U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, is among a group of legislators urging the Federal Communications Commission to explore options to give Native communities access to the internet.
An Aug. 9 release from Hirono’s office points to a recent estimate from the American Indian Policy Institute that shows nearly a third of Tribal lands in the U.S. lack internet access.
“Many rural and underserved communities in Hawaii have struggled with inequitable broadband access for years,” Hirono said in the release. “Expanding broadband services for Tribal nations and other Native communities, including Native Hawaiians, will help alleviate disparities and enable access to crucial resources such as online education and telemedicine.”
Hirono along with Reps. Kaiali'i Kahele, D-Hawaii, Ed Case, D-Hawaii, and Teresa Leger Fernández, D-N.M., and Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Tina Smith, D-Minn., Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., co-signed a letter to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel urging the FCC to take action in this matter, according to the release.
“In today’s digital era, equal opportunity is impossible without equal access to high-speed, reliable internet," Kahele said in the release. “Connectivity is key in ensuring that everyone can benefit from essential, modern-day resources such as telehealth, online learning and remote job opportunities.”
According to the release, more than 1.5 million people living on Tribal lands are without access to broadband services. The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t helped. The lack of access has kept people from accessing telemedicine, virtual and remote learning and public safety programs.
“The need is clear,” the lawmakers concluded, according to the release. “So is the solution: enhance Tribal self-sufficiency and self-governance by facilitating Tribal spectrum access and ownership.”