While the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) National Broadband Maps spotlight underserved areas across the nation as Congress continues to funnel billions into improving internet connectivity – millions of Americans still aren’t seeing benefits of that funding due in part to the need for better mapping data and greater coordination across Federal agencies.
“Access to broadband is critical for employment, education, health care, and other daily activities,” said the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in an April 28 report. “Yet millions of Americans lack broadband access, despite at least $44 billion in federal investment over the past decade across myriad programs managed by different agencies. Information on where broadband is not available is key to expanding access.”
The broadband maps, an initiative launched in 2022 and overseen by the FCC, chart internet access and speeds across the country with the goal of filling in connectivity gaps. Other agencies that administer most Federal broadband funding include the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), the Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Department of the Treasury.
The FCC uses several methods of validating the accuracy and completeness of data collection, GAO said, but the agency has failed to ensure the effectiveness of those methods and hasn’t formally documented the procedures staff must follow for those check-back processes.
“Without taking these steps, FCC cannot be assured its processes are sufficient to ensure the data’s quality or that its staff are carrying out these processes consistently, increasing the risk that inaccurate data appear on the map,” wrote GAO.
Beyond flawed data verification processes, the Federal watchdog said that despite an agreement among the four agencies charged with broadband fund management, all agencies interpret “covered data” for broadband projects differently – which GAO said complicates updates to the National Broadband Map and funding oversight.
To fix this, GAO urged the FCC to tighten its internal data validation processes and work with agencies to clearly define data-sharing standards, set reporting timelines, and formalize efforts to prevent funding overlaps.
GAO also said that the Federal agencies have no formal process to prevent overlapping broadband awards, and instead rely on informal guidelines, with no agreed-upon de-duplication process in place.
The watchdog recommended that agencies formally define and document a single process to avoid duplicative funding and better target unserved communities. It noted that in response, the FCC and NTIA agreed with those recommendations; USDA was noncommittal; and the Treasury Department – which plays a role in preventing funding overlaps – partially agreed.