For Immediate Release
Contact: Kelly Wismer, 703-351-2015, [email protected]
Arlington, Va. (January 30, 2018)—NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association today issued the following statement from Chief Executive Officer Shirley Bloomfield in response to actions adopted by the FCC during today’s open commission meeting that schedule the Connect America Fund Phase II auction to begin in July 2018 and finalize auction design and procedures.
“There are many portions of rural America today where providers have been unable to make the business case for investment in broadband, leaving consumers and businesses longing for access. Many of these are adjacent to the rural areas served by NTCA members, and our members have heard the repeated pleas for deployment from these neighboring communities. We are therefore very eager to see the text of the Connect America Fund II items approved today by the FCC, and we are hopeful that the measures they adopt will facilitate expansion of robust, affordable, and sustainable broadband into these areas that have been waiting for so long.”
A map of auction eligible areas is available online.
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NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association is the premier association representing nearly 850 independent, community-based telecommunications companies that are leading innovation in rural and small-town America. NTCA advocates on behalf of its members in the legislative and regulatory arenas, and it provides training and development; publications and industry events; and an array of employee benefit programs. In an era of transformative technological advancements, regulatory challenges and marketplace competition, NTCA members are leading the technological evolution for rural consumers, delivering robust and high-quality services over future-proof networks that make rural communities vibrant places in which to live and do business. Because of their efforts, rural America is fertile ground for innovation in economic development, e-commerce, health care, agriculture and education, and it contributes billions of dollars to the U.S. economy each year.