Pingree calls for more federal broadband investment

Courtesy / Office of U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-District 1, at center of back table, participates in a roundtable discussion in Rockland on Monday attended by members of the Maine Broadband Coalition.

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By Staff

Limited broadband access and speed is hurting Maine’s economy. That’s the chief message U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-District 1, said she came away with after attending a roundtable discussion Monday in Rockland attended by members of the Maine Broadband Coalition.

The coalition’s membership includes public policy professionals, educational institutions, businesses, nonprofit organizations and other advocates of improving the state’s information technology infrastructure.

“I think most people would be surprised to know just how far Maine lags behind the rest of the nation for broadband speed and availability: 49th out of 50,” Pingree stated in a news release about the roundtable. “This is more than just an inconvenience for users — it’s a serious handicap for our state’s economy. If Maine’s high-tech industries are going to compete with other states, we need to drastically upgrade our broadband infrastructure.”

Bri Warner, director of economic development at the Island Institute and a coalition member, spoke about the economic potential of improving broadband speeds and access.

“Many island and remote coastal businesses are unable to expand their customer base or even access online credit card processing because of the slow internet infrastructure,” she said in the news release. “Improved broadband infrastructure would provide opportunities for jobs in communities where limited career options are available and allow for residents to seek remote employment. It also would allow people access to remote adult education opportunities and career development trainings.”

Maine broadband statistics cited by Pingree’s office:

A 2014 study by technology site Gizmodo found that Maine ranked ahead of only one state — Montana — for broadband speed and availability.
The same study found that the majority of Maine counties offer top download speeds of 7.3 to 10.9 megabits per second compared to the national average of 18.2 Mbps. York, Cumberland and Lincoln performed better — with speeds of 10.9 to 14.6 Mbps — but were still well under average.
Broadband speeds in Boston range from 21.8 to 25.5 Mbps.

Pingree, who is a member of the House Rural Broadband Caucus, updated the roundtable group on some of her efforts in Congress to boost federal broadband investments and make them more accessible to Maine. These include:

Writing to President Trump asking him to include broadband in his infrastructure plan;
Cosponsoring the New Deal Rural Broadband Act, legislation that takes comprehensive steps to improve rural broadband access; and
Asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture to update an outdated definition of high-speed Internet that keeps many Maine communities from receiving funds.