A new White House report says that broadband Internet is no longer an optional amenity but rather an essential necessity on par with water, sewer and electricity, reported The Washington Post.
The report was written by the Broadband Opportunity Council, created by President Barack Obama and co-chaired by the secretaries of commerce and agriculture with a goal of "bringing broadband to underserved communities and encouraging new entrants and new investments to improve broadband quality and service."
The council reviewed broadband access data from 2013 and found that access is improving, but a few problems still remain.
For example, the group found that nearly 75 million Americans still don't have a high-speed Internet connection at home. Further, some 51 million Americans lack access to wired broadband with download speeds of at least 25 Mbps, and only 63 percent have access to speeds of 100 Mbps or more.
Rural and tribal areas are particularly under-served, and low-income families are far less likely to use high-speed Internet, which suggests it may still be too expensive, according to NBC News.
The underlying problem preventing widespread adoption seems to be lack of competition, which leaves many with little or no choice in terms of service or cost, as well as lack of investment. Another problem is that some federal programs that can support broadband expansion and adoption "lack specific guidelines to promote its use," the report said.
To remedy the situation, the council recommended all relevant federal programs should use "rulemakings or guidance to open financing resources for broadband investments." The council proposed 36 actions that should be done over the next 18 months to increase accessibility, including using $10 billion in federal grants and loans to modernize broadband-related programs.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Community Facilities program will bring broadband to health clinics and recreation centers around the country.
In another program, the Department of Health and Human Services will award 50 health centers grants worth $25 million each to expand the use of electronic medical records and other technology to improve quality of care and access to personal health information.
To support broadband deployment and foster competition, federal agencies will work to streamline the "applications for programs and broadband permitting processes."
Another program involves "creating an online inventory of data on Federal assets, such as Department of the Interior (DOI) telecommunications towers, that can help support faster and more economical broadband deployments to remote areas of the country."
The government will also develop new rules requiring Department of Housing and Urban Development to establish broadband connectivity standards for housing constructions and expand broadband eligibility for community development and housing.
