Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) has introduced legislation into the House of Representatives that, among other things, would “prohibit the Rural Utilities Service from providing assistance for the provision of broadband service with a download speed of less than 25 megabits per second or an upload speed of less than 3 megabits per second.” The proposed law would also “clarify the broadband loan and loan guarantee authority provided in Section 601 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936.” No other details beyond this summary are currently available, and the text of the bill (H.R. 5213) has yet to be released. The bill has been referred to both the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Energy and Commerce for further deliberation.
