WASHINGTON, September 11, 2023 – The White House on Monday announced the nomination of Basil Gooden for Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development in the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack touted the nomination in a statement, saying that Gooden “is a widely-respected, accomplished champion for affordable housing, community advancement, and economic development. His public service career is informed by a lifelong commitment to agriculture and rural development.”

Gooden is the current director of state operations for rural development at USDA.

If confirmed for the position, Gooden would be responsible for overseeing the activities of the Rural Utilities Services, which encompasses the Water and Environment Programs, the Electric Program, and the Telecommunications Program, which is dedicated to improving the quality of life for rural Americans through providing funds to deploy rural telecommunications infrastructure.

The administration may seek additional funding for broadband through the department. RUS Administrator Andy Berke, the former mayor of Chatanooga, Tenn., who also served as a Commerce Department official with the title, “special representative for broadband.”

Running USDA’s Rural Utilities Service Isn’t Andy Berke’s First Act in Broadband

If selected for the position, Gooden would fill the void left behind by Xochitl Torres Small, who resigned from the role and was later confirmed by the Senate as deputy secretary of agriculture this past July.

WASHINGTON, August 16, 2023 – Sens Michael Bennet, D-Colorado, and Ted Budd, R-N.C., introduced legislation Wednesday to make it easier for small providers to apply to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ReConnect loan and grant program.  

The bill, called the Connecting our Neighbors to Networks and Ensuring Competitive Telecommunications Act, would ensure that federal funding reaches rural communities faster by shortening required permitting deadlines. Representatives Brittany Pettersen, D-Colorado, and Juan Ciscomani, R-Arizona, are expected to introduce companion legislation in the House of Representatives. 

It would establish an office of technical assistance to aid eligible providers with application forms, create a mini-grant program for grants up to $20,000 for small providers and prioritize applications from local government, nonprofits and cooperatives. It would also shorten certain permitting deadlines for USDA-funded projects from 270 to 180 days, create an interagency broadband council to recommend uniform standards for federal programs and expand federal easements for certain electric utilities to enable them to lease existing fiber capacity. 

“It’s time Washington made federal programs easier to access for small providers – who are most attuned to the needs of their customers–and strengthened support for local governments, nonprofit organizations, and cooperatives seeking to provide internet service to rural residents,” said Bennet in a statement.  

The ReConnect program’s application process remains complicated and expensive, added Budd. He said that the process makes it more difficult for small rural providers to get projects approved and that the legislation will make it easier for more Americans to get access to affordable, high-quality internet. 

“Millions of rural Americans continue to lack adequate access to the internet, where the costs of connection can be high and existing service too slow or expensive to be of much use. While the ReConnect Loan and Grant program provides broadband funding for eligible rural areas, the application process can be complicated and prohibitively expensive for small providers,” read the press release. 

Executive Director of the Colorado Broadband Office Brandy Reitter said that the CONNECT Act “marks a significant stride toward bridging the digital divide.” 

The ReConnect program offers grants, loan-grant combinations and low-interest loans for broadband infrastructure to connect rural addresses to high-speed internet. The funds can be used to construct, improve, and acquire facilities that provide internet services to customers’ premises with reliable technologies that are suitable for rural community high-speed internet use.  

WASHINGTON, July 27, 2023 – The House Energy and Commerce Committee passed three bills to the House floor Thursday that will reauthorize the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, direct the agency to conduct a feasibility assessment of a trans-Atlantic fiber optic cable, and conduct a study on accountability measures for artificial intelligence.  

The NTIA Reauthorization Act of 2023 is a bipartisan effort to reauthorize the NTIA and modernize the mission of the agency to meet the needs of modern America. It would eliminate what it calls unnecessary reporting requirements and consolidate current reporting requirements into an annual report. 

It would also require the NTIA to develop common models, methodologies, and inputs to inform federal spectrum management decisions and establish an informing capability to support the agency’s mission to manage federal spectrum use. It would require the NITA to convene a working group to “establish voluntary receiver criteria, rating, or other measures in bands where federal entities are primary or co-primary users.” 

Spectrum refers to the airways used to transmit wireless signals and service Wi-Fi and mobile networks across the nation. Federal agencies currently have licenses for large portions of the bands, and industry leaders are calling for more spectrum to be allocated for commercial use. 

The law would put the NTIA under obligation to conduct cybersecurity efforts, including by submitting a report examining the cybersecurity of mobile service networks and connecting outreach and technical assistance to small communications network providers. 

Representative Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., applauded the bill for addressing critical cybersecurity concerns, claiming that not addressing these concerns would cause problems in supply chain and infrastructure across the nation.  

Mark Johnson, R-Ohio, and Doris Matsui, D-Calif., added support to the bill in its ability to provide the NTIA tools to better achieve its goals and improve its spectrum coordination with the Federal Communications Commission. The representatives agreed that spectrum is critical to American infrastructure. The motion was passed with a minor amendment on a 48-0 vote. 

The Artificial Intelligence Accountability Act also passed the committee with an amendment to define terms such as “trustworthy.” It would direct the NTIA to study accountability measures for artificial intelligence systems used by communications networks and hold public meetings to solicit feedback on the information that should be available to consumers who interact with AI systems.  

Committee members also passed a bipartisan bill, called the Diaspora Link Act, that would direct the NTIA to submit a report to Congress outlining the value, cost, and feasibility of building a trans-Atlantic fiber optic cable that would connect the continental United States with Ghana and Nigeria by way of the U.S. Virgin Islands in order to “enhance the national security of the United States.” 

Clean energy bills

Also addressed were three laws that address clean energy provisions. The Preserving Choice in Vehicle Purchases Act would amend the Clean Air Act to include a requirement that the Environmental Protection Agency evaluates a state’s waiver for vehicle emissions standards to ensure it does not “directly or indirectly limit the sale or use of new motor vehicles with an internal combustion engine.” 

This bill addresses recent California legislation that seeks to require all new cars sold in 2035 and beyond are zero-emission vehicles, which includes electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid EVs.  

“We need to be honest with the American people about how forcing them to switch to electric vehicles plays right into China’s scheme to control our automotive future. China already controls access to critical minerals necessary for EVs,” said Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash. China controls 76 percent of global battery cell production capacity for EVs and recently outpaced Japan in the largest exporter of new motor vehicles in the world, she said.  

Democrats strongly opposed the motion, claiming that “while Democrats are fighting [climate change] with investments to reduce pollution and grow our economy, Republicans are fighting to take away those investments and reverse our progress,” said Ranking Member Frank Pallone, D-N.J.  

Amendments to remove the section of the bill that would affect existing waivers and delay the effective date until certification that the bill would not cause disproportionate harm to American communities were not agreed to, with votes split on party lines, 27-20. The bill was passed on a 26-22 vote. 

Also considered was the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales Act that would amend previous law to prevent any regulations that mandate the use of any specific technology or resulting in the limited availability of new motor vehicles based on that vehicle’s engine type.  

The No Fuels Credits for Batteries Act would clarify that the EPA “is not authorized to use credits for electricity generated from renewable fuel for purposes of the Renewable Fuel Standard.” Both bills were passed along party lines.