Millions of americans lack high speed internet access

Which gets to consumer affordability. Generally, $60 a month for high-speed internet service is considered a reasonable rate for a household to pay. But according to BroadbandNow, only 52

percent of Americans have access to wired broadband at $60 a month or less. And availability at that price plummets in states with large rural expanses. In Colorado, for example, just 3

percent of residents can get broadband for less than $60 a month; in Nebraska, the figure is 11 percent; in Maine, 5 percent. Unaffordable monthly access rates place many poorer households

in urban settings on the wrong side of the digital divide. There are other factors behind the digital divide, too, such as legislation that blocks competition. BroadbandNow research found

that 22 states have enacted barriers or bans to setting up municipally owned nonprofit networks that are similar to public utilities. STATES WITH ROADBLOCKS TO HIGH-SPEED INTERNET ACCESS As

of May 2020, 22 states banned or restricted public entities’ ability to offer high-speed internet access. Often this leaves residents of small towns and rural areas without speeds sufficient

to work or go to school from home yet keeps their monthly access fees above $60. • Alabama • Colorado • Connecticut • Florida • Louisiana • Michigan • Minnesota • Missouri • Montana •

Nebraska • Nevada • North Carolina • Oregon • Pennsylvania • South Carolina • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Virginia • Washington • Wisconsin • Wyoming _Source: BroadbandNow_ Accessing the

internet via a home satellite dish would seem a likely solution, eliminating the need to bury pensive fiber networks. But experts say that current satellite technology — while sometimes

marketed to consumers as broadband — is actually too slow, unreliable and expensive to be counted as a true broadband service. Plus, says Brian Whitacre, a professor of agricultural

economics at Oklahoma State University, “it certainly is more costly to have a big piece of equipment attached to your house, and for the provider to maintain a satellite in orbit.” And just

as rain and wind can break up a satellite TV signal, they also interfere with satellite internet transmission. “Having the signal break up when you are in a meeting or a telehealth

appointment is problematic,” notes Roberto Gallardo, assistant director of Purdue University's regional development center. Although some dish companies advertise 25/3 broadband speeds,

in practice they often clock in at 10/1 or 5/1. In a 2019 Purdue household survey, only a quarter of those surveyed were happy with satellite service, but more than half of cable and fixed

wireless users were satisfied with their internet access. TOWARD SOLUTIONS Anne Boothe describes her hometown of Malta, Montana, as “100 miles from the nearest Walmart and 200 miles from the

nearest airport.” But the telecommuter and grandmother is satisfied with her broadband access, which is provided over fiber-optic lines through a member-owned co-op, Triangle

Communications. It began in the 1950s as a telephone company. “Our co-op took out federal loans to expand the network,” says Boothe, 62, who enjoys chatting with her grandchildren in Oregon

via Zoom. “We are very sparsely populated, less than one person per square mile. But with our broadband, farm spouses can work remotely, retirees can stay connected, and we've avoided

the brain drain of younger people leaving for good." Such cooperatives don't have the pressure to produce quick returns on investment, explains Geoff Feiss, the general manager of

the Montana Telecommunications Association. “They can invest in areas where publicly traded companies can't justify the expense." Other work-arounds include municipally operated

networks, through which cities and towns issue bonds to cover network expansion costs. About 125 communities nationwide (most with populations under 25,000) operate such broadband utilities,

says Christopher Mitchell, director of broadband for the Minneapolis-based Institute for Local Self-Reliance. Hundreds of other municipalities operate limited networks or are involved in

public-private partnerships. But according to BroadbandNow research, 22 states have laws that prohibit public-sector competition with for-profit telecommunications companies. The federal

government allocates roughly $6 billion a year for rural internet access, but even those upgrades may not bring some areas up to industry broadband standards. “That is keeping rural America

behind,” says Ali, the Virginia professor. AARP is among the organizations pushing for more funding, emphasizing the need for reliable telehealth service to older Americans. AARP has

encouraged federal and state lawmakers to allocate more for broadband infrastructure, including advocating for additional appropriations in coronavirus relief bills and emphasizing the

issue's importance to the FCC. Social distancing has only amplified the issue. “This national emergency,” Feiss says, “has exposed both the benefits of broadband and the gaps and

challenges that remain.”