We’re near the end of the year, and Congress is recessed until the new year. That hasn’t stopped Congress from introducing interesting new bills related to broadband. Any bill introduced in the first year of Congress is not automatically carried over to the second year session, but I assume these new bills are meant for deliberation in 2026.
Support for Non-Deployment Funds. Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) introduced the Supporting U.S. Critical Connectivity and Economic Strategy and Security for BEAD Act. This legislation would authorize States to use any remaining BEAD non-deployment funds that were not used to build infrastructure. The bill directs NTIA to give these funds to States to support functions like enhancing public safety, improving network resiliency, strengthening national security, and developing a qualified workforce for emerging technologies. This is a major issue since non-deployment has grown to over 21 billion, which is half of the $42.5 billion BEAD funding.
To some degree, this law feels redundant because it reiterates the same use of non-deployment funds that was directed in the original IIJA legislation that created BEAD. The need for this bill is only an issue because NTIA has been referring to the monies not used for broadband deployment as ‘savings’, which they want to return to the U.S. Treasury. If enacted, this would be Congress’s way of emphasizing that it meant what was written in the original law. If enacted, it also means that a lot more of the BEAD funding could have been used to build fiber and other long-term technologies instead of going to satellite broadband.
Expand Mental Telehealth. Representatives Andrea Salinas (D-OR) and Diana Harshbarger (R-TN) reintroduced the bipartisan Home-Based Telemental Health Care Act. If enacted, the legislation would expand access to telehealth services, including mental health and substance use care. The legislation is aimed at rural Americans who have barriers to in-person care, especially for individuals working in the farming, fishing, and forestry industries.
The legislation would create a new grant program that would provide funding for mental health and substance use care for people living in designated Health Professional Shortage Areas. The grants would be managed by the Department of Health and Human Services in consultation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Funding could be used to expand telemental health services, including providing broadband access and devices to use telehealth technology. The grants would also explore the feasibility of expanding the program to in-person services. The bill authorizes $10 million in grants for fiscal years 2025 through 2029.
Sunset Section 230 Immunity. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ashley Moody (R-FL), and Peter Welch (D-VT) introduced the Sunset Section 230 Act. The legislation would repeal Section 230 of the FCC rules two years after the date of enactment. Section 230 was created in 1996, as a part of the Communications Decency Act. The purpose of Section 230 is to grant limited immunity to online platforms for user-generated content. Section 230 also shields online platforms from any damages from good-faith efforts to moderate or block objectionable content.
The stated purpose of the new legislation is to allow the public to hold platforms accountable for allowing illegal content, child exploitation, and misinformation, based on the underlying premise that the big web platforms currently have near-immunity for damages that arise from their “profits over people” operating model. This is going to be a controversial law, and opponents of the legislation argue that the law will stifle free speech, force platforms to over-censor to avoid massive lawsuits, harm small online platforms, and fail to address underlying issues of harmful content amplification by big tech.