Hilda L. Solis: “this bill has good intentions. We all support more cable competition. Greater competition will inevitably help to create…”

“this bill has good intentions. We all support more cable competition. Greater competition will inevitably help to create jobs and lower consumer costs for all of us, but I urge caution if competition for the attractive parts of the towns come literally at the expense of everywhere else. What I am trying to say here is that when we talk about competition, and that is a word that is used very loosely, when we talk about competition, oftentimes we forget about what literally happens to the small towns, to the rural areas and to the low-income, underserved areas. That is what we are talking about tonight. As the world's leading economy, the U.S. must ensure the universal deployment of broadband networks. That means every community is not left behind. Just like the President says leave no child behind, leave no community like mine behind. Unfortunately, redlining, if you understand the terminology, the practice of companies cherry-picking which communities they will serve, continues, and in my opinion is a threat to our country and to our Nation because you should not be allowed to come into areas where you know you are going to make a profit and exclude those other areas that are in need of having support and sufficient infrastructure support. We have not done this, in my opinion, in H.R. 5252 which contains a provision that says that they will prevent redlining. It is weak and may prove ineffective, in my opinion.…”