1、 https:/crsreports.congress.gov January 31, 2022The Broadband Digital Divide: What Comes Next for Congress? As classrooms, workplaces, and social activities migrated online during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the digital dividethe gap between those who have access to broadband i
2、nternet and those who do notbecame increasingly apparent. The 116th and 117th Congress passed a number of bills that included provisions aimed at addressing the digital divide. Broadband Funding to Address the Digital Divide Congress passed four COVID-19 era bills that include broadband appropriatio
3、ns. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act; P.L. 116-136), which provided $100 million for broadband programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA, 2021; P.L. 116-260), which provided $6.201 billion to broadband progr
4、ams at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), and USDA. The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA; P.L. 117-2), which provided $7.171 billion to broadband programs at the FCC. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA;
