Letter to the Hon. Jessica Rosenworcel, Acting Chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission - Rep. Allen Leads Bipartisan Georgia Delegation Letter to FCC on Broadband Maps
Letter
Dear Acting Chairwoman Rosenworcel:
We write to request quarterly updates from the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) on the development of a comprehensive, user-friendly dataset on broadband availability that considers input from state and local governments, Tribal nations, and consumers, supplementing information that the FCC gathers from carriers. On March 16, 2021, the FCC announced the launch of this initiative, and we look forward to receiving an update on the status of its rollout. We also write to request a specific timeline of when you expect this project to be completed and for new and updated FCC broadband maps to be publicly available.
As you noted in your announcement, the accuracy of the broadband maps provided by the FCC have long been in question. One of the biggest concerns we hear from telephone cooperatives, electric membership cooperatives, and private companies is that FCC mapping, from which distribution of federal grant and loan dollars is based, is inadequate and incorrect.
We applaud your action to implement the Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability (DATA) Act, which is an important step towards providing a more granular, publicly available, and comprehensive look at internet access in America. We urge you to include data from the Georgia Broadband Map Program in the dataset used to develop these updated FCC maps. We also request an answer in writing as to whether you intend to use this data.
As requested, please provide a written response to the following:
1. Please provide Congress with quarterly, written updates on the status of the rollout of new FCC broadband mapping.
2. Please provide a timeline of when exactly we should expect new and updated FCC broadband maps to be publicly available.
3. Please confirm in writing if you will integrate data from the Georgia Broadband Map program into your new mapping program.
Thank you for your attention and for your service
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