FCC Releases New Broadband Map

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Published on June 16 2023 10:53 am
Last Updated on June 16 2023 10:54 am

BY TAMMIE SLOUP FarmWeek

The Federal Communications Commission released its second version of the National Broadband Map. Illinois Farm Bureau encourages members to check the broadband data at their location in this new version of the map to ensure it is correct.

The map displays specific location information about the broadband services available across the country, with the first version released in November. That was the starting point.

“We called it a pre-production draft because it had not been subjected to challenges from consumers, states, localities, Tribes and other stakeholders,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel stated in a press release. “These challenges have been in full swing over the past several months and are an important part of the process of building better and iterative maps under the Broadband DATA Act.”

More than 4 million submissions were filed during the challenge period. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) noted that “the overall national story remains consistent” because from version one to version two of the map, the percentage of unserved locations in the country increased by 0.2 percentage points.

The map is the basis for distribution of federal broadband funding through the federal bipartisan infrastructure law. A more accurate map will help capture as much funding as possible and help expand efforts already underway in Illinois.

The updated map’s release isn’t the end of the process. The FCC plans to release a major map update twice a year, with incremental updates made on a rolling basis.

On June 30, the NTIA plans to announce federal funding allocations for the states through the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, which is slated to provide $42.5 billion to better connect the U.S.

One takeaway from the updated map is more than 8.3 million U.S. homes and businesses lack access to high-speed broadband. Improvements to the map since November helped identify nearly 330,000 more unserved locations.

The maps are continuously becoming more accurate, and will continue to improve, according to the FCC.

IFB members should check the status of their location at broadbandmap.fcc.gov. If you find inaccurate information about fixed internet and mobile services, you may file a challenge directly with the FCC through the map interface to correct the information.