Senate Communications Subcommittee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) announced that a piece of legislation guaranteeing broadband Internet access for disabled Americans will hopefully become law in 2010.

Speed Matters' partner One Economy was awarded $28.5 million in grant money to expand high-speed Internet in underserved communities in the latest round of NITA's Broadband Opportunity funding.

The FCC released a report highlighting the cost-saving measures in its proposal to rollout a public safety broadband network. More advanced wireless networks will help mitigate communications problems during crises that were exposed during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 and hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The FCC released a report that found surprisingly low broadband adoption rates among people with disabilities-only 42 percent of those studied have access to service at their residence.

Despite March's modest employment gain, many workers could be left permanently out of the job market if Internet equality isn't made part of the national recovery efforts, warns Julius Hollis. The CEO and Chairman of the Alliance for Digital Equality ? a Speedmatters partner ? penned a Huffington Post piece that issued the warning.

Some low-income residents in parts of Los Angeles will soon have high-speed Internet to thank for their whiter teeth and brighter smiles. A new telemedicine project piloted by the University of the Pacific will provide dentists with the capability to electronically review patients in underserved San Fernando Valley communities.

In its public notice on the National Broadband Plan, the Communications Workers of America cited the "adoption gap" as one of the main barriers to implementing effective broadband policy. CWA noted that individuals with disabilities are disproportionately less likely to adopt broadband, in part because of complications with accessibility. The Coalition of Organization for Accessible Technology (COAT) praised CWA for their inclusion of disability access in the recommendations.

The Communications Workers of America used the FCC's last request for public comment before the release of the national broadband plan to issue a public notice laying out what they consider to be top priorities for the plan. CWA's proposals include bringing U.S. networks to world-class standards by setting ambitious, but achievable goals, with an immediate goal of 10 megabits per second downstream and 1 megabit per second up; and 50 megabits down and 20 up to 80 percent of the population by 2015.

The Alliance for Public Technology (APT) - a Speed Matters partner - has re-launched as the National Broadband Resource Center (NBRC). The new organization will focus on spurring broadband adoption and innovation.

FCC officials and disabilities advocates gathered at an FCC field hearing on November 6 to discuss how to make broadband accessible for those with hearing, visual, and physical disabilities. The consensus? Broadband could provide incredible benefits to the disabled community after overcoming a few unique challenges.