Applications are open for North Carolina’s government broadband grants. Taxpayer advocates hope the money is spent in the right places. Gov. Roy Cooper’s office recently announced that qualified internet service providers and electric cooperatives can now apply for the recent round of Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology (GREAT) grants. Up to $350 million...
As the federal government — and leaders in North Carolina — look to plow millions of taxpayer dollars into broadband growth, a possible merger between two internet providers with strong footprints in the state could help facilitate high-speed infrastructure development. Zayou Group LLC of Boulder, Colorado is looking to buy the Little Rock, Arkansas companies...
Republicans lawmakers in North Carolina scored well in the 2021 “How They Voted” report card released by the N.C. Chamber of Commerce on Monday, Dec. 13. How They Voted, the report says, “presents a straightforward, objective accounting of who stepped up — and who did not — when given the chance to support job creators...
A new study commissioned by the N.C. Cable Telecommunications Association warns that red tape regarding utility pole access could cost the state $3.5 billion in consumer value due to the resulting delays in broadband deployment. After examining broadband expansion programs underway in North Carolina, the report found that if changes aren’t made to address unreasonable...
The General Assembly may allocate hundreds of millions in federal relief toward closing the digital divide this session, but a John Locke Foundation expert says lawmakers still need to reduce regulations to further help the expansion of broadband infrastructure. The budget passed by the Senate would allocate $330 million for Growing Rural Economies with Access...
A legislative bill that would allocate $750 million in federal relief money toward broadband growth has passed the House Appropriations Committee. That vote last week came a day after Gov. Roy Cooper unveiled his plan to spend $1.2 billion of $5.7 million in funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act for high-speed internet access. ...
N.C. House Republicans have filed an ambitious bill that will allocate three quarters of a billion federal dollars toward broadband. The GREAT Broadband Expansion Act, or House Bill 947, aims to connect all 100 counties with high-speed internet from this money. It leverages American Rescue Plan dollars — taxpayer money allocated by the federal government...
A bipartisan group of senators is crafting legislation that would find ways to expand broadband access in North Carolina. The bill, filed Monday, appears unfinished. Several sections remain unfilled, presumably with details to come in later editions. But the goals are significant, starting with the title: “Innovative Statewide Broadband Infrastructure.” The legislation would convene the...
Running a small business isn’t easy in the best of times, and these aren’t the best of times. Social distancing and concerns over spreading COVID-19 forced many small businesses to try to connect with customers online rather than in person, but here’s the catch: Some businesses can’t easily do that. I grew up in North...
Free-market advocates in North Carolina are optimistic the relaxing of regulations in the state will help promote the growth of broadband and help close the digital divide. Jon Sanders, research editor and senior fellow, Regulatory Studies, at the John Locke Foundation, told the Taxpayers Protection Alliance he’s optimistic the state Legislature could pass more laws...
When the General Assembly reconvenes next week, broadband promises to be a hot topic. One of lawmakers’ first order of business, according to Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, will be to pass legislation handling money in the rural broadband grant program. In December, legislative leaders and Gov. Roy Cooper agreed to shuffle around $30 million...
