INSIDER
The Affordable Connectivity Program provides a $30 monthly subsidy to help low-income households pay for internet service. The program is slated to run out of money at the end of the month.
A historic $3.3 billion federal investment in broadband could connect millions of Texans to the internet. But getting the money to the right hands could be a challenge.
The House gave initial approval to the bill Tuesday. The legislation is a priority for Speaker Dade Phelan.
East Texans worry they could miss out on federal dollars because a state map that will help determine where the money goes shows they already have access to broadband. Residents say their broadband is chronically unreliable.
Texas has had trouble getting a state of 30 million residents online for years — even before the pandemic put a spotlight on poor broadband development.
Mayors from the state’s most populous cities presented their legislative wish list, including economic development and workforce programs, broadband infrastructure and violence prevention.
Local officials, echoing Glenn Hegar, say the current maps are flawed and the process to lodge complaints is cumbersome.
Large swaths of rural Texas have poor or no access to the internet. This grant aims to close that gap for more than 300 Native American households.
Like other states, Texas found out during the pandemic how critical high-speed broadband is for school, work and medicine. And the state is working to expand it — but it’s going to be at least a year before Texans start to see results.
Abbott vetoed legislation in June that would have helped shore up the Universal Service Fund, which supports telecommunications in rural Texas. He said it would have “imposed a new fee on millions of Texans.”
