support the use of teleworking in information tech-
nology fields, including services and assistance re-
lated to high technology training, telecommuni-
cations infrastructure, capital equipment, job place-
ment services, and other means of promoting tele-
working;
‘‘(2) to identify skills that are needed by the
business community and that will enable trainees to
secure employment after the completion of training;
‘‘(3) to recruit employers for rural individuals
and residents of Indian reservations;
‘‘(4) to provide for high-speed communications
between the individuals in the targeted rural com-
munity or reservation and employers that carry out
information technology work that is suitable for tele-
working;
‘‘(5) to provide for access to or ownership of
the facilities, hardware, software, and other equip-
ment necessary to perform information technology
jobs; and
‘‘(6) to perform such other functions as the
Secretary considers appropriate.
‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA.—
‘‘(1) APPLICATION AND PLAN.—As a condition
of receiving a grant under this section for use with
respect to a rural area, an organization shall submit
to the Secretary, and obtain the approval of the Sec-
retary of, an application and 5-year plan for the use
of the grant to carry out a project described in sub-
section (c), including a description of—
‘‘(A) the businesses and employers that
will provide employment opportunities in the
rural area;
‘‘(B) fundraising strategies;
‘‘(C) training and training delivery meth-
ods to be employed;
‘‘(D) the rural community of individuals to
be targeted to receive assistance;
‘‘(E) any support from State and local gov-
ernments and other non-Federal sources; and
‘‘(F) outreach activities to be carried out
to reach potential information technology em-
ployers.
‘‘(2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of re-
ceiving a grant under this section, an organiza-
tion shall agree to obtain, after the application
of the organization has been approved and no-
tice of award has been issued, contributions
from non-Federal sources that are equal to—
‘‘(i) during each of the first, second,
and third years of a project, 1 non-Federal
dollar for each 2 Federal dollars provided
under the grant; and
‘‘(ii) during each of the fourth and
fifth years of the project, 1 non-Federal
dollar for each Federal dollar provided
under the grant.
‘‘(B) INDIAN
TRIBES.—Notwithstanding
subparagraph (A), an Indian tribe may use
Federal funds made available to the tribe for
self-governance to pay the non-Federal con-
tributions required under subparagraph (A).
‘‘(C) FORM.—The non-Federal contribu-
tions required under subparagraph (A) may be
in the form of in-kind contributions, including
office equipment, office space, and services.
‘‘(e) SELECTION CRITERIA.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall—
‘‘(A) establish criteria for the selection of
eligible organizations to receive grants under
this section; and
‘‘(B) evaluate, rank, and select eligible or-
ganizations on the basis of the selection cri-
teria.
‘‘(2) FACTORS.—The selection criteria estab-
lished under paragraph (1) shall include—
‘‘(A) the experience of the eligible organi-
zation in conducting programs or ongoing ef-
forts designed to improve or upgrade the skills
of rural employees or members of Indian tribes;
‘‘(B) the ability of the eligible organization
to initiate a project within a minimum period of
time;
‘‘(C) the ability and experience of the eligi-
ble organization in providing training to rural
individuals who are economically disadvantaged
or who face significant barriers to employment;
‘‘(D) the ability and experience of the eligi-
ble organization in conducting information tech-
nology skill training;
‘‘(E) the degree to which the eligible orga-
nization has entered into partnerships or con-
tracts with local, tribal, and State governments,
community-based organizations, and prospective
employers to provide training, employment, and
supportive services;
‘‘(F) the ability and experience of the eligi-
ble organization in providing job placement for
rural employees with employers that are suit-
able for teleworking;
‘‘(G) the computer and telecommunications
equipment that the eligible organization has or
expects to possess or use under contract on ini-
tiation of the project; and
‘‘(H) the means the applicant proposes,
such as high-speed Internet access, to allow
communication between rural employees and
employers.
‘‘(3) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall—
‘‘(A) publish the selection criteria estab-
lished under this subsection in the Federal Reg-
ister; and
‘‘(B) include a description of the selection
criteria in any solicitation for applications for
grants made by the Secretary.
‘‘(f) STUDIES OF TELEWORKING.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To promote the develop-
ment of teleworking in rural areas, the Secretary
may make grants to entities to conduct research on
economic, operational, social, and policy issues relat-
ing to teleworking in rural areas, including the de-
velopment of best practices for businesses that em-
ploy teleworkers.
‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall use not
more than $1,000,000 of funds made available for a
fiscal year under subsection (g) to carry out this
subsection.
‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATION.—There is
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$11,000,000 for each fiscal year.’’.
TITLE 
II—RURAL 
TELE-
COMMUNICATIONS 
MOD-
ERNIZATION
SEC. 201. CREDIT FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES
DEVELOPMENT IN RURAL AREAS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 46(a) of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986 (relating to amount of investment cred-
it) is amended by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(2), by striking the period at the end of paragraph (3)
and inserting ‘‘, and’’, and by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(4) the rural telecommunications facilities
credit.’’
(b) AMOUNT OF CREDIT.—Subpart E of part IV of
subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 (relating to rules for computing investment credit)
is amended by inserting after section 47 the following:
‘‘SEC. 
47A. 
RURAL 
TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
FACILITIES
CREDIT.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 46, the
rural telecommunications facilities credit for any taxable
year is an amount equal to the applicable percentage of
the qualified broadband local access facilities expenditures
for such taxable year.
‘‘(b) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For purposes of
subsection (a), the applicable percentage in the case of
qualified broadband local access facilities expenditures in
connection with—
‘‘(1) broadband telecommunications facilities, is
10 percent, and
‘‘(2) enhanced broadband telecommunications
facilities, is 15 percent.
‘‘(c) QUALIFIED BROADBAND LOCAL ACCESS FACILI-
TIES EXPENDITURE.—For purposes of this section, the
term ‘qualified broadband local access facilities expendi-
ture’ means any expenditure—
‘‘(1) chargeable to capital account—
‘‘(A) for property for which depreciation is
allowable under section 168, and
‘‘(B) 
incurred 
in 
connection 
with
broadband telecommunications facilities or en-
hanced broadband telecommunications facilities
serving rural subscribers, and
‘‘(2) incurred during the period—
‘‘(A) beginning with the taxpayer’s (or any
predecessor’s) first taxable year beginning after
the date of the enactment of this section, and
‘‘(B) ending with the taxpayer’s (or any
predecessor’s) third taxable year beginning
after such date.
‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS AND SPECIAL RULES.—For pur-
poses of this section—
‘‘(1) BROADBAND
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
FA-
CILITIES.—The term ‘broadband telecommunications
facilities’ means broadband local access facilities ca-
pable of—
‘‘(A) transmitting voice, and
‘‘(B) downloading data at a rate of 1.5
MBPS and uploading data at a rate of .5
MBPS.
‘‘(2) ENHANCED
BROADBAND
TELECOMMUNI-
CATIONS
FACILITIES.—The 
term 
‘enhanced
broadband telecommunications facilities’ means the
broadband local access facilities capable of—
‘‘(A) transmitting voice, and
‘‘(B) downloading and uploading data at a
rate of 10 MBPS.
‘‘(3) DETERMINATION OF BROADBAND LOCAL
ACCESS
FACILITIES.—Broadband 
local 
access
facilities—
‘‘(A) begin at the switching point closest to
the rural subscriber, which is—
‘‘(i) the subscriber side of the nearest
switching facility in the case of local ex-
change carriers,
‘‘(ii) the subscriber side of the
headend or the node in the case of cable
television operators, and
‘‘(iii) the subscriber side of the trans-
mission and reception facilities in the case
of a wireless or satellite carrier,
‘‘(B) end at the interface between the net-
work and the rural subscriber’s location, and
‘‘(C) do not include any switching facility.
‘‘(4) RURAL
SUBSCRIBER.—The term ‘rural
subscriber’ means a subscriber who lives in an incor-
porated or unincorporated place which is not located
in an area designated as a Metropolitan Area by the
Office of Management and Budget.’’.
(c) SPECIAL RULE FOR MUTUAL OR COOPERATIVE
TELEPHONE COMPANIES.—Section 501(c)(12)(B) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to list of exempt
organizations) is amended by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of
clause (iii), by striking the period at the end of clause (iv)
and inserting ‘‘, or’’, and by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new clause:
‘‘(v) which is not described in sub-
paragraph (A), in an amount which does
not exceed in any year an amount equal to
the applicable percentage of the qualified
broadband local access facilities expendi-
tures (as determined in section 47A) of the
mutual or cooperative telephone company
for such year.’’
(d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions for subpart E of part IV of subchapter A of chapter
1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by
inserting after the item relating to section 47 the fol-
lowing:
‘‘Sec. 47A. Rural telecommunications facilities credit.’’
(e) EFFECTIVE DATES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the amendments made by this section
shall apply to expenditures incurred after the date of
the enactment of this Act.
(2) SPECIAL RULE.—The amendments made by
subsection (c) shall apply to amounts received after
the date of the enactment of this Act.
TITLE III—RURAL BROADBAND
ENHANCEMENT
SEC. 301. FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION TO
PROVIDE SUPPORT FROM UNIVERSAL SERV-
ICE FUND.
Section 254(e) of the Communications Act of 1934
(47 U.S.C. 254(e)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating so much of the text of such
subsection as follows ‘‘(e) UNIVERSAL SERVICE SUP-
PORT.—’’ as paragraph (1);
(2) by inserting before ‘‘After’’ the following
heading: ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(2) RURAL AREA BROADBAND SUPPORT.—In
addition to any other support provided under para-
graph (1), the Commission shall, within 90 days
after the date of enactment of the Rural Broadband
Enhancement Act, initiate a proceeding to provide
Federal universal service support for the deployment
of broadband service (as defined in section 156(e)(1)
of the National Telecommunications and Informa-
tion Administration Organization Act) to eligible
rural communities (as defined in section 156(e)(2)
of that Act). The proceeding shall be completed
within 240 days. Federal universal service support
provided as a result of that proceeding shall be de-
termined without cost averaging of any above-aver-
age cost areas with any lower cost areas, such as
would occur in statewide or study averaging, and
may be used for the deployment of—
‘‘(A) loop treatments and digital subscriber
line access multiplexers;
‘‘(B) cable modems;
‘‘(C) wireless technology; and
‘‘(D) satellite technology.’’.
SEC. 302. RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE LOAN PROGRAM.
Part C of title I of the National Telecommunications
and Information Administration Organization Act (47
U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end there-
of the following:
‘‘SEC. 156. BROADBAND TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Rural Utilities Service of
the Department of Agriculture, after consultation with the
NTIA, shall make loans or other extensions of credit to
companies certified as eligible telecommunications carriers
providers, or that accept the obligations of an eligible tele-
communications carrier, in accordance with the provisions
of this section to finance the deployment of broadband
telecommunications services to eligible rural communities.
‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible
for a loan or other extension of credit under this section,
a project shall—
‘‘(1) be capable of delivering broadband service;
‘‘(2) be for the purpose of making access to
broadband service available to an eligible rural com-
munity where broadband service is not otherwise
generally available throughout that community; and
‘‘(3) be subject to the standards for service and
area wide coverage applicable to other projects ad-
ministered by the Rural Utilities Service.
‘‘(c) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Loans made under
this section—
‘‘(1) shall be made available in accordance with
the requirements of the Federal Credit Reform Act
of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661);
‘‘(2) shall bear interest at an annual rate of not
more than 2 percent per annum; and
‘‘(3) shall be made for the longer of—
‘‘(A) a term of 30 years; or
‘‘(B) the useful life of the assets con-
structed, reconstructed, or acquired.
‘‘(d) LIMITATIONS.—
‘‘(1) TECHNOLOGY
NEUTRALITY.—In making
loans under this section, the Rural Utilities Service
may not take into consideration the technology pro-
posed to be employed.
‘‘(2) SECURITY INTEREST.—The Rural Utilities
Service may take a security interest in assets or rev-
enue streams, in connection with a loan or other ex-
tension of credit made under this section, of not
more than the amount sufficient to cover the assets
financed by that loan or extension of credit.
‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) 
BROADBAND
SERVICE.—The 
term
‘broadband service’ includes, without regard to any
particular transmission medium or technology, high-
speed, switched, broadband telecommunications ca-
pable of delivering not less than 1.0 megabits of
data per second to the user and 0.5 megabits of
data per second from the user that enables users to
originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graph-
ics, and video telecommunications. The Commission
shall, from time-to-time as circumstances warrant,
revise the rate-of-data-transmission criteria stated in
the preceding sentence upward to reflect techno-
logical advances, and the criteria, as so revised, shall
be applied under the preceding sentence in lieu of
the rate-of-data-transmission criteria stated or pre-
viously revised by the Commission under this sen-
tence.
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE RURAL COMMUNITY.—The term
‘eligible rural community’ means any incorporated or
unincorporated place that is not located in an area
designated as a Metropolitan Area by the Office of
Management and Budget.’’.
SEC. 303. FUNDING.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary of Agriculture to carry out the provisions of section
156 of the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration Organization Act $3,000,000,000 for fis-
cal years 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, through 2005, such
amount to remain available until expended.
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