rural alaska school Additional state and federal funding could be available for faster internet That’s despite Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of a multi-part education bill this week.
Early Thursday morning, the Alaska House of Representatives voted 36-4 to move forward. House Bill 193is providing $39.4 million in state grants to local schools, matching federal funding, to improve internet service.
Rep. Bryce Edgmon, R-I.D., who sponsored the bill, said he expects the Senate to consider the bill quickly and that Governor Dunleavy intends to allow it to become law. He said he was informed by the governor’s office that there was.
Lawmakers need to act quickly. March 27 is the federal deadline for local school districts to apply for funding to pay $9 for every $10 in internet costs.
If a school district misses this deadline, it will not be able to reapply until next year.
Currently, the district’s speeds are limited to 25 megabits per second, which is slow enough that it no longer legally qualifies as “broadband.” new definition The Federal Communications Commission announced this last week.
HB 193 would provide states with federal funding to pay for speeds of up to 100 Mbps.
“No. 1, we don’t have much time left. We have seven days until it shuts down completely,” Edgmon said late Wednesday night.
Last year, 151 schools benefited from the program, but many said current bandwidth and speed limits were too low for modern use.
“Schools are increasingly relying on faster internet speeds for everything from video conferencing to testing. The internet has become an essential service,” Edgmon said.
Rep. Thomas Baker (R-Kottebue) said some schools he represents can take 15 minutes to open a Wikipedia page, and some controls are being put in place to ensure sufficient bandwidth. said they had to cut off internet connectivity to parts of the school building. for other students.
Rep. Alyse Galvin, R-I-Anchorage, urged lawmakers to support the bill, citing public testimony that it took some students four days to take an online test due to poor internet. I urged him to do so. She said the Anchorage student was able to complete the test in one day.
“If we’re going to have a public education system, we need to make sure this is evened out,” she says.
Funding to improve internet programs was included in Senate Bill 140, a comprehensive education bill that passed both chambers in February, but Dunleavy vetoed the bill and approved it on Monday. Lawmakers failed to override the veto by one vote.
House Rules Committee Chairman Craig Johnson (R-Anchorage) pushed HB 193 through the House late Wednesday and early Thursday, at least in part because of the Alaska Beacon’s reporting on the issue. He said this was due to.
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