Opinion: Broadband is no luxury. Program should be extended to help workers, kids
Republican Josh Williams is a member of the Ohio House of Representatives from Oregon, Ohio.
The government spending tsunami triggered by the COVID pandemic has finally crested.
Republicans whom voters returned to power in the U.S. House of Representatives in the mid-term election should embrace once again the pragmatic conservatism of Ronald Reagan to address the concerns of average Americans.
Reagan deplored a welfare state that trapped people in a cycle of dependence, but he was open to ways for government to empower people to forge their own economic futures.
Ideally, that meant getting government out of the way — with historic tax and regulatory cuts. Sometimes, however, it meant adopting ideas, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit, which helped the working poor keep more of what they earned, thus reducing poverty and incentivizing work.
In our times, the pandemic exposed inequalities and soft spots in American competitiveness and resiliency.
For example, by some estimates, some 42 million Americans lack access to broadband internet service. The pandemic made clear that, without this access, these Americans could not work from home or even look for jobs.
This guest column is available free:Support the exchange of local and state ideas by subscribing to the Columbus Dispatch.
Recognizing that the tech sector has been driving job creation around the country, Ohio has made it a priority to offer free job training to low income and underemployed individuals, with an emphasis on 21st century skills.
Unfortunately, many of those training opportunities are online through the governor’s Individual Microcredential Assistance Program, meaning crucial skills development is less accessible to those Ohioans without a reliable internet connection.
More:How to access higher education without high debt
Broadband access is not a luxury
The pandemic harmed far too many of our kids as well, with students from families without internet access suffering the most.
Nearly 12 million American children do not live in homes with an internet broadband connection, according to 2017 data from the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee, leaving them in danger of falling behind academically. We have already seen massive socioeconomic discrepancies in how the pandemic affected children.
We must bridge the gap between poorer families and everyone else.
Let’s face it: America’s economic potential and competitiveness is constrained by leaving so many people on the sidelines. As countries race to build 5G networks, America cannot be on the cutting edge if millions of us cannot even get online.
In the digital age, broadband access is not a luxury. It is an indispensable tool for self-improvement. That is true in big cities and in small towns from coast to coast.
Connectivity program works
For these reasons I’m supporting the continuation of the Affordable Connectivity Program, or ACP, that is helping make internet connectivity affordable to ensure that qualifying low-income households can afford the broadband they need for work, school, healthcare and more.
The Affordable Connectivity Program provides a discount of up to $30 a month for internet service. Eligible households can also get a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet.
Unlike many government programs which take a one-size-fits all, top-down approach, the Affordable Connectivity Program is relying on participation from major internet providers, and it is designed to give consumers a choice on the service that makes sense for them or to switch providers.
That should appeal to adherents of limited government and provides a model on how government can be a catalyst for economic growth and opportunity but leave it to individuals and private sector players to make it work.
Since the Affordable Connectivity Program became law with $14.2 billion in federal funding, more than 15 million U.S. households and nearly 800,000 Ohio households have enrolled in it, and the program is growing by roughly 400,000 to 500,000 households per month. That is an obvious sign that people are eager to get the tools they need so they and their families can succeed.
More:Major internet providers to slash cost of broadband service for low-income Americans
The program is working and should be extended.
For any government program to work we need to make sure the money reaches the people that need it most and that it is allocated efficiently.
The Affordable Connectivity Program, like any other government program, needs to be monitored and adjusted accordingly.
Congress should come together to extend funding the for the Affordable Connectivity Program as estimates show the program will run out of funding in the first half of 2024. Getting farmers, small businesses, and low-income families more connected to the nation’s economic life is a worthwhile national goal that should have no expiration date. Congress needs to make sure we get the job done.
Voters this fall signaled they are sick of extremes.
They voted to stop the Biden Democrats’ march toward progressive policies, but also sent a signal that they are looking for elected officials to make sure that government serves the interests of working Americans and advanced the goal of an American that is strong, agile, and globally competitive.
We do not need China’s statist model to succeed, but targeted approaches to unleash market dynamics and cost-effective programs such as Affordable Connectivity Program to encourage tens of millions of Americans to more fully engage in and contribute to economy growth.
Republican Josh Williams is a member of the Ohio House of Representatives from Oregon, Ohio.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Why is the Affordable Connectivity Program important to Ohio children and workers?
