Delgado Statement on the FCC Broadband Digital Divide Report

Statement

Following the release of the Federal Communications Commission's Broadband Digital Divide report, Representative Antonio Delgado (NY-19) released the following statement:

"The FCC's report on the status of rural broadband fails to tell the full story of the lack of access to high speed internet in Upstate New York. Wide swaths of NY-19 lack access to reliable, high-speed internet which is necessary for small businesses and farmers to remain economically competitive. The FCC's report claims 98% of Sullivan County has coverage, yet this same data, as shown in a map from the New York State Broadband Office, shows a complete lack of coverage from fiber, the state-of-the-art, most reliable broadband. The FCC's data and practice of counting a single household in a census block with coverage as meaning the full block is covered is deeply flawed and disadvantages rural areas--this report exacerbates this problem, rather than addressing the issue and seeking more accurate coverage data.

"As a leading member of the Rural Broadband Task Force, I will continue to call for more accurate data and consistently updated maps on broadband access. I'm ready to partner with anyone to be part of the solution to ensure folks in NY-19 are not left behind because of where they live and operate."

A founding member of the House Task Force on Rural Broadband, Rep. Delgado has made rural broadband a focus of his work on the House Small Business Committee, and voted during the last work period for legislation to ensure better coordination and tracking of federal broadband dollars to ensure it's being spent in areas that need it most. In addition, during House consideration of legislation to restore net neutrality protections, Rep. Delgado successfully amended the bill in support of standalone broadband service meant to crack down on the practice of bundling broadband services with other services consumers may not need or want.

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