# Presentation: 786678

## “Bucks for Broadband Summit”

**Promoting Broadband Deployment in ****Rural America**
**Michael D. Gallagher**
- Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information
- National Telecommunications and Information Administration
- U.S. Department of Commerce
- www.ntia.doc.gov
- Frankfort, Kentucky
- January 12, 2005

## The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)

- Principal adviser to the President on telecommunications and information policy issues
- Represent the Executive Branch in international & domestic telecommunications policy activities
- Manage Federal Government use of frequency spectrum
- Perform telecommunications research and engineering for both the Federal Government and the private sector

- - BASED ON THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS AUTHORIZATION ACT OF 1992

**Notes:**
One way that NTIA has worked to accomplish this goal is by developing policies that encourage deployment of broadband across America.  These high-speed networks promise to revolutionize the way we work, play, learn, and live.

Of note, The General Service Administration (GSA) has become the first federal agency to join as an agency member with the International Right of Way Association.  

## Overarching Goal:Promoting Economic Growth

- Thanks to the President’s policies, America’s economy is strong:
- Over the past four quarters the U.S. economy grew at  a real GDP rate of 4.0%; compared to GDP growth in Europe of 2.1%.
- The economy has shown job growth for 15 straight months and added 2.4 million new jobs – more than Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, and Japan combined.
- The U.S. unemployment rate is 5.4%, while the unemployment rate in Europe was 9.0% (Sept. 2004).
- There has been a sharp pickup in business spending on capital equipment.
- Homeownership rate was a record high of 69.0% in the third quarter of 2004.
- Manufacturing activity (ISM index) has been growing for 20 straight months and employment has been growing for 14 straight months.

## Economic Growth in Kentucky

- Kentucky’s economy is getting stronger:
- Kentucky’s per capita income growth rate has slightly exceeded the national average over the past decade (1990-2000).  Kentucky’s growth rate: 50%; U.S. growth rate: 48%.
- Kentucky’s unemployment rate of 4.5% is lower than the national average.
- Homeownership in Kentucky in 2003 was 74.4%, above the national level of 69%.
- Kentucky has added 25,300 new jobs in the past 18 months.

**Notes:**
Source – Dept of Commerce

## Kentucky’s Vision for an IT Future

- KY is the first state with 100% of its school districts online with an integrated voice, video, and data network.  (Source: _[www.thinkkentucky.com](http://www.thinkkentucky.com/)_)
- According to ConnectKentucky’s 2003 Report:
- 2 million Kentuckians use the Internet regularly
- KY consumers spend $894 million online
- 25% Kentuckians have broadband Internet at home
- Full-scale broadband deployment could create 14,000 new jobs and add more than $5 billion to the Gross State Product (GSP) in KY
- Governor Fletcher’s “Prescription for Innovation: Delivering Broadband Technology for a 21st Century Kentucky” promises broadband deployment throughout the state by 2007, leveraging state, federal, and private investment.

## The President’s Broadband Vision

**Goal**
- 	*“**This country needs a national goal for broadband technology . . . universal, affordable access for broadband technology by 2007.” *		–   President George W. Bush, Albuquerque, NM, March 26, 2004
**Government’s Role**
*	*
*	**"The role of government is not to create wealth; the role of our government is to create an environment in which the entrepreneur can flourish, **	**in which minds can expand, in which technologies can reach new frontiers."** *		 – President George W. Bush, Technology Agenda, November, 2002.

## Benefits of Broadband

*“**[B]roadband will not only help industry, it’ll help the quality of life of our citizens.”*— President George W. Bush, US Department of Commerce, June 24, 2004
- Tele-Medicine
- Distance Learning
- Tele-Work
- National Security
- Jobs and Economic Growth

##  Creating Economic Conditions For Broadband Deployment 

*“**We ought not to tax access to broadband.  If you want something to flourish, don’t tax it.”**	**–* President George W. Bush in Baltimore, Maryland on April 27, 2004
- Tax relief has given businesses powerful incentives to invest in broadband technology
- Accelerated depreciation for capital-intensive equipment
- Extension of the Internet tax moratorium to November 1, 2007; support making the moratorium permanent
- Extension of the research and experimentation tax credit; support making it permanent

## Removing the Regulatory Underbrush  

*“**[B]roadband providers have trouble getting across federal lands...that’s why I signed an order to reduce the regulatory red tape for laying fiberoptic cables and putting up transmission towers on federal lands.”*
-                   – President George W. Bush, U.S. Department of Commerce, June 24, 2004
- Reducing Legacy Regulation of Broadband Services:
- The Administration supports the FCC’s order freeing newly deployed broadband infrastructure from legacy regulation.
- Verizon, SBC, and Bell South announced they will wire at least an additional 20 million homes with fiber-optic cable by 2007 → Total investment is expected to be more than $6 billion over next several years.
- Bell South aims to provide 150,000 households with fiber per year and plans to increase the number of homes equipped with a fiber platform by 40% in 2005.
- SBC will bring video and broadband via fiber to 18 million homes in the next 2-3 years.
- Verizon aims to connect more than 2 million homes and businesses by next year.
- Improving Access to Rights-of-Way:
- On April 26, 2004, the President signed an executive memorandum directing federal agencies to implement recommendations set out by the Federal Rights-of-Way Working Group. They called for improvements in: 1) Information Access and Collection, 2) Timely Processing, 3) Fees and Other Charges, and 4) Compliance.

## Rate of Broadband’s Diffusion is Remarkable

- Source:  OECD, 2003

- United States: Diffusion of consumer goods and communications services (5 % onwards)

## Broadband’s Takeup Rate Exceeds Even That of Computers and the Internet

- * NOTE: 2001 and 2003 reflect 2000 Census-based weights and earlier years use 1990 Census-based weights.
- Source: *A Nation Online: Entering the Broadband Age* (September 2004, using October 2003 Census data).

**Percent of Households with Computers and Internet Connections, Selected Years, 1997-2003***

## Total High Speed Lines in the U.S.

- Source: FCC, December 2004

**Lines in Service**

## ...Cable Modem Subscriptions Have Also Experienced Significant Growth

- Source:  NCTA 2004 Year-End Industry Overview

- Source: FCC 2004

**DSL Lines Continue to Grow...**

## Wireless Broadband and New Technologies

- Advanced Wireless Services (“3G”)
- Ultra-wideband
- 5 GHz Spectrum
- 70/80/90 GHz

- The Administration has made more radio spectrum available for wireless broadband technologies:

*“**The other promising new broadband technology is wireless. The spectrum that allows for wireless technology is a limited resource . . . [a]nd a wise use of that spectrum is to help our economy grow, and help with the quality of life of our people.”*
- -- President George W. Bush, June 24, 2004

## Wi-Fi Hot Spots

- There are over 21,000 hotspots in the United States. (Intel’s Hotspot Finder)
- City-wide hot spots:
- Athens, GA
- Cerritos, CA
- Chaska, MN
- Oklahoma City, OK
- Philadelphia, PA
- Spokane, WA
- Walla Walla, WA
- Some Communities developing major free hot spots:
- Austin, TX
- Las Vegas, NV
- Long Beach, CA
- New York, NY
- San Jose, CA
- Washington, DC

## WiMax

- WiMax or “IEEE 802.16” is designed to provide wireless broadband access in a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), operating  at speeds up to 75 Mbps over a 30 mile radius.
- WiMax connectivity is fast enough to support more than 60 businesses with T1-level connections and hundreds of homes with DSL-rate connectivity using only 20 MHz of channel bandwidth.
- Intel plans to build WiMax into its Centrino chip platforms, which power 80% of all PCs, by 2006.  Motorola plans to commercially offer integrated radio access networks that can handle 3G, Wi-Fi, WiMax and other future wireless innovations.  AT&T, Siemens, and Alcatel are also backing WiMax technology.
- Industry analysts predict six-fold growth in WiMax sales over the next three years.

## Broadband Over Power Lines: The Third Wire

-    *“**We need to get broadband to more Americans . . . one great opportunity is to spread broadband throughout America via our power lines.”* — President George W. Bush, US Department of Commerce, June 24, 2004
- The FCC began a BPL rulemaking on February 12, 2004.
- Principal concern was the risk that BPL systems might interfere with radio communications.
- NTIA submitted to the FCC a Phase 1 study that defined interference risks and potential mitigations (April 2004).
- Based on additional analyses, NTIA recommended several supplements to the FCC proposed BPL rules to reduce risk of BPL interference (June 2004)
- The FCC adopted rules incorporating most NTIA recommendations on October 14, 2004.
- Today, many utilities, hotel operators and others are deploying experimental and operational BPL systems.

**HomePlug Modem** can turn an electrical outlet into an Internet connection.

## Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) Supports Technology

- EDA, the only federal entity with domestic economic development as its sole purpose, provides assistance to rural and urban areas for economic development and revitalization.
- EDA manages a $2 billion portfolio across the country and “invested” more than $1 billion in federal grants over the past four years.
- EDA has evolved from a grant-making entity toward a “private sector venture capitalist”, maximizing private sector investment per federal dollar input.  Over the past four years, EDA has increased private sector investment from $9 per EDA $1 to an average of $44 per EDA $1.
- EDA grants are focused on locally-developed, regionally-based economic development initiatives that achieve high return on taxpayers’ “investment”, create higher-skilled, higher-wage jobs, and directly contribute to economic growth.

## EDA Investment in Kentucky

- Since it’s inception in 1965, EDA has made 1,134 investments in Kentucky totaling over $317 million.
- In FY04, EDA made 15 investments in Kentucky totaling $13 million.  These investments helped save or create 2,243 jobs and has stimulated $291 million in private capital investments.
- Recent examples:
- City of Carrollton (Carroll County, 2003) – Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant – EDA grant $1.5 M, private investment $265 M, 1,000 jobs.
- Cave Run Water Commission (Menifee, Montgomery & Morgan counties, 2003)  – Development of a water treatment plant – EDA grant $1.5 M, 340 jobs.
- Western Kentucky University (Warren County, 2003) – Renovation of space in the old Bowling Green mall to house a small business incubator and technology center – EDA grant $851,000, 220 jobs.
- City of Franklin (Simpson County, 2002) – Infrastructure to an industrial park where two new manufacturers have located – EDA grant $1.1 M, 190 jobs.
- EDA also supports the ongoing work of 14 Economic Development Districts in Kentucky.

## EDA Investment in Broadband Deployment

- EDA supports the proliferation of broadband networks as a key priority for regional economic growth.
- Recent examples:
- $6 M grant in Mid-Atlantic Broadband Cooperative, Inc. (Southside, VA) for investment in installation of 300 miles of fiber optic cable in nine counties and three cities; providing significant opportunities for economic growth in the region, in addition distance learning and telemedicine capabilities.
- $2 M grant to Northern Enterprises, Inc. (St. Albans, VT) and Vermont Electric Cooperative, Inc. (Johnson, VT) to help build a 424 mile fiber optic broadband telecommunications network in rural northern Vermont that will connect small and medium-sized businesses to international markets.  This investment is expected to retain over 2,000 jobs, create 500 jobs, and generate as much as $58 M.
- EDA’s overall national investment budget is approximately $224 million for FY05 and EDA grants are highly competitive.
- EDA encourages communities eligible for specific broadband programs, such as those offered by USDA’s Rural Utility Service, to access those programs before applying for EDA investment dollars.

## EDA Contacts

**Website**:  _[www.eda.gov](http://www.eda.gov/)_
**Headquarter Information : **U.S. Department of Commerce			        Economic Development Administration			        1401Constitution Avenue, N.W.			        Washington, D.C. 20230.
**For information on EDA programs, investment policies, and funding opportunities, please contact your local regional office.**
**Atlanta Region:  **Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee401 West Peachtree Street, NWSuite 1820Atlanta, GA 30308-3510404-730-3002404-730-3025 fax
- William J. Day, Jr., Regional Director (_[wday1@eda.doc.gov](mailto:wday1@eda.doc.gov)__) _

## Conclusion

- Broadband deployment in the U.S. is robust.
- President Bush’s economic policies have helped to fuel and sustain broadband investment, deployment and competition.
- The President’s goal will ensure that all Americans have the personal and economic benefits of high-speed Internet applications and services.