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Election 2024: What will the candidates do about the digital divide?

Broadband access in poorer and more rural communities has been a major campaign issue since 2008. Bridging the digital divide was a key component of Barack Obama’s platform. And, while far from perfect, his administration did a lot of work to grow the nation’s fiber-optic infrastructure, free up wireless spectrum and expand access to subsidies for low-income families.

This gives states money to fund the planning and buildout of broadband infrastructure, whether that be running new fiber to rural areas, installing Wi-Fi in low-income apartment complexes or training workers for new careers in telecommunications. Stringent requirements around environmental impact, labor practices and affordable access have made BEAD an easy target for Republicans who see regulation and bureaucracy as the enemy of freedom and economic growth. It also, unsurprisingly, calls for scaling back regulations regarding things like environmental impact and restrictions on building on federal lands in hopes of spurring the construction of more cell sites.

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