconnected, ensuring the benefit is a tool that provides a high-speed connection or prevents disconnection when financial circumstances change.
Changing eligibility criteria to focus on unconnected households provides annual savings of $4.6 billion compared with ACP.
2. Paid for by repurposing Universal Service Fund (USF) High Cost Program funds as they expire. This revenue-neutral approach covers 100% of the cost of the broadband affordability benefit, starting immediately, without taxpayer burden.
3. Applicable only to entry-level home broadband plans, providing households with the high-speed connection needed to get an entire family online for remote work, education, and telehealth services. The Lifeline program should remain the primary program for supporting mobile service and connections outside the home.
4. Limited to broadband plans at or below the $30 subsidy price (or $75 on qualifying Tribal lands or in high cost rural areas) to harness market forces by acknowledging that households already subscribed to advanced broadband
plans are financially capable of maintaining a connection without support and unlikely to trade down from their chosen plan.

EVENT Dec 5: NTIA Internet Use Survey 30th Anniversary Celebration

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An invitation from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration…

NTIA Internet Use Survey 30th Anniversary Celebration

December 5th, 3:00-4:30 p.m. ET

Live Stream: https://www.youtube.com/live/nv9Me_KMoHQ

In November of 1994, Census Bureau interviewers knocked on thousands of doors and called thousands more households to administer the very first edition of what we now call the NTIA Internet Use Survey. This collaborative effort between NTIA and the Census Bureau has produced the longest-running and most comprehensive national survey of computer and Internet use in the United States. In the 30 years that have elapsed since that first data collection, NTIA and the Census Bureau have fielded 17 editions of the NTIA Internet Use Survey across every Administration as the Internet has grown and evolved.

 

This effort has contributed substantially to the state of knowledge in this field, and the resulting data continue to be used today by policymakers, researchers, civil society, and industry. Moreover, NTIA’s work with the Census Bureau has only accelerated with the rising demand for evidence-based policymaking; in addition to already working on the upcoming 2025 NTIA Internet Use Survey, the past few years have seen the introduction of the Digital Equity Act Population Viewer and the ACCESS BROADBAND Dashboard, as well as the launch of Project LEIA.

 

Please join NTIA, our Census Bureau colleagues, and special guests as we mark this important milestone on December 5th from 3:00-4:30 p.m. ET. The event will be live streamed at: https://www.youtube.com/live/nv9Me_KMoHQ. In addition to speakers offering reflections on the past 30 years of measuring computer and Internet use, we will convene discussion panels both the history and the future of this important endeavor. | Learn More >>

State Digital Equity plans indicate that all states need availability and the affordability

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Broadband Breakfast reports…

State digital equity plans submitted under a federal program revealed a unanimous conclusion: Availability and affordability of the Internet are the most pressing barriers to achieving universal access.

The findings come from a review of digital equity plans submitted by 50 states and two territories conducted by the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Broadband Access Initiative in preparation for federal grant awards allocated under the $2.75 billion Digital Equity Act.

“From the analysis, we surfaced a few things,” said Kathryn de Wit, director of Pew’s Broadband Access Initiative, during a Fiber Broadband Association webinar on Wednesday. “The first is that unilaterally, all 52 plans said that the primary barrier to digital equity was the availability and the affordability in broadband.”

“You never get that much agreement among states,” de Wit emphasized.

The second major trend, according to de Wit, was the need to address digital skills and access to devices. “States found fairly consistently that access to appropriate devices was a challenge, but also folks being able to apply the digital skills that they have, either in new ways or up-skilling.”

EVENT Dec 12: Building for Digital Equity #B4DE – Ugly Sweater Show

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An invitation from the NDIA listserv...

With the holiday season officially here, we are encouraging digital equity advocates to save the date for the final Building for Digital Equity (#B4DE) livestream event of the year!

The increasingly popular (and free) virtual gathering – co-hosted by Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR) Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) – will be held on December 12, 2024 from 3 to 4:15 PM ET.

For our final #B4DE of the year, the theme will be a holiday-themed year reflection: “Ugly Sweater Show” and will highlight important milestones in broadband over the past year and take a look ahead for what promises to be another busy year for digital inclusion practitioners across the country.

You can register for the event here.

The Supreme Court is set to make decisions on the future of USF (Universal Service Fund)

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Fierce Networks reports…

The fate of the $8 billion Universal Service Fund (USF) now lies in the hands of the Supreme Court, which has the power to determine whether the subsidy program is unconstitutional.

The Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal of the Fifth Circuit’s ruling that the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) method of funding the USF is unconstitutional.

The legality issue concerns the FCC’s choice to delegate the administration of USF programs (Connect America Fund, Lifeline, E-Rate and Rural Health Care) to a private third party – the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC).

The Sixth and Eleventh Circuits have already ruled to uphold the constitutionality of the USF’s current funding mechanism. New Street Research policy analyst Blair Levin thinks the Supreme Court will side with their decision, but the outcome is “far from certain.”

We probably won’t know the Supreme Court’s decision until June 2025. But one key factor weighing on the USF’s future is Elon Musk’s influence on telecom policy.