Sec. 6101. Establishing forward-looking broadband standards
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Section 601 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 ( 7 U.S.C. 950bb ) is amended— in subsection (d)(1)(A), by striking clause
(i)and inserting the following: demonstrate the ability to furnish or improve service in order to meet the broadband service standards established under subsection (e)(1) in all or part of an unserved or underserved rural area; ; in subsection (e)— by striking paragraphs
(1)and
(2)and inserting the following: Subject to paragraph (2), for purposes of this section, the Secretary shall establish broadband service standards for rural areas which provide for— a minimum acceptable standard of service that requires the speed to be at least 25 megabits per second downstream transmission capacity and 3 megabits per second upstream transmission capacity; and projections of minimum acceptable standards of service for 5, 10, 15, 20, and 30 years into the future. At least once every 2 years, the Secretary shall review, and may adjust through notice published in the Federal Register, the broadband service standards in effect under paragraph
(1)to encourage the delivery of high quality, cost-effective broadband service in rural areas. In establishing and adjusting the broadband service standards in effect under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider— the broadband service needs of rural families and businesses; broadband service available to urban and suburban areas; future technology needs of rural residents; advances in broadband technology; and other relevant factors as determined by the Secretary. ; and by adding at the end the following: The Secretary shall not provide a loan or loan guarantee under this section for a project unless the Secretary determines, at the time the agreement to provide the loan or loan guarantee is entered into, that, at any time while the loan or loan guarantee is outstanding, the project will be capable of providing broadband service at not less than the minimum acceptable standard of service established under paragraph (1)(B) for that time. If an applicant shows that it would be cost prohibitive to meet the minimum acceptable level of broadband service established under paragraph (1)(B) for the entirety of a proposed service territory due to the unique characteristics of the proposed service territory, the Secretary and the applicant may agree to utilize substitute standards for any unserved portion of the project. Any substitute service standards should continue to consider the matters described in paragraph (2)(B) and reflect the best technology available to meet the needs of the residents in the unserved area. ; and in subsection (g)— in paragraph (2)(A), by striking level of broadband service established under subsection
(e)and inserting standard of service established under subsection (e)(1)(A) ; and by adding at the end the following: To the extent possible, the terms and conditions under which a loan or loan guarantee is provided to an applicant for a project shall require that, at any time while the loan or loan guarantee is outstanding, the broadband network provided by the project will meet the lower of— the minimum acceptable standard of service projected under subsection (e)(1)(B) for that time, as agreed to by the applicant at the time the loan or loan guarantee is provided; or the minimum acceptable standard of service in effect under subsection (e)(1)(A) for that time. . Within 12 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service (in this subsection referred to as the RUS ) shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a written report on the effectiveness of RUS loan and loan guarantee programs for the purpose of expanding broadband to rural areas (as defined in RUS regulations), which shall— identify administrative and legislative options for incentivizing private investment by utilizing RUS loan guarantee programs for the purpose of expanding broadband to rural areas; evaluate the existing borrower and lending guidelines for RUS loan and loan guarantee applicants to incentivize participation in both programs; evaluate the loan and loan guarantee application processes for lenders and borrowers by eliminating burdensome and unnecessary steps in the application process and providing a more streamlined process to decrease the complexity of the application and the timeline from application to approval or denial; identify opportunities to provide technical assistance and pre-development planning activities to assist rural counties and communities to assess current and future broadband needs; and identify and evaluate emerging technologies, including next-generation satellite technologies, and ways to leverage the technologies to provide high-speed, low-latency internet connectivity to rural areas.
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Sec. 6101
Establishing forward-looking broadband standards
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