Obama names Broadband Opportunity Council

President Obama continued to follow up on his broadband development promises made in January in Cedar Falls, Iowa. This week, he signed a new Presidential Memorandum creating a Broadband Opportunity Council, naming the Commerce and Agriculture departments as co-chairs.

The Broadband Opportunity Council will include 25 federal agencies and departments that are engaged with industry and other stakeholders to gain a better understanding of how the government can support communities that want to increase their broadband investments.

According to the White House, the council is co-chaired by the Secretaries of Commerce and Agriculture, and “includes over twenty-five different government agencies and components, all united around clear policy objectives.”

These include engaging “... with industry and other stakeholders to understand ways the government can better support the needs of communities seeking broadband investment.” And, “Survey and report back on existing programs that currently support or could be modified to support broadband competition, deployment or adoption.”

To read the Factsheet and establishing language, click here.

FACT SHEET: Next Steps in Delivering Fast, Affordable Broadband (White House Press Secretary, Mar. 23, 2015)

Obama administration creates broadband council, aims to increase investment, lower deployment barriers (Fierce Telecom, Mar. 24, 2015)