Federal Broadband Deployment in Unserved Areas Act

Federal Broadband Deployment in Unserved Areas Act

This bill establishes measures to facilitate the sharing of broadband availability data among federal agencies to support the deployment of broadband in unserved areas.

Specifically, the bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to share certain broadband availability data (i.e., broadband maps) with the federal agencies responsible for overseeing public land, including National Forest Service land.

The bill also establishes a working group to facilitate the preparation and interoperability of information technology systems for the provision and receipt of specified broadband information collected by the FCC.

Lastly, the bill requires a preliminary assessment of any potential barriers to such information sharing and a follow-up report assessing (1) the effectiveness of a user's ability to locate broadband infrastructure on public land, and (2) the prioritization of the review of applications for a communications use authorization in unserved areas.