HUD Proposal Will Help Narrow the Digital Divide by Bringing Broadband Access to HUD-Funded Housing

OTI filed comments yesterday applauding the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) proposed rule designed to narrow the digital divide by bringing broadband access to millions of low-income and elderly communities. The proposal requires that all newly constructed and substantially rehabilitated HUD-funded housing projects (in 10 of its programs) be equipped with broadband infrastructure, either wired or wireless, that meets the Federal Communications Commission’s definition of “broadband”—currently 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload. HUD also proposes to allow funding recipients to make a determination of whether the requirement would be too burdensome, allowing the recipient to ignore the rule. OTI’s comments addressed the issues below.

Access to broadband is vitally important. Participation in modern society is nearly impossible without it. HUD’s proposal will greatly increase access to broadband and will have a huge impact on the millions of low-income and elderly people living in HUD housing. In particular, internet access gives children in low-income homes the ability to succeed in school because so often teachers assign homework that requires an internet connection. For low-income people without jobs, internet access opens up a world of opportunity because jobs so often are advertised and filled exclusively online, and interviews are often conducted over video chat applications. Elderly people could gain substantial health-related benefits from internet access, including virtual access to doctors via telemedicine services and the ability to research symptoms online. Internet access also provides easy connections to friends and family through chat programs and email.

Many people take these features of the internet for granted, but for those without access currently, connectivity can be truly life changing. HUD’s proposal is a major step toward closing the digital divide and equalizing access to important online resources. OTI firmly supports these efforts, while recognizing that there is room for improvement. HUD could improve the rule by addressing the following issues:

• HUD, rather than the funding recipient, should determine whether certain exceptions exist that would allow the recipient to ignore the broadband build-out requirement. This would have a dramatic and long-lasting effect on the low-income and elderly communities that would otherwise gain the benefits of broadband access.

• The installed infrastructure should be carrier-agnostic and subject to open access policies. Low-income and elderly communities will benefit tremendously if multiple internet service providers can provide competitive, high-quality broadband service to these buildings.

• The installed infrastructure should also be future-proof to ensure that all HUD-funded housing projects gain the benefit of network innovation, not simply those that are built at the right time.

• The proposal should apply to all HUD housing programs, not simply the ones listed in the proposal.

By implementing these suggested changes, HUD can strengthen its already very strong proposal. You can read our comments to HUD in full below.