OP-ED: Rural areas need broadband most

Rural areas need broadband most USA TODAY's story "FCC to decide what 'underserved, broadband' really mean" addresses a long simmering debate in telecommunications policy over the best use of taxpayer dollars to address the needs of rural communities (Money, Monday).

There are good reasons for these funds to go largely to communities where there are no broadband providers. First, most rural Americans lack access to a single high-speed Internet network. These are people who live where both the need for access and the job-creation potential will be greatest.

Second, taxpayer-funded broadband networks have not always done well financially in communities where there is an existing broadband provider.

Broadband investments for underserved areas will bring higher productivity, improved education and quality health care to communities that need it most. It may also minimize the political wrangling and manufactured controversy of which taxpayers have grown weary.