Investing in broadband

The massive economic stimulus package that Congress passed last year included $7.2 billion to promote the spread of high-speed Internet connections in the United States. We can quibble over whether those funds helped stimulate the economy -- it took almost a year for the federal government to approve the first grant requests -- but not about the long-term value of the investment. The proof of that is in the two grants recently awarded to California, which aim to narrow the gap between the digital haves and have-nots.

With the Internet becoming the backbone for the 21st century American economy, broadband is as vital to workers, students and families as a car or a bus pass. Yet despite widespread availability, only two-thirds of U.S. homes have broadband service. Seventeen million Californians had no broadband at home in early 2009, and 13 million had no Internet access at all. The gaps in access threaten the nation’s competitiveness by restraining productivity growth. Large segments of the population -- particularly minorities, rural communities and the disabled -- are being left behind in the race to develop Information Age skills.

According to a recent survey by the Federal Communications Commission, 36% of those who don’t have broadband at home say they just can’t afford it. Los Angeles officials are trying to bring broadband closer to these families, and in January their efforts received a $7.5-million boost from the stimulus package. The money will be used to provide or improve broadband connections at libraries, senior centers and other public buildings.

The FCC survey also found that a larger group -- 42% of those without broadband -- are either intimidated by the technology or don’t consider it relevant to their lives. To address this problem in California, the federal government gave a group led by the California Emerging Technology Fund $7.25 million to run educational campaigns in underserved communities. These will include working with middle schools to train and equip parents to use computers; with housing developers to build broadband service into subsidized rentals; and with major medical centers to establish broadband links to clinics in the inner city and rural areas. The point is to show people how broadband is relevant to them.

The efforts by Los Angeles and the technology fund don’t address all of America’s broadband shortcomings. Other issues include broadband speeds that lag those in rival industrialized nations, noncompetitive prices and poor coverage in remote areas. But the grants to the two projects represent a smart investment in a digital onramp, one that will usher more Americans into the economy and workforce of the future.