Broadband Action: The CBAN Podcast
How is it that the U.S. still faces challenges around the adoption and accessibility of fast, reliable, affordable, and universally available broadband? How does broadband access – or the lack of it – impact the lives of those who live in underserved or untapped communities? Hosts Curtis Dean, Jon Willow, and Todd Kielkopf – founders of the Community Broadband Action Network – take on the issues faced by community broadband providers and advocates, from policy and its real effects on local communities, to the commercial landscape and how technology can help or hinder the drive to digitally connect every U.S. resident to the internet in a meaningful way. With special guests from across the spectrum of broadband (no pun intended!), expect a lively, round table-style conversation in every episode. Who knows? You may even learn something.
On October 15, the Fifth Circuit held in Consumers’ Research v. FCC that the Commission violated the Government Corporation Control Act by establishing USAC without specific congressional authorization. The three-judge panel was unanimous. It vacated the contribution rate for the fourth quarter of 2025 and sent the matter back to the agency. What is the impact of the ruling on the agency that administer's the USF on behalf of the FCC? Curtis chats with Doug Dawson of CCG Consulting and Christpher Mitchell with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance on what it means and what's next.