Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) urged Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to allow more underserved communities to deploy modern broadband networks with American Rescue Plan funds, in a
letter sent last Tuesday.
In Treasury’s interim rule, any community with more than 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload speeds would be ineligible for the funds. That outdated definition of broadband is inadequate for modern internet use, Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and other experts have made clear. Sen. Wyden urged Treasury to update its rule to make funds available to communities that lack affordable broadband options, or with download and upload speeds below 100 Mbps.