WASHINGTON, D.C. — More than 200,000 Ohioans have no internet access at home, which is a problem that’s been highlighted by the coronavirus pandemic.
What You Need To Know
- A potential infrastructure package could include billions of dollars for broadband expansion
- Republicans and Democrats agree expansion is needed, but disagree over the best approach
- Ohio ranks 24th in the country for access to broadband
- Republican Rep. Bob Latta recently met with Vice President Harris to discuss it
After remote work and school became a way of life across the country, expanding broadband access has become a focus of negotiations in Washington as President Joe Biden and Republicans try to find compromise on an infrastructure package.
On Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris reiterated that the administration wants all Americans to have access to the internet.
“High speed internet is a lifeline. And there is work left to do to ensure that we are all connected,” Harris said at an event announcing a $1 billion grant program for tribal communities to expand broadband access.
Biden initially wanted to include $100 billion for broadband expansion in his infrastructure plan, but he’s dropped that to $65 billion in negotiations with Republicans.
Last week, Harris met with a bipartisan group of lawmakers, including northwest Ohio Rep. Bob Latta, to talk about broadband expansion.
Latta, a Republican leader on the topic, has long wanted the Federal Communications Commission to improve the accuracy of its maps showing where broadband is not available.
He said that would allow the government to pinpoint its broadband expansion efforts, but he said the issue was not a focus on the meeting with Harris.
“We want to make sure that we have an accurate map, that we’re out there serving those unserved areas in the country, that we’re not picking winners and losers as to what type of service these people are going to have to require,” Latta told Spectrum News in an interview after the meeting.
Data company BroadbandNow ranks Ohio 24th in the country for access to broadband.
While 93% of Ohioans have access to what’s considered fast internet, 900,000 have access to just one provider and more than 200,000 have no access at all.
While Republicans are focused on extending broadband access to areas that completely lack it (mainly rural areas), Democrats support a fuller approach that includes bringing faster internet speeds to areas with low-level broadband, like certain cities.
“The efforts coming out of the House from Congressman Latta and others are too small ball,” Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) told Spectrum News. “We don’t just build up where there isn’t. At the same time we’re building up where there isn’t broadband, we expand where there is.”
Though both parties agree broadband expansion should be invested in, Republicans and Biden are still trading infrastructure proposals. But the White House has indicated negotiations may end as soon as next week, whether there’s a compromise or not.
