In a few short years, the Internet has grown exponentially to become a mass medium used daily by over 100 million people worldwide. The explosion of information technology has created opportunities undreamed of by previous generations. The pace of broadband deployment to rural America must be accelerated for electronic commerce to meet its full potential, however.
Broadband access is as important to our small businesses in Montana as water is to agribusiness.
I am convinced that the proper use of Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act can help to bring these advanced data services to underserved areas. I authored Section 706 during the crafting of the Act to allow the FCC to provide deregulatory incentives so that telecommunications firms would invest in broadband technologies. I will not allow Section 706 to be dismantled through FCC inaction. However, there is some positive and exciting news on this front as well. Also, by pooling their limited resources, Montana's independent and cooperative telephone companies are doing great things.