Billions for broadband in stimulus bill appear likely

Groups calling for the U.S. government to spend US$30 billion or more to improve broadband networks across the country are optimistic that kind of money will be available in an economic stimulus bill pushed by President-elect Barack Obama, one telecom expert said Wednesday.

Representatives of Educause have heard that about $30 billion for broadband is in line with Obama's goals for the stimulus package, during conversations with the Obama transition team and other groups pushing for broadband funding, said John Windhausen, a consultant for Educause. Obama and several groups have argued that many U.S. residents are being left out of the digital economy because they don't have broadband available, and a national broadband program could create hundreds of thousands of jobs.

Obama's economic stimulus package could top $800 billion.

Educause, an advocacy group focused on IT use in higher education, called for a $100 billion broadband program in a policy paper released a year ago. The Educause plan would bring 100Mbps broadband to every home and business in the U.S., and it called on the U.S. government to provide about a third of the money, with private funders making up the rest.

The U.S. is falling behind other countries, both in broadband adoption and in speeds available for innovative online applications, Windhausen said. "If we continue on the same path, we're not going to get the broadband built out the way we need it," he said at the State of the 'Netconference in Washington, D.C.

In recent weeks, Free Press, a media advocacy group, has put out its own proposal, for the U.S. government to spend $44 billion on broadband rollout, and the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released a study saying a $30 billion government broadband program would create nearly 950,000 jobs in the U.S.

The three plans differ significantly, with the Educause plan focused on government grants, the ITIF plan focused on tax credits and the Free Press plan advocating a variety of programs. There's also disagreement in Washington whether broadband money in the economic stimulus package should focus on providing broadband to areas that don't yet have it, or should also be spent on increasing speeds and encouraging more broadband competition.

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