Governor Cuomo, Senator Schumer, Congressman Collins Announce More Than $170 Million Secured to Help Expand Broadband Across Upstate NY
$170 Million Will Connect Rural Upstate NY to the World
In a bipartisan effort, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, U.S. Senator Charles
E. Schumer, and Congressman Chris Collins today announced that more than
$170 million in federal funds that could have been sent to other states
will be returned to Upstate New York to expand broadband and high speed
internet service.
"This administration has made an unprecedented commitment to ensuring
access to high-speed internet for New Yorkers in every part of the state
and this action brings us a step closer to making this a reality,”
said Governor Cuomo. "We thank Senator Schumer for his leadership on this issue and for
working with us and the rest of the Congressional Delegation to ensure
this New York funding rightfully stayed in New York. I also commend FCC
Chairman Pai for this decision, which will help continue to promote an
interconnected and inclusive broadband program without leaving any New
Yorkers behind."
"This is huge news for rural communities all across Upstate New York.
From the very beginning, I was very clear with the FCC that this $170
million belongs strictly to New York and should be kept here," said
Senator Schumer. "The federal government’s job should be to invest not divest
in Upstate New York’s internet access. So, with today’s announcement
other broadband companies in Upstate will now have the opportunity work
with the State in order to bid on this funding to improve Upstate’s
broadband access. As long as I’m Senator, I will never let New Yorkers
access to broadband suffer just because one carrier chose not to invest
in New York."
"Access to rural broadband is crucial for Western New Yorkers,"
said Congressman Collins. "We have tirelessly fought to keep this money in New York State and
I am excited for Western New Yorkers that the FCC listened. This money
is a critical investment in New York's future and I'm proud to
have partnered with Senator Schumer and Governor Cuomo to get this done."
Several telecommunications companies are using federal investment from
the Connect America Fund to expand broadband Upstate, but one national
carrier did not accept the money it was allocated. The Federal Communications
Commission wanted to take this unused money from New York and bid it out
nationally. For nearly a year, Governor Cuomo, Senator Schumer and Congressman
Collins demanded the FCC reverse course and keep money designated for
New York in New York and allow other companies to use these funds to improve
broadband access across the state.
These federal funds would complement the $500 million New NY Broadband
Program announced by Governor Cuomo in 2015. New York State has proposed
to the FCC the alignment of this $170 million with the New NY Broadband
Program in order to provide service that is better, faster and cheaper
to residents in need. Governor Cuomo, Senator Schumer and Congressman
Collins are glad the FCC accepted this partnership offer.
This CAF money will be used in conjunction with existing state resources
to fund certain areas of Round 3 of the New NY Broadband Program, which
will bring high-speed internet services to New York’s most unserved
rural areas. The federal funding is contingent upon the state’s
current investments and reaffirms New York’s commitment to broadband
expansion. The $500 million New NY York Broadband Program, which provides
funding for high-speed internet access to unserved and underserved areas
across the state, is the largest and most ambitious state investment in
broadband in the nation.
The New NY Broadband Program sets as its goal access to speeds of 100
Mbps for all New Yorkers with 25 Mbps acceptable in the most remote and
rural areas. This goal far exceeds the 10 Mbps requirement of the CAF
program and also requires that projects be completed on a more accelerated
timeline. Many Upstate New York homes do not meet New York’s enhanced
goal of 100 Mbps nor the FCC’s broadband benchmark speeds of 25
megabits per second (Mbps) for downloads and 3 Mbps for uploads. According
to the FCC’s 2015 Broadband Progress Report, the previous 4 Mbps
for downloads and 1 Mbps for uploads standard – set in 2010 –
were dated and inadequate for evaluating whether advanced broadband is
being deployed to all Americans in a timely way. Increasing the standards
for broadband speed is necessary because a single Internet connection
typically powers a number of connected devices in a home. This means that,
the more devices connected, the more the speed is degraded for each individual user.
According to the FCC’s 2015 report, using this updated service benchmark
means that approximately 55 million Americans – 17 percent of the
total population – lack access to advanced broadband. This divide
is particularly evident between urban and rural areas. In fact, more than
half of all rural Americans lack access to 25 Mbps/3 Mbps service.
According to New York State, as of December 2015, there were approximately
239,177 households across Upstate New York that did not have access to
25 Mbps service. According to the FCC, there were 78,245 households in
Upstate NY where Verizon declined funding. Pursuant to the Order issued
by the FCC, New York State will award this declined funding of $170 million
over 10 years in concert with upcoming rounds of its broadband auction.