Pryor set for hearing on state’s broadband
Posted on Saturday, August 25, 2007
BENTON COUNTY - Two political leaders in Arkansas - a U. S. senator and a state representative - are among those people spending some of the summer working to realize for the state some of the possibilities of broadband.
Broadband is a signal or circuit that includes a wide range of frequencies. It can allow video, voice and data to be broadcast simultaneously over the same medium.
U. S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., will host a Senate Commerce Committee field hearing to discuss the state of broadband in Arkansas and determine possible congressional action that might foster greater deployment around the state, he said in a recent news release.
The U. S. Senate Commerce Committee field hearing," The State of Broadband in Arkansas," will be from 10 a.m. to 1: 15 p.m. Tuesday at the Main Library, 100 Rock St. in Little Rock.
Arkansas is ranked 47 out of 50 states for broadband deployment, and recent studies indicate that investment in communications infrastructure in the state falls behind neighboring states, according to the news release.
At the hearing, Federal Communications Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein will provide insight on broadband policy.
"We know that a strong communications infrastructure opens doors for consumers and business alike," Pryor said. "This hearing is an opportunity to discuss where we are now and where we need to be in order to compete in and benefit from the digital era. I look forward to hearing the insights and recommendations of some of Arkansas' leading voices on this issue."
State Rep. Daryl Pace, RSiloam Springs, said earlier this summer he was taking steps to make sure the state anticipated and avoided potential problems in deploying broadband. He has been looking at the experiences of others to try to get guidance on how best Arkansas can deploy broadband.
"Kentucky is the model for the way to do a rural, poor state with broadband, to deploy it throughout the state," Pace said. "They've had a very successful program called Connect Kentucky. So we're looking at that model very closely but also (at ) the broadband-over-powerline with the electric company."
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