Fischer looks at the vital role the internet plays in rural life

In 2024, broadband infrastructure is just as central to life as traditional physical infrastructure. The days are far behind us when internet access was a luxury — now it’s vital for daily life.

Online connectivity enables us to modernize health care services, help our children do their homework, access emergency communications, and keep in touch with our communities. And today, it’s also an economic necessity.

Small businesses across our state need high-speed internet to grow their operations and job seekers need it to find new employment opportunities.

But across Nebraska, broadband availability is still limited. About 50,000 Nebraska households are classified as “unserved” by fixed broadband, many of which are located in rural areas.

As anyone who’s spent time in these areas knows, it’s also still common to run into slow, glitchy mobile service when traveling along stretches far from the nearest town.

For all these reasons, improving broadband connectivity is one of my top priorities in the U.S. Senate. Just eight months ago, the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program announced almost half a billion dollars in broadband funding for Nebraska.

That historic funding was secured through the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which I proudly supported. As part of that law, I also championed the Broadband Funding Map amendment, which created a mapping tool of areas that have received or will soon receive federal funding for broadband deployment.

The map is already helping federal agencies cooperate to prioritize the areas that need broadband buildout most without overlapping spending.

These federal programs complement important state-level programs, such as the Nebraska Universal Service Fund (NUSF), to bolster rural connectivity.

We must ensure that state and federal funds intended to expand broadband networks are maximized to reach every N ebraskan. Any diversion of broadband funds will undermine our aim to close the digital divide as quickly as we can.

Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced more good news for rural connectivity.

The Enhanced Competition Incentive Program (ECIP), which expands spectrum access opportunities for small carriers and rural wireless entities, is now accepting applications. In 2015, I introduced the bipartisan Rural Spectrum Accessibility Act with Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) to establish ECIP. ECIP will incentivize wireless carriers to lease underused spectrum to rural and smaller carriers by providing them with spectrum license extensions and certain buildout flexibilities. The program will encourage collaboration between both large and small wireless companies that will bridge service gaps in rural areas. This innovative new program can benefit all parties involved by targeting spectrum resources to the entities that are best positioned to deploy them, providing rural areas with the wireless services they need I strongly encourage carriers to take advantage of ECIP so that rural providers can help expand high-speed internet to all Americans — no matter where they live.

Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again.