Media Hit
How the Shapiro Administration Doubled the Cost of Broadband
Originally published at RealClearPennsylvania
The digital divide – the gap between communities with and without access to high-speed internet – is a prominent issue in Pennsylvania. More than 330,000 Pennsylvania households, businesses, and community institutions lack broadband.
Unfortunately, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry (L&I), under Gov. Josh Shapiro’s leadership, has doubled the cost of broadband development with regulatory red tape –leaving many communities in the digital dust.
L&I now faces dozens of broadband expansion projects awarded under the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority’s (PBDA) Capital Projects Fund Broadband Infrastructure Program. In April, PBDA approved $204.1 million in grants to expand high-speed internet access in unserved and underserved areas throughout Pennsylvania.