I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6394 
To help small business broadband providers keep customers connected. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 25, 2020 
Mr. WELCH (for himself, Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. YOUNG, and Mr. GIANFORTE) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ap-
propriations 
A BILL 
To help small business broadband providers keep customers 
connected. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. KEEPING CRITICAL CONNECTIONS EMER-
GENCY FUND. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
(1) the term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Federal 
Communications Commission; 
(2) the term ‘‘covered program’’ means a pro-
gram established by a small business broadband pro-
vider under which the small business broadband pro-
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vider, at any time during the COVID–19 emergency 
period, voluntarily— 
(A) provides a customer with free or dis-
counted broadband service, or free upgrades of 
existing service to meet certain capacity and 
speed needs, due specifically to the presence of 
a student in the household of the customer who 
needs distance learning capability; or 
(B) refrains from disconnecting broadband 
service provided to an existing customer due to 
nonpayment or underpayment if the customer— 
(i) has a household income, at the 
time of the nonpayment or underpayment, 
that does not exceed 135 percent of the 
Federal poverty guidelines (as determined 
by the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services); 
(ii) is unable to make a full payment 
due specifically to the economic impact of 
the national emergency described in para-
graph (3); and 
(iii) provides sufficient documentation 
to the provider to show that the customer 
meets the criteria under clauses (i) and 
(ii); 
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(3) the term ‘‘COVID–19 emergency period’’ 
means the period during which the national emer-
gency declaration by the President under the Na-
tional Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) 
with respect to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 
(COVID-19) is in effect; and 
(4) the term ‘‘small business broadband pro-
vider’’ means a broadband provider that provides 
broadband service to fewer than 250,000 customers. 
(b) FUNDING.— 
(1) APPROPRIATION.—Out of any funds in the 
Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there is appro-
priated to the Commission $2,000,000,000 for fiscal 
year 2020, to remain available until expended, to re-
imburse small business broadband providers for the 
costs of carrying out a covered program. 
(2) RULES.—The Commission shall promulgate 
rules on an expedited basis, and without regard to 
section 553 of title 5, United States Code, regarding 
the provision of reimbursements to small business 
broadband providers under paragraph (1). 
Æ 
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