Hearing of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee - Opening Statement of Sen. Thune, Hearing on Removing Barriers to Wireless Broadband Deployment

Hearing

"This morning, our Committee meets again to examine policies related to spectrum and wireless broadband. As I mentioned at our July hearing on "Wireless Broadband and the Future of Spectrum Policy," we have an opportunity to develop meaningful legislation to further promote economic development and the many benefits fueled by increased mobile connectivity. Similar to the feedback from our last hearing, I look forward to hearing from my colleagues and our witnesses about ideas they may have for such legislation. I also invite stakeholders not here today to share their ideas with the Committee in the coming days and weeks.

"Opening more spectrum for commercial use can bring in revenue to pay down our national debt and fund other priorities. But, the more lasting economic benefits spurred by spectrum availability -- new jobs, technological innovation, and increased consumer welfare -- depend on spectrum actually being used by individuals across the country. That requires the design, construction, deployment, and maintenance of physical facilities, including towers, antennas, fiber optic cables, and servers.

"The benefits of increased wireless deployment go well beyond the value of improving mobile connectivity for individuals where they live. There is also tremendous potential in bringing connectivity to unserved areas where people may not reside, but where they do work and play, like farmland and park lands. Facilitating personal mobile devices and machine-to-machine communications in these areas holds great promise to improve public health and safety, increase agricultural productivity, and better manage natural resources.

"Telecommunication and broadband connectivity in rural America not only opens doors for individuals and families but also enables new opportunities for farmers and ranchers when it comes to the millions of acres land that they actively manage. Machine-to-machine and machine-to-farm communication is already delivering new productivity gains -- and promises much more benefit for American farmers, environmental stewardship, and the economic future of rural communities. I look forward to hearing testimony today about some of these innovative solutions and how public policy can facilitate their ongoing development.

"Improving broadband infrastructure deployment has received increasing legislative, administrative, and regulatory attention in recent years. Most recently, the Broadband Opportunity Council concluded a months-long review among 25 federal agencies, led by the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture, to produce recommendations to increase broadband deployment through existing agency programs, missions, and budgets. We are pleased to have NTIA before us today to explain the recent report and discuss its role as a facilitator of inter-agency activities related to broadband.

"Universal broadband connectivity is a national objective, but its pursuit ultimately involves thousands of decisions made at the local level. These decisions are made by private enterprises determining where to deploy facilities and where to risk capital. They are also made by local and federal government authorities who are charged with protecting their constituents' interests -- authorities like city planning officials, military base personnel, and forestry managers. Today, we will hear more detail about what goes into these decision processes, how they operate in practice, and how Congress can help to improve their efficiency.

"I am encouraged by the broad engagement of Members on this Committee in efforts to promote wireless broadband deployment. Members on both sides of the aisle are working on a bipartisan basis to develop pragmatic concepts into actionable legislation, as well as trying to identify new bright ideas. I invite all of our members to continue working with one another to understand these issues, to create a fulsome record, and to craft broadband deployment legislation for action in this Congress. I am committed to this effort and believe it is among the most important work of this Committee."

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