Washington DC — U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado, along with 64 of his colleagues, has joined Sens. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) on the Federal Communications Commission. In a letter to the FCC, it supported the expansion proposal. The E-Rate program allows schools and libraries to rent Wi-Fi hotspots to students and educators. In their letter, the lawmakers specifically call for the expansion and modernization of the E-Rate Hotspot program to reduce educational disparities and ensure that low-income students are not left behind.
“[We] We are excited that the committee proposed updating the E-Rate program to allow schools and libraries to provide Wi-Fi hotspots and wireless internet services to students and educators. ” Bennett, Markey, Van Hollen, and Reps. wrote: “This proposal properly recognizes that learning extends beyond the physical premises of the school building. If they are attending classes through, they are clearly engaged in educational activities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed that low-income students without internet access at home face significant disadvantages in school compared to upper- and middle-class students. A recent study in Michigan found that students without internet access at home performed lower than their classmates. The E-Rate expansion will help sustain the progress made through the Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF), which provides devices and connectivity to students and educators at home.
“Congress rightfully gave the FCC flexibility to build and enhance the E-Rate program as educational conditions change.” concluded the lawmakers. “We are pleased that the FCC is exercising this authority to modernize the E-Rate program, as millions of students are at risk of losing internet access at home. We encourage the Commission to provide flexibility to adapt the program’ to maintain local conditions while continuing to effectively protect against fraud and waste. ”
Last year, Bennett welcomed Colorado received $826 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program to build broadband infrastructure and connect communities to high-speed internet.This program is based on Mr. Bennett’s bipartisan input. bridge methodwhich one incorporated Incorporated into bipartisan infrastructure legislation. Bennett to the rescue in 2021 Safe More than $7 billion for FCC’s E-Rate program american rescue plan To connect low-income students online.
In addition to Bennett and Markey, Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D.N.J.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and LaFonza Butler (D-Calif.) State Sen.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), John Fetterman (D-Pennsylvania), Kirsten Gillibrand (D.Y.), Martin Heinrich. (DN.M.), Maisie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Virginia), Mark Kelly (D-Arizona), Angus King (Maine), Amy Klobuchar. (Democrat of Minnesota), Ben Ray Luján (Democrat).), Jeff Merkley (Democrat of Oregon), Alex Padilla (Democrat of California), Jack Reed (D.R.I.), Bernie Sanders. (D-Vermont), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tina Smith (D-Minnesota), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Ga.) (D-Mass.), Peter Welch (D-Vermont), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-I.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) also signed the letter.
The text of the letter is available here below.
Dear Chairman Rosenworcel,
We strongly support the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) proposal to allow libraries and schools to provide Wi-Fi hotspots and wireless internet services to students and educators through the E-Rate program. This initiative represents a significant modernization of the E-Rate program and a recognition that learning extends beyond the school and library premises. As the COVID-19 pandemic has shown, students without internet access at home are at a distinct disadvantage compared to those who do. We urge the Committee to advance the E-Rate Hotspot program to reduce educational disparities and ensure that low-income students are not left behind.
Although the E-Rate program has been successful in connecting nearly every school and library in the country, the changing nature of education has created some of the inequalities that led Congress to create E-Rate in 1998. Department has been reorganized. At the time, better-resourced schools were gaining internet access. It gives students an advantage over low-income and disadvantaged schools. Today, that inequality exists between households. Today, wealthy and middle-class students almost universally have access to high-speed internet at home, but low-income and disadvantaged students are falling behind. As schools introduce online resources and homework increasingly requires internet connectivity, this “homework gap” gives students from wealthier families an advantage over their lower-income classmates.
If this inequality wasn’t clear before 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it clear. While the pandemic has had a severe impact on students from all backgrounds, low-income students, especially those without access to the internet at home, have faced the greatest impact. The Department of Education’s National Assessment of Educational Progress, which surveys students across grades, repeatedly shows that high-achieving students have much better access to the internet at home. A recent study of Michigan students found that students without home internet access had significantly lower grades than their classmates who had internet access, 4.0 points lower than hers on a scale of 0.6 . Another study using Census Bureau data estimated that people with access to a computer or internet at home spend 28 percent more time studying than those without. With this mounting evidence of home connectivity, there is no room for debate. Students who do not have access to high-speed internet at home are at a severe disadvantage compared to their classmates who have better connections.
Fortunately, during the pandemic, the Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF), created by Congress in 2021 as part of the American Rescue Plan Act, helped fill this homework gap. The ECF program includes $7.17 billion for schools and libraries to distribute devices and internet services to students and educators. Thanks to the hard work of FCC staff, the Commission quickly launched this program and began distributing these funds. Over the past two years, ECF has helped approximately 18 million students in 11,500 schools connect to the internet at home. The program has provided approximately 13 million connected devices and more than 8 million broadband connections to students and educators. Unfortunately, the ECF program is scheduled to end at the end of June, leaving students, and schools and libraries, in a potentially dire situation. Without action, millions of low-income students could lose access to the internet at home. That would reverse the ECF’s important achievements. The impact on disadvantaged students would be exacerbated by the potential end of the Affordable Connectivity Program, which helps low-income households access broadband.
With these interests in mind, we are pleased that the Committee recommended updating the ERate program to allow schools and libraries to provide Wi-Fi hotspots and wireless Internet services to students and educators. is excited. This proposal properly recognizes that learning extends beyond the physical premises of the school building. If a 6th grader is completing homework through an online educational platform, or a 9th grader is attending class through a video conferencing application, they are clearly engaged in an educational activity. In the Communications Act, Congress rightly gave the FCC flexibility to build and enhance her E-Rate program as educational conditions change. We are pleased that the FCC is using this authority to modernize the E-Rate program, as millions of students are at risk of losing internet access at home. We also encourage the committee to provide schools and libraries with flexibility to locally adapt their programs. Improve the situation while continuing to effectively prevent fraud and waste.
Thank you for your continued efforts to bridge the digital divide.
Sincerely,
