The Technology Opportunities Program (TOP) and the Community Technology Centers Program (CTC) create opportunities for low-income urban and rural residents by helping them gain access to technology and the Internet. Both programs are slated for elimination in the Administration’s FY03 budget.
Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., will introduce legislation next week on speeding broadband deployment. His national broadband plan is aimed at sparking economic growth. According to Lieberman,
“We in government can’t let this potentially fertile field of technology lie fallow. The high-speed Internet is on the cusp of catalyzing a quantum leap in our economy.”
Lieberman’s broadband plan would provide tax credits for companies that build broadband infrastructure and conduct research and development on broadband applications, and would require the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) to develop a new regulatory framework.
The United States now ranks tenth in the world in broadband deployment (DSL per 100 people). That’s down from fifth-ranked only a year ago. South Korea is the broadband leader. Consumers in the far East, with two-thirds of the world’s population, can often get broadband for $25/month or less due to government programs. In the United States, private companies like AT&T sometimes paid more than $4000 per subscriber when aquiring companies like TCI.
The cost of broadband continues to rise in the US. Cable broadband rose 4 per cent in Q1 2002, from an average of $43.21 a month in December 2001 to $44.95 a month in March 2002. ADSL increased 1.4 percent over the same time period, from an average of $51.09 in December 2001 to an average of $51.82 in March 2002.
TechNet, a group of senior technology executives, aims to wire up 100 million US homes with 100 Mbps Ethernet connections. TechNet’s mission is to build bipartisan support for policies that strengthen America’s leadership with TechNet nodes located in California, Indiana, Massachusetts, and Texas. The U.S. high technology industry spends more on R&D than any other industry (although a large percentage is funneled into planetary weapons).
Besides leading in broadband penetration, Asian countries are leading in supercomputer research. The Japanese Earth Simulator, switched on last month, will outperform all of the top 19 supercomputers combined, according to Hans Werner Meuer, founder of the Top 500 List of World Supercomputers.
BTW, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), has three technology bills for consideration by the full United States Senate; Wyden’s Science and Technology Emergency Mobilization Act (S. 2037), Cyber Security Research and Development Act (S. 2182), and the CAN SPAM Act (S. 630), a spam-prevention measure.
Check the TOPS grants in your state. According to their web site: “Through the TOP program alone, the Federal government has invested over $6,778,421.00 in Oregon since 1995. This federal investment led to an additional $9,138,047.00 investment from other public and private sources”.
Oregon grants included: SW Oregon CC, Centro Cultural for Washington County, Catholic Comm. Svs, Oregon Commission for the Blind, Umpqua CC, Chemeketa CC, Intertribal GIS Council, State Services to Children and Families, Portland Public Schools, South Coast Ed Service District, Lane Council, Indian Health Board, Lane Council of Governments, City of Portland HAP, Lane County, Indian Child Welfare, County of Multnomah, and United Way of Lane County. The Benton Foundation also reviews State by State programs for connecting communities.
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