WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Eric Sorensen (IL-17) helped introduce bipartisan legislation to ensure rural communities that depend on high-speed internet to implement modern farming practices can get connected. He joined Representative Erin Houchin (IN-09) and other members in introducing the Data BRIDGE Act.
“Access to fast and reliable internet isn’t a luxury – it’s a necessity for Americans across the country to stay competitive in our fast-moving world,” said Congressman Sorensen. “For too long, farmers and rural communities have been left out of the race to connect our country with high-speed internet despite its importance to modern farming practices. The USDA and the FCC already have the tools at their disposal to ensure no one is overlooked. It’s finally time for them to join forces by integrating cultivated land data into the National Broadband Map to bring more communities online.”
“Our farmers depend on reliable broadband to stay competitive in a modern economy, said Congressman Houchin. “The Data BRIDGE Act is a commonsense, low-cost solution that ensures federal broadband investments actually reach the fields, pastures and production areas where work happens. I have fought for years to expand rural broadband, and this bill is another important step toward closing the connectivity gap for our farm families and rural communities.”
The Data BRIDGE Act would direct the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) to incorporate the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) cultivated land data into the National Broadband Map, which is the primary tool used to determine federal broadband funding eligibility and deployment gaps. Ensuring farms are included in the map is critical to getting rural communities connected to high-speed internet. Currently, the FCC’s National Broadband Map does not focus on cropland, pastures, or production zones where modern farming happens, resulting in farmland being left behind.
You can read the full text of the bill HERE and additional background HERE.
