Opinion: Rural America is worth it

There was a time when rural farms, ranches, and towns did not have electricity to help turn their hard work into more productive efforts. Rural America was at a disadvantage. The Rural Electrification Act of 1936 began to put rural America on the same competitive level with the rest of the country.

Today, rural America is again falling behind the rest of the nation when it comes to access to high-speed broadband. Our farmers, ranchers, community banks, and small businesses often do not have access to the broadband they need creating a “digital divide” between Americans who have access to high speed Internet and technology and those who do not.

Broadband services are largely deployed by the private sector. In rural areas, customers are spread out, the landscape can be unpredictable, and there are simply fewer people, making the cost of broadband for private companies more expensive with lower profits. Similar problems were faced with “rural electrification,” and the idea that rural America is “not worth it” is as untrue today as it was back then.

Over 92 percent of people living in urban areas have access to fixed broadband at a minimum speed of 25 Mbps/3Mbps. Rural America is lagging with only 47.6 percent of areas having access to the same broadband.

Why does rural America need access to the standard broadband that the rest of the country uses?

Farmers and ranchers often need broadband services to simply do their job. It is amazing how technology has changed and developed over the years. Technological tools and advances are being made daily, but those tools require access to broadband. These are the folks who provide the nation with our food and fiber. Without the tools they need to do their jobs, not only will they fall behind competitively, but so will our nation.

For every one percent point increase in broadband penetration in a state, employment is likely to increase by 0.2 percent to 0.3 percent per year. The same study by the Brookings Institute predicted that this addition of broadband means an increase in 300,000 jobs. Increasing jobs in rural areas is good news for our entire economy.

Investing in broadband infrastructure will not only create jobs, but will also help to retain jobs in rural America. Broadband is not a band aid, we are not simply throwing money at an issue. Bringing rural areas into the 21st century is an investment for our state and our country.

Our farmers and ranchers are in need of basic technological equipment to stay globally competitive. This year, I worked with colleagues on the House Agriculture Committee to create legislation in the 2018 Farm Bill to close this “digital divide.” This legislation takes steps to provide loans and loan guarantees to middle mile infrastructure projects, which connect the backbone of the Internet to a local rural area.

We cannot leave behind the people who provide our country with our basic needs – food and clothing. It is somewhat fitting that federal rural broadband programs are housed under the amended Rural Electrification Act of 1936. It is once again time to close the gap and provide rural American with the access to broadband services their families and businesses need.