Senator Schultz Universal Broadband Update

UBER Update, April 2009
UNIVERSAL BROADBAND FOR A RURAL REGION
http://broadband.senatordaleschultz.com

Wisconsin's First Regional Broadband Conference

You and I want broadband available everywhere, and a key person to reach the goal is the guy or gal we see in the mirror. As an UBER supporter, you've helped raise awareness of the needs and benefits of broadband with other community members and leaders at all levels of government.

On Thursday, April 22, you can help advance the process to the next level. Please register today and I'll see you there because there are actions each of us can take to help achieve our broadband vision. Conference organizers call their group "Connecting Southwest Wisconsin". See their website at www.ConnectingWI.org. The 2010 conference, held on Earth Day, is dubbed "The Road to Broadband".

The broadband conference is Thursday, April 22 at the Belmont Travel Center, Hwy 151 (Exit 26)

Cost to attend the conference, including lunch, is just $20, thanks to the generous support of public and private sector sponsors. Keeping the conference affordable to all community members was one of the goals of the organizers.

As the Connecting Southwest Wisconsin website states, "Access to broadband is vitally important to achieving our community and economic development goals, through conferences like the April 22, 2010 Road to Broadband Conference, we are building public-private partnerships to expedite broadband availability to more places where community members live, work, learn and play to foster economic growth and job creation." "We need your thoughts, knowledge and expertise to help us achieve our goal. It’s up to all of us to get our communities educated, motivated and connected!

Thank you to the conference sponsors who want to achieve universal broadband: Badgerland Financial, Wired Wisconsin, BEST Wisconsin, Alliant Energy, Southwest Wisconsin Workforce Development Board, TDS Telecomm, Wisconsin Rural Partners, Southwest Wisconsin Technical College, Madison Gas and Electric, and Mount Horeb Telephone Company.

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Broadband Stimulus Funding Update

If you're stuck with dial up at home or work, the lack of help from the first round of federal broadband stimulus awards may be a disappointment. From the outset, President Obama stated the first priority for the $7.2 billion was to make broadband available at community anchor facilities such as schools, libraries, community centers, senior citizen centers. Even with universal broadband availability, many people still wouldn't have broadband access because they can't afford a computer, can't afford the monthly service cost, or don't know how to use a computer or navigate the web. For Wisconsin, the only notable infrastructure project from the first round of stimulus awards will provide optical fiber broadband at close to 400 community anchors. In case you missed the last UBER Update, you can see the list of nearly 400 schools, libraries and other community anchors to receive optical fiber broadband from a round one broadband stimulus award at http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us/docview.asp?docid=19044&locid=19.

For the second and final round of federal broadband stimulus grants, the deadline to submit an application recently passed and the news is not encouraging. Fewer applications were submitted that would build the infrastructure required for universal broadband in southwest Wisconsin and in most of Wisconsin. Still, I remain optimistic the Obama and Doyle administrations will direct some benefit into our region. An upcoming UBER Update will include a list of second round infrastructure applications that would serve our region.

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Federal Plan Calls for Affordable Broadband

The Federal Communications Commission last month presented Congress with "The National Broadband Plan", an ambitious plan to bring broadband Internet service to millions of Americans who can't get it today, while boosting delivery speeds and lowering prices for 200 million current subscribers. The plan describes how broadband benefits all community members through health care, education, job opportunities, public safety and democracy. One idea in the plan is to use the national Universal Service Fund to expand broadband to unserved Americans because phone and other services are shifting to internet platforms. The plan includes an educational component on computer use and web navigation to make universal broadband access a reality for millions of Americans not currently connected. Internet service providers have concerns about new costs and regulations. Read the Executive Summary: http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-296858A1.pdf

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Sauk County Wireless Broadband Project

Hilbert Communications of Green Bay, through one of its divisions, Bug Tussel, is embarking on a wireless broadband project in Sauk County. The project builds off an existing system of nine towers all connected by an optical fiber loop. The county-owned tower-fiber optic system was installed five years ago to serve law enforcement and other public safety needs. Hilbert has said it plans to proceed in Sauk County with or without being awarded federal broadband stimulus funds it has applied for. Bug Tussel has hired Ken Phelps as a Community Marketing Representative in Sauk County and has a Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Green-Bay-WI/Bug-Tussel-Wireless/179698693608?...1

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Why Broadband is Important

Professor Andrew Lewis at UW Extension, a great ally to UBER Supporters, has included several excellent resources on the UW Extension web site at . I recommend the 14-minute PowerPoint presentation on the importance of broadband and e-commerce in rural Wisconsin that Lewis prepared as an MP4 file. Apologies to those unable to view it. Email Lewis at andy.lewis@ces.uwex.edu.

More Good Broadband Resources:

The Reedsburg Telecommunications Utility has national renown for having installed fiber optic to the home (FttH). See findings from their recent Fiber Optic Economic Impact Survey at http://www.reedsburgutility.com/Fiber%20Optic%20Net.htm.

'Broadband Internet's Value for Rural America', an August, 2009 USDA economic study, found that rural communities with greater broadband access had greater economic growth than areas with less access. Employment growth was higher and non-farm private earnings greater. See the full study at www.ers.usda.gov/publications/err78.

The Pew Internet & American Life Project, a project of the Pew Research Center, provides a wealth of resources and data: http://www.pewinternet.org/.

FCC - Broadband Opportunities for Rural America: http://wireless.fcc.gov/outreach/ruralbroadband.

DOES BROADBAND BOOST LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT?
http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=866

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I welcome your questions and comments about broadband at sen.schultz@legis.wi.gov.

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