In recent years, state government has taken a more active role in helping provide citizens with greater access to reliable broadband Internet. By using funding or incentives to encourage providers to expand broadband into underserved areas, policymakers hope to address equity issues involving access, as well as the role that access plays in terms of improved education, economic development and even public safety.
In June of last year, Iowa lawmakers approved legislation (HF 655) that provides property tax abatements to companies that install equipment to build out broadband infrastructure throughout the state. In August, Gov. Terry Branstad announced that an additional 90,000 Iowa households would have access to high-speed Internet as a result of the plan.
This session, lawmakers in Wisconsin and Minnesota have also weighed proposals for making broadband service more available throughout their states. Wisconsin’s AB 820, signed into law in March, seeks to expedite development in the state’s most remote areas by reducing bureaucratic and fiscal barriers for service providers.