House Passes Slate of Broadband Bills
They included the Senate-approved Rural Broadband Protection Act.
WASHINGTON, April 21, 2026 – The House passed a slate of broadband bills Monday and Tuesday, including legislation to speed permitting on federal lands, more closely scrutinize subsidy participants, and updating emergency alerts.
The American Broadband Deployment Act, championed by industry groups and fiercely opposed by local governments, has yet to be considered. It was placed on the chamber’s calendar for this week but wasn’t brought Monday and isn’t on the schedule for Tuesday.
The House passed Monday a bill that would reauthorize the FirstNet Authority, the agency tasked with managing the nationwide first responder network owned and operated by AT&T, and bring it under closer Commerce Department oversight.
