Rural Broadband Expansion Act

Rural Broadband Expansion Act

This bill requires the Department of Agriculture to allow grants awarded to finance broadband transmission in rural areas to be used for the purposes of the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4308 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4308

  To provide for grants to finance broadband transmission in certain 
                              rural areas.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 8, 2017

     Ms. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico (for herself and Mr. 
 O'Halleran) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Energy 
    and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide for grants to finance broadband transmission in certain 
                              rural areas.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Rural Broadband Expansion Act''.

SEC. 2. COMMUNITY CONNECT GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Agriculture (in this section 
referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall make grants to finance 
broadband transmission in rural areas eligible for Distance Learning 
and Telemedicine Program benefits authorized by section 2331 of the 
Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, and shall offer 
assistance to persons interested in applying for the grants with 
respect to the grant application process.
    (b) Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall require any entity 
        receiving a grant under this section to submit annual reports 
        until 3 years after completion of the project for which the 
        grant is made, in a format specified by the Secretary, that 
        describes--
                    (A) the use by the entity of the grant, including 
                new equipment and capacity enhancements that support 
                high-speed broadband access for educational 
                institutions, health care providers, and public safety 
                service providers (including the estimated number of 
                end users who are currently using or forecasted to use 
                the new or upgraded infrastructure); and
                    (B) the progress towards fulfilling the objectives 
                for which the grant is made, including--
                            (i) the number and location of residences 
                        and businesses that will receive new broadband 
                        service, existing network service improvements, 
                        and facility upgrades resulting from the grant;
                            (ii) the speed of broadband service;
                            (iii) the average price of broadband 
                        service in a proposed service area;
                            (iv) any changes in broadband service 
                        adoption rates, including new subscribers 
                        generated from demand-side projects; and
                            (v) any other metrics the Secretary 
                        determines to be appropriate.
            (2) Additional reporting.--The Secretary may require any 
        additional reporting and information by any recipient of a 
        grant under this section so as to ensure compliance with this 
        section.
    (c) Audits.--The Inspector General, Department of Agriculture, 
shall conduct annual audits of the grant program provided for in this 
section, and shall direct the Secretary to implement such 
recommendations as the Inspector General finds necessary to ensure that 
the funds made available under subsection (f) are used properly and 
efficiently.
    (d) GAO Reports.--The Comptroller General of the United States 
shall submit to the Secretary annual reports that assess the progress 
and level of success of the grant program provided for in this section.
    (e) Annual Reports to the Congress.--The Secretary shall submit an 
annual report to the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate on how the grant funds 
provided under subsection (a) were used by the recipients, how many 
households, businesses, community centers, and critical community 
facilities received broadband service as a result of the grants, in 
which regions the broadband service was provided, how many applications 
for the grants were denied, and how many of the grants were provided.
    (f) Limitations on Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out 
this section, there are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 
$100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023, to remain 
available until expended, not less than 90 percent of which shall be 
available for grants under subsection (a).
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