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Search Terms: telecommunications act of 1996, House or Senate or Joint

Document 102 of 383.

April 11, 2000, Tuesday

SECTION: PREPARED TESTIMONY

LENGTH: 1775 words

HEADLINE: PREPARED TESTIMONY OF GENE VUCKOVICH ON BEHALF OF THE MONTANA RURAL DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS, INC.

BEFORE THE HOUSE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE SUBCOMMITTEE ON TELECOMMUNICATIONS, TRADE AND CONSUMER PROTECTION

BODY:
The Montana Rural Development Partners, Inc. (MT RDP) is part of a national initiative to strengthen rural America by, coordinating among existing development agencies; identifying intergovernmental projects; eliminating duplication of effort; and removing impediments created by poorly designed regulations. This organization which was created in 1992 is one of thirty-seven State Rural Development Councils throughout the United States. The Montana Rural Development Partners' mission is to improve and develop prosperous rural Montana communities through the collaborative efforts and resources of federal, state, local, and tribal governments and private development entities, both profit and non-profit. Due to the explosive growth of the new e-commerce economy, the Internet and the high-speed data infrastructure that supports it have become essential to the economic goals of this organization. This year, the Montana Rural Development Partners is undertaking a variety of projects to increase the use and knowledge of Internet related resources, including the following. (1) Small Business/Marketing On The Net: this project allows MT RDP to provide training through the use of a ten laptop portable lab, for web site development, instruction in marketing on the Internet, and temporary web hosting to economic development agencies, small business owners and the general public. (2) Montana Cities/Counties Online: this is a challenge to provide support for web page development, training and hosting so that all Montana cities and counties can be online. (3) Wow Van-Widening Our World: this project coordinates the scheduling of training through the use of a high-tech van that is put to use by trained University of Montana interns who travel the state to provide on-site Internet training to individuals,teachers and businesses. It is a goal of this partnership through these efforts and others like them to prevent communities in Montana and other rural areas from being left behind by the data revolution sweeping most of the country.

Government Policy: Organizations like the Montana Rural Development Partners push to educate and prepare our residents to participate in the new Internet economy in hopes that, despite the shortcomings of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, rural America will some day have the broadband infrastructure sufficient to fully participate in this new world. The enactment of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 brought anticipation that increased competition among industry sectors would allow broadband technologies to be made available in rural areas of the country, such as Montana, as well as in urban areas. This has not happened. Today, over four years after passage of the 1996 Act, most competitors have targeted urban centers for the deployment of broadband technologies due to greater potential return on investment. It is simple: greater densities in population coupled with shorter distances to transmit equals larger revenue and profit. However, many states in this country are not densely populated and the distances that data or voice communications must travel are not short. Consequently, these profit-only motivated companies are not serving the vast majority of citizens in Montana or other rural areas of the country.

Montana has been designated one of the "Disconnected Dozen". Through the perspective of the high-tech economy prism, Montana is "closed for business". A pressing need exists in this country to address the alarming "Digital Divide" that continues to grow between Western and Southern rural communities and the rest of the nation. According to a July, 1999 NTIA report, "Falling Through The Net II", the current gap is expanding between the rural poor and the rest of the nation regarding computer use and online access. Organizations like this one, and many communities throughout the country, are working to provide the assistance needed to allow rural citizens the opportunity to participate in the new economy. However, all the preparation in the world will be to no avail if fundamental broadband deployment to rural areas is not achieved.

Rural Economies: Montana's business market has to become more diverse as traditional extraction industries such as coal, gas, mining and timber decline and we face new competition in the world market. Every day, more of Montana's businesses require and demand access to advanced telecommunications technology. Even our farmers and ranchers must be able to quickly communicate with the world to track market trends and future opportunities. The Internet and advanced telecommunications technology is the great equalizer for rural businesses who are geographically isolated from national and world markets. Consequently, to a large extent, Montana's ability to be economically competitive has become directly contingent on the establishment of a world class high-speed telecommunications infrastructure. Unfortunately, existing taxes and regulatory restrictions on for-profit telecommunications companies make it difficult for them to justify investment in Montana's communications infrastructure.

The important point that must be emphasized to this Committee is that our governmental policies must keep pace with the demand of people everywhere for evolving telecommunications services. Young people in rural parts of America like Montana need the same access to educational materials as young Americans in urban areas. Advanced telecommunications and the Internet are an efficient way to provide!

educational opportunities to Montana. The same is true with regard to the provision of health care and government services. We do not need another study or more regulatory hurdles thrown in our way. Rural areas need access to quality advanced telecommunications services from every potential provider now. Set forth below are some examples of the various sectors' needs for advanced broadband services.

Distance Learning: The Jason Foundation for Education offers a nationally recognized curriculum focused on teaching science and math to students in grades 4 through 8. Montana schools are eager to use this curriculum, however, ubiquitous distribution is problematic. Currently, satellite downlink and cable are serving most of the schools in the program. Cable, however, cannot be used to bring real time broadcasts to the classroom since regular programming is already scheduled. Consequently, programs are taped and played at other times. Expanding satellite reception requires a sizeable expenditure of capital, and the technology is not easy for teachers to use. The ideal medium for distribution is interactive video over the Internet. However, to bring the students quality visuals of Jason activities and experiments, classrooms must have access to additional bandwidth.

Cisco Academies: This project in high schools and colleges of technology provides viable career opportunities for Montana children who choose not to seek four-year degrees. There is a high demand for router technicians throughout the country. Cisco Academies' produces the most nationally recognized certificates. Many of Montana high schools have enrollments of 50 or less, so installing a full academy is financially impossible. However, it is possible for remote schools to be linked to larger institutions through the Internet and for students in both locations to be taught by one instructor.

Internet based businesses: All businesses will need to be able to conduct transactions via the Internet in the foreseeable future, in order to remain competitive. In Montana, over 50 percent of businesses employ less than five people and 96 percent employ less than fifty people. The customers of and suppliers to these small businesses are much larger companies and are beginning to demand that their business transactions be handled electronically.

Tourism: Today, Montana's largest economic sector, next to agriculture, is tourism. In 1999, revenues from the accommodations tax were $10.9 million. Out-of state visitors spent $1.6 billion in Montana, and total travelers (in state and out of state) spent $2.0 billion. In 1996, the State Tourism Department began offering vacation planning information through its web page. In 1999, 1.3 million user sessions were logged (a user session is a contact that goes beyond the Home Page). Log-in times have gone from 3 minutes to 13 minutes and 48 seconds. We are getting 3,400 hits per day and 83 percent of our inquiries are not filled electronically. The travel industry tells us that 50-60 percent of travelers get their information on line. The new electronic distribution method now includes a reservation feature. As Internet-based services continue to provide more opportunities to local Montana businesses, and as they change to streaming video for information distribution, access to small communities within Montana becomes increasingly important.

The Montana Grain Growers: This group realized a few years ago that Montana producers were not trained to market their products in an international market.

And in fact, at least $100 million "was left on the table" in 1998 because of missed marketing opportunities. To remedy this problem, the Grain Growers developed a training program to bring producers up to speed. This training often includes real time presentations delivered to producers via satellite. Additional broadband access in our rural agricultural communities would permit these training sessions to be delivered via the Internet, into homes and businesses, rather than requiring producers to travel long distances to centers with satellite downlinks.

Native American Economy: The state is currently assisting a new business venture, which would bring jobs to Native Americans. This new venture converts hard copy technical manuals to digitized formats, so repair and service information can be accessed via the Internet and manuals can be updated quickly. Success of the business will depend upon broadband capability within Montana and capacity to end users throughout the United States.

Conclusion: The Internet exploded into our lives and our economy beginning primarily in 1997. Its growth and impact since then on the economies of the nation, states and localities is almost immeasurable. The Telecommunications Act of 1996, passed over four years ago, is now ancient history in Internet years. The law needs to be updated to reflect the realities of what has occurred since its enactment, and to ensure that all potential providers of broadband and/or builders of communications infrastructure be allowed to participate.

END

LOAD-DATE: April 12, 2000

Document 102 of 383.


Search Terms: telecommunications act of 1996, House or Senate or Joint
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