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Cut the red tape with broadband expansion • Daily Montanan [1]

['More From Author', 'March', 'Jim Smith']

Date: 2024-03-05  

It can be unpopular to admit these days, but I still believe in the ability of the federal government to make life better for us here in Montana. There are challenges our state faces that are too big for us to take on alone, where federal funding could make all the difference.

In the first half of the 20th century, the federal government provided Montana with millions of dollars to create and expand our highway system. Recently, Congress passed a bipartisan infrastructure bill that has the potential to transform the lives of hundreds of thousands of rural Montanans by expanding broadband to all remaining unserved areas of our state.

When it comes to problems like expanding broadband infrastructure across a state as large and geographically diverse as Montana, we need all the help we can get. Together, we have the power to create lasting change and make life better for our fellow citizens. Under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Montana is set to receive nearly $630 million dollars to connect every corner of our state, bringing broadband internet services to rural and remote communities that have been stuck waiting for broadband for years. This type of investment has the potential to change lives, opening up economic opportunities for businesses, educational opportunities for our state’s kids, and improving health outcomes for families who will be able to access regular telehealth appointments for the first time.

During the last couple of years, federal regulators at the Department of Commerce, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and the Federal Communications Commission have engaged in aggressive regulation of broadband. The agencies have worked to consolidate government control of broadband via Title II reclassification and impose price controls on broadband through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program.

Taken together, these federal regulations threaten to undermine the promise of the IIJA and Montana’s ability to expand broadband to all remaining unserved and underserved areas of our state. In urban areas of Montana, like my hometown of Helena, we could see less innovation, higher prices, and slower speeds. In rural areas of the state, the problems could be even more severe: Communities left waiting, once again, for a promised broadband rollout that never materializes.

Sen. Jon Tester and others worked to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill. From small business owners in the Missoula suburbs to families on tribal lands, hundreds of thousands of Montanans stand to benefit from fast, reliable, and reasonably priced broadband internet. I still believe that bills passed in Washington can make a difference to communities here in Montana – but only if those bills are implemented thoughtfully. Overregulation and bureaucratic overreach have the potential to undermine that progress. With so much on the line, it’s time to rethink the aggressive regulatory approach that has put us in this situation and get back to the job of making lives better for Montanans across the state.

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