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Another Blow to Digital Equity: Court Kills FCC's Anti Digital Discrimination Rules
In yet another bruising blow in the fight to ensure equitable access to high-speed Internet service, an appeals court struck down federal rules this week that aimed to combat digital redlining. Though the FCC had not exercised its anti-digital discrimination authority in a single instance, the US Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit ruled that the FCC had exceeded its authority by even having a rule that threatened to impose liability on ISPs for “disparate impact,” instead of relying on instances of “disparate treatment.”
California PUC Issues $3.29 Million In Digital Literacy Grants
The California Public Utilities Commission has approved $3.29 million in grants aimed at dramatically shoring up digital training and public broadband access in communities across the state. All told, more than 18 new digital literacy projects and three expanded public broadband access projects will be funded, impacting more than 16,000 Californians.
Major Flagstaff Fiber Expansion Through Wecom Public-Private Partnership
The public-private partnership the city struck Arizona-based Wecom Fiber is expected to inject at least $100 million into local economy over five years while saving the city an estimated $18 million in capital expenses. The fiber network will ultimately pass 30,000 locations within Flagstaff city limits, but also connect 34 municipal facilities. Construction of the network began in April of 2025, and is poised to deliver more than 815 miles of new fiber across Coconino County.
New Law Would Force FCC To Restore Communications Equity And Diversity Council
Congressmembers Rob Menendez, Doris Matsui (CA-07), Nanette Barragán (CA-44), and Troy Carter, Sr. (LA-02) have introduced new legislation that would compel the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to re-establish the Communications Equity and Diversity Council. The Council had operated in some capacity since 2003 under multiple partisan administrations to make the communications sector more equitable and reduce digital discrimination, until FCC Chair Brendan Carr arbitrarily disbanded it in January 2025.
Local Governments Strongly Oppose The American Broadband Deployment Act
Local government organizations are voicing their strong opposition to the American Broadband Deployment Act, an industry friendly proposal being cooked up in the House that would take public rights of way management and property decisions away from state, local, and tribal governments through federal preemption and industry-friendly defaults. The American Broadband Deployment Act (HR 2289) saw initial approval by the US House Energy and Commerce Committee last January. It’s being presented by telecom companies as a way to dramatically streamline government broadband permitting and regulation, something they insist will speed up the deployment of fast, affordable broadband access.
Roanoke Cooperative Plans $2.4 Million Rural North Carolina Fiber Expansion
Roanoke Cooperative’s Fybe has been awarded $2.4 million in state funds to expand affordable access to high speed Internet to 826 locations across eight predominantly rural North Carolina counties. Fybe, the cooperative's fiber business, will receive $2.4 million through the state’s Stop-Gap Solutions program to connect 826 locations across Bertie, Chowan, Gates, Granville, Halifax, Hertford, Martin, and Northampton counties. The fiber expansion is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.
San Juan Islands’ Rock Island Communications Passes 7,000 Subscribers
The remote islands of San Juan County, Washington are increasingly being served with next-generation fiber and wireless thanks to Rock Island Communications, a locally-owned Internet subsidiary of the Orcas Power & Light Cooperative. RIC is celebrating a decade of what it calls “remarkable growth” for the tall task of remote island deployments to the county of 18,000. The subsidiary says it just reached 7,000 subscribers across San Juan County, and that its annual revenue has grown dramatically during the last decade – from approximately $1.8 million in 2015 to more than $12.3 million in 2025.
Unbuffered Live! Coming Tuesday, April 28th at 2pm ET
Join us for our very first episode of Unbuffered Live! at our new time, on Tuesday, April 28th at 2pm ET. Host Christopher Mitchell will be joined by guests Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting), Heather Mills (ITG) and Drew Garner (Benton Institute for Broadband and Society) to talk about the intersections of tech, Internet access, and policy.
B4DE Reprise: Following the Money on Digital Equity and AI Data Centers
With tax day as a backdrop, the ILSR Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance convened its quarterly Building for Digital Equity livestream yesterday that shined a light on how public dollars and tax policy intersect with digital equity. The event – an ongoing series sponsored by UTOPIA Fiber – brought together community organizers, policy experts, and local government leaders on the frontlines of working to expand opportunities for those being left in the digital dust – with a special focus on how the emergence of AI hyperscale data centers are impacting communities and how communities can fight for a better deal.
A Cap, Gown, and Connection
A laptop and a low-cost Internet connection opened the door of opportunity for a first-generation college graduate. It wasn’t just about getting online – it was about unlocking access to everything that comes with it. When that door closes for millions, the consequences ripple far beyond a single household. It impacts who gets educational and work opportunities, and the ability to meaningfully participate in modern life.
Illinois Takes Major Steps To Improve Broadband Affordability, Cooperative Expansion
The Illinois Legislature has taken several major legal steps to not only improve broadband affordability in The Prairie State, but empower local cooperatives to expand affordable, reliable fiber access to state residents. Illinois State Sen. Rachel Ventura (D-Joliet) recently introduced Senate Bill 3612, which would amend the state’s Utilities Act to require that large private telecoms in the state provide affordable, fast broadband access to low-income state residents.
Farewell - Episode 125 of the Connect This! Show
After five and a half years and 124 shows, we’re saying goodbye to Connect This!, where we've spent time with you, our wonderful audience, talking about building and managing networks, competition in the marketplace, creating clear and effective marketing campaigns, state and federal infrastructure grant programs, dark money campaigns, local broadband champions, affordability, digital skills, and more. Keep in touch with us via Unbuffered, our new show.