FCC Takes One More Step Toward Accurate Broadband Data

One day before the departure of Chairman Ajit Pai, the Federal Communications Commission announced new rules pertaining to the collection and verification of broadband availability data.

The new rules list the informational items that all challenges to broadband data must include. Among other things, a state or local government must provide “the geographic coordinates (latitude/longitude) or the street addresses of the locations at which coverage is disputed” and indicate the type of dispute.

Several states have produced their own broadband maps and surveys because of the FCC’s shortcomings in data collection.