Watchdog Slams Biden’s Broadband Infrastructure Plan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: MacKenzie A. Morales | 615/512-3936

Washington, D.C. – The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) is concerned with the recent announcement that the upcoming infrastructure package will include $100 billion for broadband deployment. This money is untargeted and will not help reach unserved communities.

In response, TPA Vice President of Policy Patrick Hedger offered the following statement:

“The American taxpayer has been bombarded with profligate spending over the past year. This announced $100 billion for broadband deployment is yet another example of blindly throwing money at a problem without serious solutions.

“Over the last four years, we have seen how a light-touch regulatory approach spurs the free market and helps close the digital divide. The extent of government involvement should be hyper-focused on already unserved areas, narrow spending on literacy programs, and voucher programs to help those truly in need afford service.

“Conversely, this package spends $100 billion towards non-targeted ends. It prioritizes municipal broadband programs, which have routinely gone bankrupt, leaving taxpayers holding the bag. This is not a serious approach to the issues that plague our nation’s broadband.  TPA’s report, “GON with the Wind: The Failed Promise of Government Owned Networks Across the Country,” shows current taxpayer-funded broadband systems failing at an alarming rate. Government should learn from these mistakes and leave broadband deployment to the experts, the private sector.”

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Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to educating the public through the research, analysis and dissemination of information on the government’s effects on the economy.