Maine Connectivity Authority President Andrew Butcher has his 1984 yellow Volkswagen van – affectionately known as “Buttercup” – all gassed up and ready to barnstorm across Maine this week.

Butcher and his team will visit libraries, community centers, town halls, Tribal governments, connectivity hubs, and telehealth locations all across the Pine Street State as state broadband officials and local connectivity champions celebrate the broadband expansion work that’s already been done and to gather “local insights (for) the next phase of work.”

The five-day “Driving Connections” tour will highlight broadband infrastructure investments the state has made to bring high-speed Internet access to 86,000 homes and businesses over the past several years.

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But, perhaps more crucial to the mission: the tour also aims to rally state leaders and local communities to continue the work, even as the Trump administration “terminated” the Digital Equity Act last month and more recently drastically altered the infrastructure-focused BEAD program – both of which have undermined state’s efforts to expand Internet connectivity and eliminate barriers to broadband adoption.

“It feels like an important time to show how we are connected to each other in more ways than just high-speed Internet connections,” Butcher told ILSR in the days leading up to the tour.

Maine Connectivity Authority President Andrew Butcher has his 1984 yellow Volkswagen van – affectionately known as “Buttercup” – all gassed up and ready to barnstorm across Maine this week.

Butcher and his team will visit libraries, community centers, town halls, Tribal governments, connectivity hubs, and telehealth locations all across the Pine Street State as state broadband officials and local connectivity champions celebrate the broadband expansion work that’s already been done and to gather “local insights (for) the next phase of work.”

The five-day “Driving Connections” tour will highlight broadband infrastructure investments the state has made to bring high-speed Internet access to 86,000 homes and businesses over the past several years.

Image

But, perhaps more crucial to the mission: the tour also aims to rally state leaders and local communities to continue the work, even as the Trump administration “terminated” the Digital Equity Act last month and more recently drastically altered the infrastructure-focused BEAD program – both of which have undermined state’s efforts to expand Internet connectivity and eliminate barriers to broadband adoption.

“It feels like an important time to show how we are connected to each other in more ways than just high-speed Internet connections,” Butcher told ILSR in the days leading up to the tour.

Maine Connectivity Authority President Andrew Butcher has his 1984 yellow Volkswagen van – affectionately known as “Buttercup” – all gassed up and ready to barnstorm across Maine this week.

Butcher and his team will visit libraries, community centers, town halls, Tribal governments, connectivity hubs, and telehealth locations all across the Pine Street State as state broadband officials and local connectivity champions celebrate the broadband expansion work that’s already been done and to gather “local insights (for) the next phase of work.”

The five-day “Driving Connections” tour will highlight broadband infrastructure investments the state has made to bring high-speed Internet access to 86,000 homes and businesses over the past several years.

Image

But, perhaps more crucial to the mission: the tour also aims to rally state leaders and local communities to continue the work, even as the Trump administration “terminated” the Digital Equity Act last month and more recently drastically altered the infrastructure-focused BEAD program – both of which have undermined state’s efforts to expand Internet connectivity and eliminate barriers to broadband adoption.

“It feels like an important time to show how we are connected to each other in more ways than just high-speed Internet connections,” Butcher told ILSR in the days leading up to the tour.

Maine Connectivity Authority President Andrew Butcher has his 1984 yellow Volkswagen van – affectionately known as “Buttercup” – all gassed up and ready to barnstorm across Maine this week.

Butcher and his team will visit libraries, community centers, town halls, Tribal governments, connectivity hubs, and telehealth locations all across the Pine Street State as state broadband officials and local connectivity champions celebrate the broadband expansion work that’s already been done and to gather “local insights (for) the next phase of work.”

The five-day “Driving Connections” tour will highlight broadband infrastructure investments the state has made to bring high-speed Internet access to 86,000 homes and businesses over the past several years.

Image

But, perhaps more crucial to the mission: the tour also aims to rally state leaders and local communities to continue the work, even as the Trump administration “terminated” the Digital Equity Act last month and more recently drastically altered the infrastructure-focused BEAD program – both of which have undermined state’s efforts to expand Internet connectivity and eliminate barriers to broadband adoption.

“It feels like an important time to show how we are connected to each other in more ways than just high-speed Internet connections,” Butcher told ILSR in the days leading up to the tour.

Manacled by the Trump administration “termination” of the Digital Equity Act (DEA), Internet access advocates still in the fight are invited to save the date for the next Building For Digital Equity (#B4DE) livestream.

Days before Independence Day, the virtual gathering – slated for July 1 from 3 to 4:15 pm ET – will be centered around the theme: “Wired for Freedom: Digital Access and the American Dream.”

The agenda is shaping up to offer attendees new battlefield intelligence and how community-centered organizations and coalitions are carrying on in the face of vital funding and programming cuts.

Image

A line up of digital inclusion advocates working to expand broadband access will share practical insights and inspiration for digital navigators and other frontline workers looking to navigate the shifting landscape.

Register for the free event here.

As with the previous #B4DE events, the live stream will once again be sponsored by UTOPIA Fiber and co-hosted by the Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR) Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA).

Don't miss out on this exciting opportunity to learn, connect, and make a difference as digital equity advocates across the nation chart a new course forward.

Manacled by the Trump administration “termination” of the Digital Equity Act (DEA), Internet access advocates still in the fight are invited to save the date for the next Building For Digital Equity (#B4DE) livestream.

Days before Independence Day, the virtual gathering – slated for July 1 from 3 to 4:15 pm ET – will be centered around the theme: “Wired for Freedom: Digital Access and the American Dream.”

The agenda is shaping up to offer attendees new battlefield intelligence and how community-centered organizations and coalitions are carrying on in the face of vital funding and programming cuts.

Image

A line up of digital inclusion advocates working to expand broadband access will share practical insights and inspiration for digital navigators and other frontline workers looking to navigate the shifting landscape.

Register for the free event here.

As with the previous #B4DE events, the live stream will once again be sponsored by UTOPIA Fiber and co-hosted by the Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR) Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA).

Don't miss out on this exciting opportunity to learn, connect, and make a difference as digital equity advocates across the nation chart a new course forward.

Manacled by the Trump administration “termination” of the Digital Equity Act (DEA), Internet access advocates still in the fight are invited to save the date for the next Building For Digital Equity (#B4DE) livestream.

Days before Independence Day, the virtual gathering – slated for July 1 from 3 to 4:15 pm ET – will be centered around the theme: “Wired for Freedom: Digital Access and the American Dream.”

The agenda is shaping up to offer attendees new battlefield intelligence and how community-centered organizations and coalitions are carrying on in the face of vital funding and programming cuts.

Image

A line up of digital inclusion advocates working to expand broadband access will share practical insights and inspiration for digital navigators and other frontline workers looking to navigate the shifting landscape.

Register for the free event here.

As with the previous #B4DE events, the live stream will once again be sponsored by UTOPIA Fiber and co-hosted by the Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR) Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA).

Don't miss out on this exciting opportunity to learn, connect, and make a difference as digital equity advocates across the nation chart a new course forward.

Manacled by the Trump administration “termination” of the Digital Equity Act (DEA), Internet access advocates still in the fight are invited to save the date for the next Building For Digital Equity (#B4DE) livestream.

Days before Independence Day, the virtual gathering – slated for July 1 from 3 to 4:15 pm ET – will be centered around the theme: “Wired for Freedom: Digital Access and the American Dream.”

The agenda is shaping up to offer attendees new battlefield intelligence and how community-centered organizations and coalitions are carrying on in the face of vital funding and programming cuts.

Image

A line up of digital inclusion advocates working to expand broadband access will share practical insights and inspiration for digital navigators and other frontline workers looking to navigate the shifting landscape.

Register for the free event here.

As with the previous #B4DE events, the live stream will once again be sponsored by UTOPIA Fiber and co-hosted by the Institute for Local Self Reliance (ILSR) Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA).

Don't miss out on this exciting opportunity to learn, connect, and make a difference as digital equity advocates across the nation chart a new course forward.

Congressional Republicans are moving forward on a plan to kill a popular Federal Communications Commission (FCC) program providing free Wi-Fi to schoolchildren. Critics of the repeal say it’s a “cruel” effort that will undermine initiatives to bridge the affordability and access gap for families long stuck on the wrong side of the digital divide.

The effort, spearheaded by Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz, leverages the Congressional Review Act to roll back FCC changes to E-Rate, a government program that helps subsidize deployment of broadband access to rural communities, libraries, and schools.

Accelerated by the remote education boom of pandemic lockdowns, communities country wide had petitioned the FCC to expand the program. The goal: allowing rural schools to leverage E-Rate funding to provide free mobile Wi-Fi hotspots to families that either couldn’t afford broadband – or found broadband entirely out of reach.

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So in July 2024 the FCC voted to expand the program. Historically, E-Rate could only be used to improve access on school or library grounds. The expansion allowed schools to provide limited access to free Wi-Fi hotspots via school buses or other alternatives. The expansion did not involve an increase in the E-Rate budget or any new taxes on U.S. residents. It recognized that the concept of “school” had eclipsed the 20th century definition of a room in a community building.

“I believe every library and every school library in this country should be able to loan out Wi-Fi hotspots to help keep their patrons and kids connected,” former FCC boss Jessica Rosenwocel said when the reforms were announced. “It is 2024 in the United States. This should be our baseline. We can use the E-Rate program to make it happen.”

Congressional Republicans are moving forward on a plan to kill a popular Federal Communications Commission (FCC) program providing free Wi-Fi to schoolchildren. Critics of the repeal say it’s a “cruel” effort that will undermine initiatives to bridge the affordability and access gap for families long stuck on the wrong side of the digital divide.

The effort, spearheaded by Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz, leverages the Congressional Review Act to roll back FCC changes to E-Rate, a government program that helps subsidize deployment of broadband access to rural communities, libraries, and schools.

Accelerated by the remote education boom of pandemic lockdowns, communities country wide had petitioned the FCC to expand the program. The goal: allowing rural schools to leverage E-Rate funding to provide free mobile Wi-Fi hotspots to families that either couldn’t afford broadband – or found broadband entirely out of reach.

Image

So in July 2024 the FCC voted to expand the program. Historically, E-Rate could only be used to improve access on school or library grounds. The expansion allowed schools to provide limited access to free Wi-Fi hotspots via school buses or other alternatives. The expansion did not involve an increase in the E-Rate budget or any new taxes on U.S. residents. It recognized that the concept of “school” had eclipsed the 20th century definition of a room in a community building.

“I believe every library and every school library in this country should be able to loan out Wi-Fi hotspots to help keep their patrons and kids connected,” former FCC boss Jessica Rosenwocel said when the reforms were announced. “It is 2024 in the United States. This should be our baseline. We can use the E-Rate program to make it happen.”