John Thune: “broadband deployment has long been a priority of mine. It is something that is important to my home State of South…”

“broadband deployment has long been a priority of mine. It is something that is important to my home State of South Dakota where many rural communities still lack access to reliable internet connection. And it is something I have worked extensively here on in the Senate. More than 3 years ago, Congress created the $42.5 billion BEAD Program to bring broadband services to unserviced parts of the country like those in my State. It was the single largest Federal investment in broadband expansion ever made, but to date, it has not connected a single household to the internet. That is right, not $1 of this $42 billion program has gone to connect even one household to the internet. Now, you might ask why. Well, because the Biden administration chose to add a host of conditions to the funding that made it unworkable for many providers like those serving rural areas in my home State of South Dakota. They added union labor and climate requirements. And despite the law itself banning rate regulation, the Biden administration tried to add that too. The Biden administration took a program that promised to advance an important bipartisan priority and overburdened it with rules and mandates. The administration added so many requirements that the program couldn't fulfill its core function, which is connecting households to the internet.…”