The Trump administration is telling states they will be shut out of a $42 billion broadband deployment fund if they set the rates that Internet service providers receiving subsidies are allowed to charge people with low incomes.
The latest version of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) FAQ on the grant program, released today, is a challenge to states considering laws that would force Internet providers to offer cheap plans to people who meet income eligibility guidelines. One state already has such a law: New York requires ISPs with over 20,000 customers in the state to offer $15 broadband plans with download speeds of at least 25Mbps, or $20-per-month service with 200Mbps speeds.
That’s not the argument Republicans make. They say using federal funding to influence state decisions is violating the rights of the state to make decisions for itself. This isn’t a legal argument, but an ethical one. They aren’t claiming actual constitutional violations, rather a violation of the spirit of state independence.
I agree with a lot of this opinion, if they were making it in good faith. However, they obviously are not, as usual. They want states to be free to make decisions about not providing education to children, but they should be forced to not allow people to choose to have abortions, for example. If they were consistent it wouldn’t create so many issues, but they just want to enforce their views on others.