It’s a historic time for broadband investment in the Ocean State. The Biden-Harris administration has provided our state with unprecedented levels of federal funding to ensure all Rhode Islanders, wherever they live, have access to reliable and affordable high-speed internet. The R.I. Commerce Corp. will disburse more than $133 million to deploy broadband infrastructure to unserved and underserved locations across the state and support digital-equity efforts. Thanks to these investments, all Rhode Islanders will be able to connect, learn, work and better access vital services, which we know are essential to our quality of life.
The corporation is required to spend these funds according to rules set by two federal agencies: the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Our state’s broadband team at the corporation has been working closely with these agencies to design programs that adhere to their rules while also ensuring the most effective use of these funds for Rhode Island’s broadband needs.
Here are three key facts about Rhode Island’s broadband investment:
R.I. Commerce Corp. is committed to digital equity. Robust broadband infrastructure is necessary for digital equity. All residents, regardless of income or ZIP code, deserve access to affordable, reliable broadband service. Rhode Island’s Digital Equity Plan, which the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society described as “wholistic,” will get us there. The corporation was awarded $4.5 million by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to implement this plan, which includes increasing digital literacy and access to devices for Rhode Islanders who need them.
The corporation must and will use federal funds in ways consistent with federal rules. Earlier this year, after rigorous review, the NTIA approved Rhode Island’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Plan – or BEAD – to utilize $108.7 million. NTIA requires that states focus first on deploying infrastructure to our unserved (service of less than 25 megabits per second of download speed and 3 Mbps of upload speed and underserved (service between 25 Mbps download/3 Mbps upload and 100 Mbps download/20 Mbps upload) locations. In addition to the BEAD funds, the General Assembly approved about $25 million from the Department of the Treasury’s Capital Projects Funds to invest in high-quality, last-mile broadband infrastructure.
The federal approvals from NTIA and the Department of Treasury of our plans are the culmination of nearly two years of thoughtful, strategic and participatory planning with input from the Broadband Advisory Council and stakeholders across the state. Those approvals arrived only after painstaking scrutiny to ensure our approach was fair, thorough, supported by evidence and consistent with program rules.
R.I. Commerce knows good investment decisions require accurate data. A key feature of the NTIA’s BEAD Program is the opportunity for states to improve the Federal Communications Commission’s National Broadband Map with additional evidence. The FCC’s broadband map relies primarily on data self-reported by internet service providers, and there’s evidence to suggest that the map overstates broadband accessibility in some states. For example, BroadbandNow estimates that the FCC’s broadband map overreports broadband coverage in Rhode Island by 52%.
Consistent with the NTIA’s rules, Rhode Island built a broadband map that took the innovative approach of leveraging hundreds of thousands of broadband speed tests to understand Rhode Islanders’ actual broadband speeds, not just what ISPs report to the FCC. In addition, this map (ri.broadbannavigator.com) has been vetted through a public 90-day challenge process, during which the corporation reviewed evidence-based claims of inaccuracies. It’s this Rhode Island broadband map that informs broadband program investments.
This investment of federal funds is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our state that will set up future generations for success and prosperity. We’ve got to get these important broadband projects right, and we will.
Elizabeth M. Tanner serves as Rhode Island’s secretary of commerce. She previously served as director of the R.I. Department of Business Regulation.
