F.C.C. Says It Will Double Spending on High-Speed Internet in Schools
and Libraries
By EDWARD WYATTFEB
NY Times
Feb 1, 2014
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/02/us/fcc-says-it-will-double-spending-on-high-speed-internet-in-schools-and-libraries.html
WASHINGTON — The Federal Communications Commission will double the
amount of money it devotes to adding high-speed Internet connections in
schools and libraries over the next two years, in an effort to meet
President Obama’s promise to provide broadband service for an estimated
20 million American students in 15,000 schools, officials said Saturday.
Financing for the new spending will come from restructuring the $2.4
billion E-Rate program, which provides money for “advanced
telecommunications and information services” using the proceeds of fees
paid by telecommunications users. The proportion that goes to broadband
service in schools and libraries will increase to $2 billion a year from
$1 billion.
Mr. Obama referred to the changes during his State of the Union address
last week. The changes will not require any additional taxes or
assessments, according to an F.C.C. official who spoke on the condition
of anonymity because a formal announcement was being planned for this week.
The E-Rate program is part of the Universal Service Fund, which also
provides money to connect rural areas and low-income people to phone and
Internet service using money raised through fees on consumers’ phone
bills. The commission’s chairman, Tom Wheeler, is expected to announce
details of the plan on Wednesday at an event for Digital Learning Day,
which promotes the use of technology in education.
Most of the redirected spending in 2014 will come from funds left over
from previous years. Next year, much of the money will come from changes
to the E-Rate program, including the elimination of programs that pay
for outdated technologies, like paging services, dial-up Internet
connections and email programs that are available free elsewhere.
The spending will be used to increase available broadband speeds and
provide wireless networks in schools, which are increasingly in demand
for students using tablets and laptop computers.
A 2010 survey conducted for the F.C.C. by Harris Interactive found that
roughly half of schools receiving E-Rate funds connected to the Internet
at speeds of three megabits per second or less — too slow to stream many
video services. The commission wants to give all schools access to
broadband connections of 100 megabits per second by 2015, and
connections of up to one gigabit per second by the end of the decade.
Another survey, by the American Library Association, found that 60
percent of libraries reported their speeds failed to meet their patrons’
needs some or most of the time.
A version of this article appears in print on February 2, 2014, on page
A16 of the New York edition with the headline: F.C.C. Says It Will
Double Spending on High-Speed Internet in Schools and Libraries.
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