[House Hearing, 119 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
WIRED FOR GROWTH: HOW EXPANDING
BROADBAND CAN REVITALIZE RURAL SMALL
BUSINESSES
=======================================================================
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS
UNITED STATES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
HEARING HELD
SEPTEMBER 3, 2025
__________
[GRAPHC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Small Business Committee Document Number 119-017
Available via the GPO Website: www.govinfo.gov
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
61-674 WASHINGTON : 2026 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS
ROGER WILLIAMS, Texas, Chairman
PETE STAUBER, Minnesota
DAN MEUSER, Pennsylvania
BETH VAN DUYNE, Texas
JAKE ELLZEY, Texas
MARK ALFORD, Missouri
NICK LALOTA, New York
BRAD FINSTAD, Minnesota
TONY WIED, Wisconsin
ROB BRESNAHAN, Pennsylvania
BRIAN JACK, Georgia
TROY DOWNING, Montana
KIMBERLYN KING-HINDS, Northern Marina Islands
DEREK SCHMIDT, Kansas
JIMMY PATRONIS, Florida
NYDIA VELAZQUEZ, New York, Ranking Member
MORGAN MCGARVEY, Kentucky
HILLARY SCHOLTEN, Michigan
LAMONICA MCIVER, New Jersey
GIL CISNEROS, California
KELLY MORRISON, Minnesota
GEORGE LATIMER, New York
DEREK TRAN, California
LATEEFAH SIMON, California
JOHNNY OLSZEWSKI, Maryland
HERB CONAWAY, New Jersey
MAGGIE GOODLANDER, New Hampshire
Lauren Holmes, Majority Staff Director
Melissa Jung, Minority Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
OPENING STATEMENTS
Page
Hon. Roger Williams.............................................. 1
Hon. Nydia Velazquez............................................. 2
WITNESSES
Ms. Kristi Westbrock, Chief Executive Officer and General
Manager, CTC, Brainerd, MN..................................... 5
Mr. Jimmy Todd, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager, Nex-
Tech, Lenora, KS............................................... 7
Mr. Jeff Vander Werff, Owner, VWF, LLC, Kent City, MI............ 8
Ms. Karen Jackson-Furman, Chief Executive Officer, West Kentucky
& Tennessee Telecommunications Cooperative, Mayfield, KY....... 9
APPENDIX
Prepared Statements:
Ms. Kristi Westbrock, Chief Executive Officer and General
Manager, CTC, Brainerd, MN................................. 31
Mr. Jimmy Todd, Chief Executive Officer and General Manager,
Nex-Tech, Lenora, KS....................................... 39
Mr. Jeff Vander Werff, Owner, VWF, LLC, Kent City, MI........ 43
Ms. Karen Jackson-Furman, Chief Executive Officer, West
Kentucky & Tennessee Telecommunications Cooperative,
Mayfield, KY............................................... 45
Questions and Answers for the Record:
Question from Hon. Scholten to Mr. Jeff Vander Werff......... 54
Questions from Hon. Scholten to Ms. Karen Jackson-Furman..... 55
Additional Material for the Record:
APT Letter................................................... 58
Competitive Carriers Association (CCA) Letter................ 67
Defense Credit Union Council (DCUC) Letter................... 70
Fiber Broadband Association Letter........................... 74
NH Delegation Letter......................................... 77
Small Business Majority Letter............................... 79
Starlink Capacity Letter..................................... 82
Western Governors' Association (WGA) Letter.................. 88
WIRED FOR GROWTH: HOW EXPANDING BROADBAND CAN REVITALIZE RURAL SMALL
BUSINESSES
----------
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2025
House of Representatives,
Committee on Small Business,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to call, at 10:07 a.m., in Room
2360, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Roger Williams
[chairman of the Committee] presiding.
Present: Representatives Williams, Stauber, Meuser, Van
Duyne, Ellzey, Alford, Finstad, Wied, Downing, Velazquez,
McGarvey, Scholten, Cisneros, Morrison, Tran, Simon, Olszewski,
and Goodlander.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Before we get started, I want to
recognize Representative Cisneros of the great State of
California to lead us in the pledge and the prayer. Would you
stand.
Mr. CISNEROS. Please place your hand over your heart.
ALL. I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States
of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one
nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for
all.
Mr. CISNEROS. Dear Lord, I ask that you give this
Committee, this Congress, and our nation guidance so that we
may bring justice and do the work of the people, for the
benefit of the people.
For that, I pray. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit. Amen.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Good morning everyone. Before we get
started, we are going to have--so you are not worried about
what you said or what you did, we will have people moving in
and out a lot today because there are a lot of other hearings
going on. So if somebody gets up after you talk, don't worry
about it. They are heading--but they will be back. So I want
you to be aware of that.
And I want to also say good morning to everyone, and I now
call the Committee on Small Business to order. Without
objection, the Chair is authorized to declare a recess of the
Committee at any time.
I now recognize myself for an opening statement. Welcome to
today's hearing entitled: Wired for Growth, How Expanding
Broadband Can Revitalize Rural Small Businesses.
I want to begin by thanking our witnesses for being here
today and access to reliable, affordable broadband is not a
luxury. It is a necessity for small businesses, families,
students, and communities across America. It is rural areas, in
particular, that broadband can mean the difference between
growth and stagnation and between new opportunities and being
left behind.
For years, we have heard the frustration from rural
entrepreneurs who cannot compete on a level playing field
because of slower, nonexistent internet service. They cannot
expand their market, streamline operations, or use new
technologies. That divide is real and holds back small
businesses and the communities they serve.
This is why I have been proud to introduce legislation over
the years that would eliminate the digital divide. Further,
broadband deployment must be free from political interference.
That is why I am encouraged by the steps taken by the Trump
administration to reduce red tape, lower cost, and accelerate
broadband deployment, ultimately improving connective
opportunities.
But cutting through regulatory burdens that slowed
investment and innovation for too long, the Trump
administration is ensuring that rural communities finally get
connected. President Trump promised to put America first,
ensuring every American has the tools to thrive in the modern
economy.
So today's hearing is about listening to small businesses
and rural providers who are experiencing this challenge. As
legislators and advocates for main street in Washington, we
need a better understanding of what is working, where the
roadblocks remain, and how we can continue to build on the
progress for small business owners, broadband providers, and
local leaders.
Our Committee is committed to ensuring that rural, small
businesses have the same opportunities as those in our cities
and suburbs. Broadband is a critical infrastructure, workforce,
development, education, and healthcare. Most importantly, it is
freedom, freedom to innovate, freedom to compete and succeed.
I want to thank our witnesses again for joining us today.
You have come a long way. And I look forward to the discussion
ahead as we work to ensure that rural America is not left
behind in the 21st century economy.
So with that, I would like to distinguish our Ranking
Member and acknowledge her for being here and leading New York,
Ms. Velazquez.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for calling this
crucial hearing.
Rural small businesses play a central role in local
economies, accounting for nearly 85 percent of firms and 54
percent of jobs in rural counties. However, they face unique
problems requiring unique attention, one of which is access to
broadband or high-speed internet service, essential activities
that many Americans take for granted, like videoconferencing,
online banking, e-commerce, and most importantly, reliance on
the high-internet speeds and capacity made possible by today's
broadband infrastructure.
It is this technology that makes new ideas and companies
soar across the nation and the world literally at the speed of
light. Over one in four rural Americans have not been connected
to broadband internet infrastructure. The reason this gap
exists can be found in the issues rural telephone deployment
encountered about a century ago.
Put simply, when faced with fewer customers per square mile
and more difficult geography than American cities, large
corporations find it less profitable to invest in rural
infrastructure, be it phones, electricity, water, or broadband,
and put their money instead in more densely populated easier to
reach places.
This is why government spending is sorely needed to fill
the holes in private spending. The previous administration made
the single largest investment in this space with a Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law through the Broadband Equity Access and
Deployment, or BEAD, program. BEAD is a generational $42.5
billion investment in high-speed internet service nationwide,
specifically targeting the rural and tribal areas underserved
by private industry and creating jobs in those areas to install
and maintain broadband infrastructure.
These projects were by law to be powered mainly by fiber-
optic cables, the fastest and most reliable broadband
technology currently in existence. However, the Trump
administration abruptly issued a policy notice upending the
BEAD program, requiring grant applicants to quickly rewrite and
resubmit their proposals within mere weeks.
The biggest change to the program overturns its emphasis on
fiber-optic cables, the best technology around, in favor of an
untested technology cornered by Elon Musk's satellites, citing
cost savings. I am concerned that the administration is missing
the realities of satellites, namely, that it cannot effectively
match the speed, reliability, and capacity offered by fiber.
I will jump at the opportunity to make BEAD projects more
economical and improve this once-in-a-lifetime investment. It
seems like this change will make BEAD focus more on cheap work
than on good work. In other words, President Trump isn't
lowering this cost for rural America. He is selling rural
America short.
Rural small businesses deserve the same high-speed, high-
quality internet service as any other business in the country
and the world. That means the playing field we give them must
be truly level.
It is time for BEAD to honor the on-the-ground perspective
clamoring for fiber projects. We must also consider the views
of America's territory.
Mr. Chairman, I request unanimous consent to insert into
the record a written statement of the Puerto Rico
Telecommunications Alliance.
Chairman WILLIAMS. So moved.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. With that, I look forward to having a robust
conversation today and thank all the witnesses for their
presence.
I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The lady yields back.
And now I would like to recognize Mr. Stauber from the
great State of Minnesota to introduce his constituent, Ms.
Kristi Westbrock, testifying before us today.
Mr. STAUBER. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, for the
opportunity to introduce the Minnesota witness this morning. I
am pleased to recognize Kristi Westbrock, who resides in
Merrifield, Minnesota, located in my district, with her husband
and daughter.
Kristi has served as a leader at Consolidated
Telecommunications Company, headquartered in Brainerd,
Minnesota, for over 17 years. Her work has been instrumental in
expanding broadband access to underserved communities,
reinforcing her passion for rural America and ensuring that all
communities, regardless of geography, have access to reliable
and affordable technology.
With a strong voice in the telecommunications industry and
heartfelt commitment to community impact, Kristi continues to
lead with vision, integrity, and a commitment to making a
difference, which is why I am pleased--so pleased to have her
join this Committee today.
Kristi, I thank you for being here, and I look forward to
hearing from you.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you, Mr. Stauber.
And our next witness is Mr. Jimmy Todd. Mr. Todd is the
chief executive officer and general manager of Nex-Tech based
in Lenora, Kansas. Since 2014, he has overseen the company's
operations and strategic growth while also serving as Chairman
of Nex-Tech's wireless and holding board positions with the
Fiber Broadband Association and other organizations.
Mr. Todd previously served as an infantry officer in the
Army National Guard, as an aviation electronics technician in
the U.S. Navy, and thank you for that service. He earned a
bachelor of arts in social sciences from Chapman University and
a master of business administration from the University of
Portland.
Our next witness here is Mr. Jeff Vander Werff. Correct,
Jeff? Mr. Vander Werff is fourth-generation farmer and the
other of VWF, LLC, from Kent City, Michigan. He oversees
precision agriculture and agronomics on the farm focusing on
the data-driven practices that have positioned his operation as
a community leader.
In addition to farming, he is also co-owner of the
multilocation agricultural retail business that serves much of
Michigan. Here, they offer specialized support for everything
from apples to zucchini and crops in between. Does that taste
good when you mix all that together?
Mr. Vander Werff is an American Farm Bureau Federation
Member and studied crop and soil science at Michigan State
University. And so thank you for that.
And I now recognize the Ranking Member from New York, Ms.
Velazquez, to briefly introduce our last witness appearing
before us today.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Ms. Karen Jackson-Furman is the CEO of West Kentucky and
Tennessee Telecommunications Cooperative, or WK&T, a rural co-
op serving West Kentucky, Northwest Tennessee, Southern
Illinois and Northern Alabama, founded in 1951 to connect rural
Kentuckians and Tennesseans to telephones. WK&T now also
delivers high-speed broadband to over roughly 2,500 miles and
more than 33,000 network connections.
Ms. Jackson-Furman has over 31 years of experience in
telecom co-ops, including nine years at WK&T, holding roles
like CEO, CFO, and COO. As CEO, she has prioritized new
strategic partnerships in pursuing state and federal grants to
expand access to unserved and underserved communities.
She holds a bachelor's degree from Southeast Missouri State
University and an MBA from Southern Illinois University
Edwardsville.
Welcome, Ms. Jackson. Thank you for being here.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The lady yields back. Again, I want to
thank all of you for being here today.
Before we recognize the witnesses, I would like to remind
them--we have got some rules around here. I am going to tell
you the rules. They are not hard, okay?
I would like to remind them that their oral testimony is
restricted to five minutes in length. We want to stay with
that. If you see a light turn red in front of you, it means
your five minutes is up, and that you need to conclude, and you
should wrap it up. Okay?
So with that in mind, I now recognize Ms. Westbrock for her
five-minute opening remarks.
STATEMENTS OF KRISTI WESTBROCK, CEO AND GENERAL MANAGER, CTC,
BRAINERD, MINNESOTA; JIMMY TODD, CEO AND GENERAL MANAGER, NEX-
TECH; JEFF VANDER WERFF, AGRA BUSINESS OWNER. MICHIGAN; AND
KAREN JACKSON-FURMAN, CEO, WEST KENTUCKY AND TENNESSEE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS COOPERATIVE;
STATEMENT OF KRISTI WESTBROCK
Ms. WESTBROCK. Chairman Williams, Ranking Member Velazquez
and Members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to
participate in today's hearing which focuses on the importance
of rural broadband connectivity and how it can revitalize small
business.
I am Kristi Westbrock. I am the CEO and general manager of
CTC, headquartered in Brainerd, Minnesota. I am a native of
Browns Valley, Minnesota, with a population of 505. I grew up
in a small town where my graduating class was 26 people, and
everyone knew everyone by their first name. That grounded my
passion for rural America.
Today, I live in Merrifield, Minnesota, with my husband
Mike and my daughter Emily. I have been with CTC for 17 years,
and I have over 25 years of industry experience.
CTC is a full-service technology adviser serving Central
and Northern Minnesota for the past 75 years. With our fiber
network, we offer our members fast, reliable internet, phone,
TV services, as well as business phone systems and IT systems.
CTC is a cooperative, and we live by our mission to empower our
members, employees, and communities through exceptional service
and life-changing technology solutions for a sustainable
future.
As today's hearing will hopefully underscore, fast, high-
capacity broadband in rural areas promote small business growth
and creates jobs. For example, Leedrick Studios, a cutting-edge
video production and marketing company in Hibbing, Minnesota,
saw an immediate boost in its process and its production
efficiency after having a robust fiber connection. Leedrick had
previously served with spotty, less-reliable connection, but we
were able to help his company achieve more and receive more
from its clients.
Jim Lee from Leedrick studios has stated, in our fast-paced
industry where every second counts and digital connectivity is
paramount, CTC's unwavering reliability has been a game
changer. It is the bedrock upon which we have built our
enhanced operational efficiency. CTC hasn't just met our
expectations; they have redefined them. Our transition has been
transformative.
This is just one example of showing how we have been able
to contribute to our community and how a reliable connection
can impact rural broadband, rural businesses, and economic
growth and vitality. However, we have more work to do.
This is where public policy plays such a key role in
helping build and sustain broadband in rural markets that would
not otherwise justify such investments for ongoing operations.
For example, there has long been bipartisan recognition for
years that the lengthy review process is slowing down broadband
deployment, particularly in regions with short construction
seasons. In Minnesota, even a brief delay can push projects
back by years. These setbacks increase costs, as unpredictable
timelines make it more challenging to secure contractors and
maintain our work schedule.
Grant programs play a key role in rural broadband
deployment, and I provide specific examples in my written
testimony of programs that CTC has leveraged, as well as
thoughts on where the BEAD program is headed.
Last week the Minnesota Office of Broadband unveiled their
draft plan for public comment. CTC is expected to receive
approximately 20 million of the BEAD funding, along with our
members' capital investment of 6 million to build out 2,209
locations with 35 of those being small businesses.
To be clear, grants by themselves are not enough to keep
rural America connected. It ultimately takes a mix of community
commitment and private capital to build networks as well. And
in many rural areas where terrific broadband exists today,
those networks were not built by leveraging grants but, rather,
through a mix of private capital and loans and support from the
FCC's Universal Service Fund.
In fact, the continued operation and sustainability of
network efficiency and affordable services in rural areas can
present a significant challenge. This is where USF has its
greatest impact. Even if federal funding is available to help
with construction capital, we still need to recover our
matching investments, keep our rates affordable for consumers
and small business, and maintain our networks.
As I explain in my written testimony, while USF has been
highly successful, we need to modernize how this program is
funded. And we appreciate the work of bipartisan lawmakers from
the U.S. Senate and House in considering such reforms.
I thank this Committee and interest in all these issues and
look forward to working with you to ensure all Americans
experience the benefits of broadband over the best possible
networks both today and for decades to come. Thank you.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Great on your timing.
Ms. WESTBROCK. Thank you.
Chairman WILLIAMS. And if you hear me do this, that is to
remind you to move on. Okay?
All right. I now recognize Mr. Todd for his five-minute
opening remarks.
STATEMENT OF JIMMY TODD
Mr. TODD. Chairman Williams, Ranking Member Velazquez,
Committee Members, I am Jimmy Todd, CEO and general manager for
Nex-Tech, a rural cooperative serving 33,000 customers across
11,000 square miles in Kansas.
I have been in the telecom and technology industries for
about 40 years now and have spent a lot of years advocating for
fiber broadband, precision agriculture, and USF reform. I have
had appointments to the Kansas NG911 Coordinating Council, Team
Kansas on the Department of Commerce, and the FCC's Precision
Ag Task Force, where I was a co-author of the 2023 report.
I am a proud veteran of 21 years with the U.S. Navy, U.S.
Army, and Army National Guard.
And I would like to share that, as we know, broadband is
not a luxury. It is an essential economic infrastructure, and
robust connectivity helps our rural communities attract new
businesses, retain businesses that we have, support
entrepreneurs, and help keep our young people in our rural
communities.
For agriculture, fiber infrastructure enables precision
tools and ag tech that can serve resources, improve yields, and
strengthen the supply chain for food.
I would like to share a quick success story about McCarty
Dairy, who over a decade ago reached out to us. They were eight
miles outside of our cooperative footprint, and yet, they
needed fiber connectivity to secure a contract with a national
yogurt brand.
Now, between where we served and their area, there was no
one. We looked at this as an economic development opportunity,
and we figured out how to make it work.
With that robust fiber connectivity, they are able to
monitor the health of 32,000 cows daily. The processing and
condensing plants are controlled through fiber optics. The
robots are used to milk 10,000 cows a day, and the impact is
jobs created, family livelihoods sustained, and communities
strengthened.
Farming has transformed a great deal from the days where
the single source of truth was the Farmer's Almanac to today's
ag technology and data availability. Sensors, automated
irrigation, drones, robotic labor all require fiber last-mile
infrastructure, and that fiber last-mile infrastructure enables
that LAST ACRE network that connects all of these activities
going on in today's farms and ranches.
There are many success stories that I can share, but
challenges continue to remain. Burdensome permitting processes
delay builds, which add to costs and discourage investments.
Congress can help by streamlining permitting so rural America
doesn't fall behind.
Nex-Tech was the first in the nation to bring fiber to a
rural exchange. And despite early criticism of gold plating, we
persevered and continued with that focus. Fiber is the do-it-
once, do-it-right technology, and it supports smart ag, it
supports AI, telehealth, remote education--and will for
decades--innovation in the future.
According to the Center for Rural Innovation, rural
counties with broadband adoption above 80 percent see 213
percent higher business growth, 10 percent higher self-
employment growth, 18 percent higher per capita income growth,
and 44 percent higher GDP growth. Broadband adoption directly
drives entrepreneurship, jobs, and community growth.
Millions of Americans, however, are still unserved or
underserved. I urge Congress to ensure federal broadband
funding continues to prioritize fiber, the most reliable,
scalable, and cost-effective technology.
Further, you know, if possible, cut the red tape so that we
can see permitting reform, as well as USF reform because that
will help rural America faster. Finally, ensuring affordability
for all Americans is going to remain important.
Thank you for the opportunity with the Small Business
Committee here for this hearing and the opportunity to share
with you. I look forward to your questions.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Great job. I now recognize Mr. Vander
Werff for his five-minute opening remarks.
STATEMENT OF JEFF VANDER WERFF
Mr. VANDER WERFF. Good morning, Chairman Williams, Ranking
Member Velazquez, Members of the Committee. Thank you for
having us.
My name is Jeff Vander Werff. I am visiting you this
morning from the State of Michigan where my family and I
operate an agribusiness and farming operation near the town of
Sparta.
Like many Americans, we depend on reliable internet service
as a part of our daily lives, and in the wake of the COVID-19
pandemic, that need has only become more acute, and I want to
thank you for the opportunity to share some thoughts on this
topic.
As a small business owner and farmer, the internet is a
part of our daily lives. From the connectivity of our precision
agriculture software to the use of cloud-based billing systems
for our agribusiness, reliable high-speed internet is a
necessity we have to have. The lack of infrastructure, however,
has made that more challenging as our connected world continues
to evolve.
It seems a weekly occurrence in our community Facebook
groups that someone is asking if there are better internet
options available for their homes and businesses. And, sadly,
they are offered only one or two providers in the area, and
coverage is less than ideal.
Our family has tried to be a part of that solution for
years by installing and hosting broadband internet at our
farms, utilizing our physical elevation, as well as our 130-
foot grain systems to boost signals and help more folks reach
high-speed fixed point internet.
While private industry is making strides every day to
improve this, there is a lot of work to be done. We often hear
the phrase the last mile when describing services in rural
areas, whether it be the Postal Service or Amazon or high-speed
internet, and this is where the need is greatest.
And while innovations such as Starlink have helped
tremendously, they often are cost-prohibitive, putting a
further burden on rural America where poverty levels can often
match those of our most populated cities. I do believe there is
a better answer.
Growing up, I often heard my grandparents talk about how
life-changing the Rural Electrification Act of the 1930s was
and how much life on their farms and rural communities
improved. Today we are at a similar inflection point with part
of our country living in the modern era while rural America
lags behind.
This is just another contributing factor in the decline of
our rural towns and the small town America that we all love so
much. It isn't just about businesses or farms being able to
access internet service. It is about lost opportunities for
rural Americans in an increasingly digital world. From
education and job opportunities to simple things like trying to
order a tractor part, families are being forced to make hard
choices when it comes to where they live and where they want to
raise a family.
And the increase in online virtual work has made it more
difficult for young Americans to plant their roots in the
hometown that their families have lived in for generations,
further hollowing out middle America.
I want to thank you again for your time this morning to
discuss this topic, and I certainly welcome any and all
questions from the Committee. Thank you.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you very much.
I now recognize Ms. Jackson-Furman for her five-minute
opening remarks.
STATEMENT OF KAREN JACKSON-FURMAN
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Chairman Williams, Ranking Member
Velazquez, and Members of the Committee, thank you for the
opportunity to testify today on the important topic of how
expanding broadband access can ensure small businesses are able
to thrive.
My name is Karen Jackson-Furman, and I am CEO of West
Kentucky and Tennessee Telecommunications Cooperative, a local
provider serving rural parts of Kentucky, Tennessee, Illinois,
and Alabama. We serve more than 33,000 customers covering
approximately 2500 square miles, and employ 109 people from the
community. I am also here representing WTA, Advocates for Rural
Broadband.
WK&T will be celebrating its 75th anniversary next year. We
got our start with a loan from USDA's Rural Electrification
Administration to provide telephone service to the citizens of
several counties in Kentucky and Tennessee. Since then, we have
expanded and upgraded our operations. Today we provide 100
percent fiber connectivity to our customers.
High-speed internet continues to transform our world,
including rural areas, and is a necessity for full
participation in modern life and economic competitiveness. WK&T
isn't just a residential internet provider. We are also a small
business that provides vital services to more than 1,000 other
small businesses. Its critical infrastructure is vital for
rural communities and small businesses.
For example, Ralph Brothers Farms in Graves County,
Kentucky, has 24 poultry barns connected to WK&T's fiber
internet service. The brothers are able to monitor the barns on
a mobile app on their cell phones at any hour of the day and
recognize problems immediately.
In another example, Michael Warren and Nassar Nassar of
Savant Learning Systems in Weakley County, Tennessee, worked
with Tennessee's Bethel University to develop one of the first
online academic programs allowing police officers to complete
their continuing education and required training without having
to travel, saving both time and money. They say that their WK&T
fiber connection makes all the difference in what they do.
These are just a couple examples, but without a robust
broadband connection, it is virtually impossible for a small
business to make it in today's world. And if small businesses
aren't making it, America's overall economy suffers.
Last year the White House noted that small businesses are
responsible for more than 40 percent of America's economic
output and two-thirds of net new jobs, and it is not just any
connection that matters, but one that can support high
bandwidth applications.
At WK&T, we have chosen to deploy fiber because we want to
make sure our communities are not just getting by today with
good-enough service, but that they have a high-speed, robust,
scalable broadband network that will provide opportunities
decades from now.
And, as shared in my written testimony, connectivity to our
buried fiber network during the destructive EF-4 long-track
tornado in December of 2021 was never interrupted, allowing
emergency services to assist and potentially save lives.
I would be missing an opportunity if I did not give credit
to several important federal broadband programs, without which
WK&T would not be able to do what we do. We are able to build,
operate, and upgrade our network primarily because of the
Federal Universal Service Fund administered by the Federal
Communications Commission.
The principles of reasonably comparable service at
reasonably comparable rates among urban and rural areas across
the country has guided U.S. telecom policy for decades. The USF
covers a portion of the costs of our network construction, but
also ongoing operations, maintenance, and upgrades so we can
keep our network on pace with what Americans in more urban
areas enjoy.
Thankfully, the constitutionality of the FCC's USF program
was recently upheld by the Supreme Court. In addition, grants
from programs like USDA's Reconnect Program created by Congress
in 2018 and now the BEAD program have and will provide us
opportunities to expand our network and services.
Lastly, as I alluded to earlier, having a broadband
connection is incredibly important, but it is also important
that it be affordable. As Congress looks to modernize USF,
finding a solution to the affordability question must be part
of that discussion.
I would like to extend an invitation to each of you to come
see us. We would love to introduce you to our small town
business owners that rely on high-speed internet to run their
successful businesses while living in an area that they choose
to live in.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify, and I look
forward to answering any questions you may have.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Great job.
I will now move to the Member questions under the five-
minute rule, and I will now recognize myself for five minutes.
Mr. Vander Werff, as a small business owner and farmer
myself, I understand that the right technology is crucial to
precision agriculture.
So my question is, how has limited or unreliable broadband
impacted your day-to-day operations?
Mr. VANDER WERFF. Well, thank you for that question, Mr.
Chairman.
The simple answer is we can't operate without it. From, as
some of the other folks described, complicated ag operations,
precision ag, monitoring our grain systems, things like that
require good, reliable, high-speed connectivity.
From our agribusiness perspective, we have had to
deliberately look to locate facilities in areas that have
access to cable internet. If we aren't able to do that, then we
are stuck using fixed point wireless or satellite systems, but
it just increases our costs much more greatly on that.
So it is definitely something that is a very, very critical
part of the overall picture of operating a successful
agricultural business today.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you. Now, this question is for
both Ms. Westbrock and Mr. Todd.
Rural communities aren't one size fits all when it comes to
connectivity. In your view, how important is it for federal
broadband programs to take a technology neutral approach, such
as allowing fiber, wireless, satellite, and other solutions to
compete based on what best fits each community's needs? Ms.
Westbrock?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Thank you, Mr. Williams. Yes. So we believe
that there is room for all technologies in networks, especially
when you are looking at how we can potentially serve
communities.
But in my professional opinion, fiber broadband is the
answer mostly because we know that it is scalable, and with the
AI explosion that we will see, the networks are going to have
to be that robust. I also want to make sure that in the BEAD
program that the dollars are spent well and that we are not
back asking for additional dollars because one of the
technologies didn't stand up for the long haul.
I believe in doing that with our taxpayers' dollars and
making the best investment when we can.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Good. Thank you. Mr. Todd, you want to
add to that?
Mr. TODD. Yes, Chairman. Thank you for the question. And I
would agree with Ms. Westbrock in that fiber is the preference,
and here is why. It is a generational investment.
When using federal funds to make an investment for
broadband connectivity, it is something that we want to stand
for generations. You know, we go back to the early, mid 1990s
with fiber infrastructure and it is still operating today.
However, we have used other technologies that in short periods
of time have to be fully replaced.
And so when you look at the reliability and the long-term
generational use of the investment, in my opinion, fiber is the
preference.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Let me move on, Mr. Todd. How do your
companies adapt their deployment strategies to account for
unique challenges of serving sparsely populated rural areas
where higher cost and terrain or geography may limit certain
technologies?
Mr. TODD. So we have been very fortunate to leverage
funding through grants from the federal government, as well as
the State Government. We have been able to expand our network
out to reach our neighbors.
So beyond our cooperative footprint, we have--you know, the
network is already in place. So being able to expand there is
less costly than if we were start a greenfield build in a
particular area.
So we continue edging out as we find funding to be able to
reach those sparsely populated areas because I am in a very ag-
heavy area. So ranches and farms are the biggest businesses in
Northwest Kansas, North Central Kansas. So with that, we expand
fiber to reach those businesses.
Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you. Ms. Westbrock, as a broadband
provider, what tools or approaches do you find most effective
in keeping service affordable for rural communities?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Yes. So from an affordability standpoint, we
specifically were users of the ACP program and find it
extremely beneficial during COVID. And so we--keeping it
affordable and giving the best technology solutions, we have to
also leverage our USF program, the grants that we get, all of
those pieces because that drives, too, the affordability and
the ability to offer the best services to our members for that
price.
Chairman WILLIAMS. In limited time, Mr. Todd, what
challenges have you faced with current mapping efforts?
Mr. TODD. With mapping, they continue to improve, but they
tend to be a snapshot in time. Not all information presented is
always accurate. It is probably worse on the mobile wireless
side than it is on the fixed side.
But there are improvements that we have seen in recent
years, and we hope to see continued improvements in mapping.
Chairman WILLIAMS. All right. Thank you. I yield back my
time.
And now I recognize the Ranking Member for five minutes of
questions.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Ms. Jackson-Furman, why doesn't rural broadband receive as
much investment from private industry as more urban areas?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Because it is a very high cost area to
serve, and it is very sparsely populated. For instance, we
serve 13 customers per square mile, and that drives the cost up
and makes it very expensive and less profitable.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. So there is no question that fairer funding
is needed to fill the gap?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. That is right.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Ms. Jackson-Furman, can you briefly walk us
through the pros and cons of using fiber and satellite for
broadband?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Sure. Thank you. Fiber is scalable, it
is reliable, and it is faster than satellite broadband. Right
now, the up-front cost to deploy, I know, is a point of
contention right now. But once the fiber is in the ground, it
is scalable because just the electronics on the end of the
fiber need to be upgraded to provide the needed bandwidth for
the future.
Satellite deployment, we have--they share spectrum. There
is only so much spectrum. Even if you launch more satellites,
it is a shared spectrum resource amongst different spectrum--or
satellite providers. So the throughput is not what it is with
fiber.
And then we have the issue of needing to replenish the
constellations every approximately five years with satellite,
and there are unknown environmental concerns with those
satellites coming back down and different things like that that
we don't understand yet.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. In fact, a recent study finds that
satellites fall below broadband standards when more than a
handful of users connect within a square mile.
Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to insert this study
into the record.
Chairman WILLIAMS. So moved.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Ms. Jackson-Furman, should satellites be the
exception, not the norm in bid projects?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Yes, ma'am, I agree with that. I think
that satellite has a place. Many times it is on things--mobile,
RVs, in boats, maybe very remote hunting lodges where there
isn't a lot of infrastructure, which those are far and few
between.
But I think there is a place for all the different
technologies. But whenever fiber is available and the funding
for fiber is available, absolutely, it should be fiber.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Why is it important to have a variety of
broadband programs serving different needs?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. The programs that I am familiar with,
Reconnect, Community Connect, BEAD, USF, they all have
different purposes. I think it is important that they not
overlap, but for instance, Reconnect, that is a--that helps
with the capital infrastructure cost, but also has a loan
component that might be beneficial for some companies to
utilize.
BEAD, that is 100 percent capital infrastructure. But USF,
it is unique in that it has got the component for maintenance,
upgrades, the long-term operation support. So we need the
different funding mechanisms to keep rural America connected.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. And it will help expand rural broadband
beyond what a single program could provide?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Yes, that is correct. I agree.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. How does the Universal Service Fund, USF,
keep your rates affordable and your model sustainable?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Well, it does in that it keeps rates
affordable because of the subsidies that we receive. It is
cross-subsidization, so that the urban areas and the rural
areas can have comparable services for comparable rates.
And so anybody in this room that has a cell phone helps
contribute to that fund. And then the funds are redistributed
so that rural America can benefit and stay connected just like
urban areas. So it is paramount in keeping rates affordable.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you. In June, the Supreme Court
rejected a challenge to the USF funding mechanism, letting the
FCC continue its programs.
What does that mean for co-ops like yours?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. It means everything. It allows us to
stay on cutting-edge technology. It allows us to keep our
networks upgraded, maintained, expansion potentially. It is the
difference between operating and not operating.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The lady yields back.
I now recognize Mr. Meuser from the great State of
Pennsylvania for five minutes.
Mr. MEUSER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, very much. And thanks
very much to our witnesses. Certainly, a very important
subject.
I travel my district, I travel my state, and sadly, here in
2025, maybe 20 percent of my district has very poor broadband
service, and it is ridiculous. There is a lot of money going
towards it, federal money, state money. The management of it is
awful.
I know in Pennsylvania, our current Governor set up an
initiative three years ago--two years ago that sounded good but
really accomplished nothing. Nothing has improved, but I am not
just going to blame--blame our State leadership. I mean, this
has been the case--this should have been improved five years
ago, ten years ago.
So that is why--now, Ms. Westbrock, in your State of
Minnesota, let me just ask. On a scale of 1 to 10--because a
lot of money goes towards this, I mean, $1.5 billion.
And I know how our Democrat colleagues say we just need
more money, just give us more money. That is great. Okay. But
nothing is improving with the money that has gone.
Now, there has been $1.5 billion sent to Pennsylvania over
the last years, and, again, zero improvement. How is Kansas
developing--excuse me, Minnesota.
Ms. WESTBROCK. Yeah. So, in Minnesota I would say that our
Office of Broadband has done a remarkable job in our State
grant programs. I believe they have been allocated extremely
well, although I will say that there are providers that take
the money, and then they don't build out the--they say they are
going to do it, and then three years later, people are still
waiting for that.
Mr. MEUSER. They go where the money is.
Ms. WESTBROCK. Absolutely.
Mr. MEUSER. They can do more--right. So the language is
written terribly for rural broadband. It is not restrictive
enough. So you give it a good rating. Go on.
Ms. WESTBROCK. I give our office a good rating. I would say
this, that we have to be very careful, again, of who is getting
that money. If you look across the country in rural communities
where there are cooperatives and family owns that are local to
those communities, that money is being spent correctly.
When you start looking at how it goes into certain
corporations, that is when things start to--start to stray a
little, in all honesty, and so----
Mr. MEUSER. Thank you. Mr. Todd, same question.
Mr. TODD. In Kansas, the KOBD has managed federal funds
that have been allocated to the State, and I would say a
majority of those programs are--projects have been fiber-based.
Now, I won't say that all of them have been fiber-based. I
would like to say that most were the case. The fiber
infrastructure is what will last, and that is what makes the
difference.
Mr. MEUSER. Is that a lot more money?
Mr. TODD. It does cost more money, yes, sir. And in order
to reach customers that are not connected, I understand the
need for fixed wireless or other means, just as was described
earlier.
But at the end of the day, whenever a fiber project can be
funded, that makes the difference.
Mr. MEUSER. Mr. Werff, I am going to get to you in a
second. What else is holding it back besides the misallocation?
You know, there are some that say the prevailing wage
issues in states like Pennsylvania, some of the deregulation
that is taking place under the Trump administration should
improve things.
Mr. Werff, I will turn to you with that. What are the
issues standing in the way besides the misallocation of federal
funds and state funds that truly are allocated for rural
broadband?
Mr. VANDER WERFF. Well, Congressman, I am not a person who
installs rural broadband, so I can't speak too much to that.
But from the boots-on-the-ground perspective as an enduser, I
think it is just the complexity of it.
People have mentioned terrain, and a lot of parts in
Michigan, it is very hilly. So point to point becomes more of
an issue.
So it is just a matter of getting those projects funded,
getting these things going, and getting the cable into the
ground, for lack of a better way to put it.
Mr. MEUSER. We have the same issue in my district, the
hills. That is what you hear, and that is where, of course,
fiber would come in and overcome that issue.
Is that your thought as well in Kansas?
Mr. TODD. Well, fortunately, we don't have the mountains to
deal with in Kansas. We have the Flint Hills in the eastern
part of the state, but quite honestly, fiber does overcome
those challenges wherever you can deploy it.
Mr. MEUSER. Okay. Ms. Furman, do you have anything to say
on this broad question?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Sure. I will just add that we are
working in four states: Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and
Alabama. And I commend all four broadband offices for working
very, very hard. They have been given a hard task, and they
have worked very hard to execute.
A few of the things that we run into that cause delays are
occasionally permitting issues, railroads especially,
sometimes, you know, and I am absolutely for environmental
review----
Mr. MEUSER. Sorry. Thank you. I have run out of time.
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Oh, okay.
Mr. MEUSER. I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
I now recognize Mr. McGarvey from the great State of
Kentucky for five minutes.
Mr. MCGARVEY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I want to first welcome my fellow Kentuckian, Ms. Jackson-
Furman. Thank you for being here today, and welcome to the
Small Business Committee.
I am really grateful for all the work that you are doing to
expand broadband access in the Commonwealth of Kentucky,
especially in our hardest-to-reach places. So thank you for
that.
This is a pretty bipartisan issue, I think. I know that
everybody in America wants reliable, affordable connectivity to
the internet. As a parent where school just started, literally
everything your kids now do is online. This is not a want. This
is a need to have affordable connectivity throughout this
country.
And it wasn't so long ago that Democrats and Republicans
actually came together and worked on this with the Affordable
Connectivity Program, which gave internet access to one in four
Kentucky families and 23 million households across the country.
But the Republicans did let that program expire last year, and
I still hear from constituents for whom that program was a
lifeline, a connection to their doctor, to their school, to
their kids' activities, to homework, to work. That is now gone.
So Republicans and Democrats came together and created the
BEAD program, too, which Ms. Jackson-Furman correctly noted in
her testimony will bring broadband to 2100 underserved Kentucky
locations. This is what BEAD was designed for, making it easier
for co-ops like WK&T to go into the hardest-to-connect places
and deliver on that last mile.
But in June, the Trump administration abruptly reworked the
BEAD program requirements, creating chaos for State broadband
programs, offices, small service providers, and communities
that were about to get reliable internet for the first time.
So, Ms. Jackson-Furman, we will start there and just say,
tell us about what the Trump administration's changes on the
BEAD program meant to you and the people for whom you provided
internet.
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Thank you. The biggest thing that it
meant to companies like me is removing the fiber preference and
allowing satellite to compete on equal footing and then fixed
wireless too, specifically satellite, though. I know they have
put in a lot of applications for a lot of locations.
So what that means for me, I think we fared pretty well in
our application area in Kentucky through a consortium that we
are involved with. But in Tennessee where we applied for
funding, we lost locations that were awarded to satellite. And
I say that--satellite was the only other applicant in that
area, so I am assuming they were awarded to satellite because
they weren't awarded to WK&T with fiber technology. So that was
the biggest impact.
Mr. MCGARVEY. And I am hearing from everybody's testimony
up here--again, the goal is to get internet to people who need
it, right? I am hearing from everybody up here that this
preference for satellite makes it less reliable for people to
get internet.
Is anybody disagreeing with that right now? Great. Silence
is an answer.
So there is a really well-known entrepreneur from my
hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, David Jones, Sr. And he once
said: Quality is often the most affordable thing you can do. So
fiber is a better quality than satellite, it lasts longer than
satellite, and even though it might be more expensive up front,
is what I am understanding that it is cheaper over the long
term and better for the people who need it, Mr. Todd?
Mr. TODD. In our experience, what we have seen is that the
investment, when you look at the operating as well as the
capital investments, over a 10-year period, you end up being in
a better position with underground fiber.
Mr. MCGARVEY. And isn't that what we should be looking at
is where are we in the best position for both the people of the
country and for taxpayers' money with this program?
Mr. TODD. Absolutely.
Mr. MCGARVEY. Okay. That helps. And it is working better in
the areas that most need it, right? Those hard-to-reach areas
where sometimes in the mountains of East Kentucky or wherever
you are, satellite might not be as reliable, this gets it there
and over the long run is cheaper, it is better for people.
And I would love to see us go do that to deliver on that
bipartisan goal of making sure everybody in this country is
connected to the internet.
In an urban district like mine, a lot of people don't
really struggle with broadband access. It is the affordability
of broadband right now. And the Affordable Connectivity Program
made it just a little bit easier for families struggling to put
food on the table to get by, to have internet.
I just want to ask, Ms. Jackson-Furman--you have got 20
seconds--what does it mean in rural communities and what is
happening now that the funding is gone?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Well, the ACP program definitely helped
people connect, stay connected. And now that it is gone, they
have been disconnected in many cases. And that is it in a
nutshell.
Mr. MCGARVEY. You did it in under 20 seconds. Thank you so
much.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
I now recognize Mr. Finstad from the great State of
Minnesota for five minutes.
Mr. FINSTAD. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to welcome Ms.
Westbrock to the Committee. As a fellow Minnesotan, I just want
to say thank you. Thank you for what you do for our neighbors.
And for the Committee, what she does for our neighbors is--
there is no cookie-cutter approach.
Every hookup that you provide, every high-speed internet
access point that you provide, you are going through lakes, you
are going through rocks, you are going through forests. You
live in a gnarly part of the state when it comes to not a
direct A-to-B-type hookup. So thank you for being creative and
figuring it out.
You know, access to high-speed internet is the great
equalizer in rural America. It provides opportunities for our
small businesses to, you know, really be competitive globally.
And without that access, we lose opportunities in rural
America.
And one of the things that I have heard from small
businesses across Minnesota is really just understanding the
maps. You know, we see the different maps, whether it is from
the State broadband office, whether it is from the federal
level.
As a small business is looking at locating or expanding or,
you know, really trying to figure out where they can play in
that global economy, you look at one map and says, well, this
area has, you know, great access to high-speed internet. And
then you set up shop, and you realize you don't.
So from your perspective, just give me the lay of the land
in regards to the mapping of what we in government, you know,
think to believe to be true versus what is on the ground a
reality.
Ms. WESTBROCK. Sure. Thank you. Across our service
territory, we receive requests on a daily basis from business
owners wondering if we are going to build in their area because
they don't have access to a good connection. We immediately go
to the maps to look and see if there is any opportunity to be
able to build to them using a federal program or a state
program.
And when we go there and look, they show that they are
served. And this happens probably eight out of the ten times
that someone calls in. And the reason that they are showing
served is because people are overreporting their data,
companies are overreporting. And at specific locations, they
may serve someone in that area, but they are reported in the
entire census block.
So, for us, I would say we--we really are worried that this
money is being spent, and grant programs are being created
based on incorrect data.
Mr. FINSTAD. So on that point, where does the buck stop for
the overreporting, the inaccuracies?
Because, I mean, to a certain extent, if you were an
outsider looking in, you would say, well, that is a bunch of
malarkey, that is fraud, that is misrepresenting where the
federal dollars are going, and it is not the reality that we
see.
So where does the buck stop on that?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Sure. So I think that the buck has to stop
on that we need to put serious consequences in for chronic
overreporting on this map data because until that happens, I
don't see it getting corrected because what it does is it opens
up those areas, then, for a provider like us to come in and use
federal dollars to be able to build in that area. And those
providers do not want that to happen.
Mr. FINSTAD. So as has been stated earlier, I mean, I think
this issue is a very bipartisan issue. I think you will see
support on both sides of the aisle.
I think where we can probably really hone in to make sure
the dollars are getting to where they need to go is if we just
start with the maps and be honest with ourselves about--we are
not just going to keep throwing money against the wall and
relying on maps that aren't accurate because, at the end of the
day, if you are in that area that the map says you are getting
the service, but you know in reality you are not, we are
throwing good money at bad. And so I think that is one area for
us to start.
I hear it from our small businesses all the time, that
they--depending on what map they look at, they say they are
covered, but the reality is they are not. And it has to be
frustrating not just from a small business perspective, but for
a provider like you that is trying to do well and trying to
really get to that farmer at the end of that three-mile gravel
road that on paper might say they have service, but they don't.
So I think that is one of the areas that we can really dig
into here in Congress to try to figure out how do we do better
with the dollars that we are spending to make sure we are
actually getting to that farmer at the end of the three-mile
road.
And I just, again, want to thank you for what you do for
our neighbors. I know that--like I said, not--not two projects
are alike, but you are a problem solver and you are really
trying to do good for our neighbors, and I appreciate you being
here.
Mr. Chair, I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
I now recognize Mr. Cisneros from the great State of
California for five minutes.
Mr. CISNEROS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Like several have already shared today, I believe we are at
an inflection point, much like electricity in the early 20th
century, internet access is a foundational technology in the
21st century.
Every house and small business across this great nation
should have access to the internet, not just in urban
communities, but in rural communities too. It is becoming more
important as our country increasingly relies on the internet
for information, economic growth, and communication.
Just earlier this year, the Trump administration attempted
to eliminate many Social Security services over the phone,
essentially pushing seniors in rural areas to rely on the
current access to internet or travel long distances to a field
office. This highlights how access to broadband is not only
critical for small businesses, but for the broader communities.
For small businesses, there is no doubt internet access can
foster growth and enhance capabilities to succeed in this
digital economy. I am eager to work with my colleagues across
the aisle to ensure all Americans have access to high-speed and
affordable broadband.
With that, Ms. Jackson-Furman, I would like to ask you,
private sector plays a key role in building out broadband
access.
Do you have any notes for this Committee on how the federal
government can accelerate private investment or improve
collaboration within the private sector to ensure underserved
areas have the access to internet they need?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. I think that private investment is
extremely important. I know that we have had many collaborative
efforts with local governments. We have had partnerships with
local counties, local municipalities. It all comes down to
money.
But I think that the private investment from co-ops and
other companies, coupled with these other local investments are
what really makes it work whenever there is a lack of federal
funding.
Mr. CISNEROS. All right. So how can we use the federal
funding that is out there? Is there any changes that we need to
make to the current system right now to help the private sector
continue to invest in this?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Well, I think making the funding
available is key. I think that is kind of what we have heard
across the panel this morning. Making--the funding and the
different funding mechanisms need to remain because they all
have different goals, and they contribute to the success of
connectivity in rural America in different ways.
So continuing the funding, the USF programs, the Reconnect
programs, the--make sure the BEAD money is allocated and spent
and put into service. Those are all very important to get rural
America connected and stay connected.
Mr. CISNEROS. All right. Thank you very much.
Mr. Vander Werff, your parallel between electricity and
broadband is actually what I was thinking when I heard the
topic for this hearing.
With ongoing conversations about next generation internet
technologies, what would be the impact of a wired digital
divide on small town America if we don't start making
improvements now?
Mr. VANDER WERFF. Thank you, Congressman. That divide is
only going to continue to increase. And being someone who lives
in a rural community, has grown up and lived there for
generations, one of the big things that we see is the number of
young people that continue to leave our communities. And if we
want to have rural America continue to exist, to be quite
direct about it, for another two or three generations, we have
to give young people an incentive to want to stay there.
And if they can't further their education, if they can't
access online job opportunities, things like that, that divide
is only going to continue to grow and continue to erode rural
America.
Mr. CISNEROS. Well, thank you for that answer.
Ms. Jackson-Furman, another question for you. Once networks
are built, how important is it to ensure our families and
businesses can afford to connect to these networks?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. It is very important. I think that
whenever connectivity is ubiquitous, all boats rise in a
community. There is opportunities for remote work, remote
education, which oftentimes lead to career positions and remote
work and sustainability of families in rural America. So it is
extremely important.
Mr. CISNEROS. All right. Well, thank you all for being here
today.
And like my colleagues have said, right, this is a
bipartisan issue. It is something that all of America needs no
matter whether you live in the urban areas, like my district
is, or in rural America.
This is what drives our economy now. This is how we
communicate, and this is how we do business. And if we don't
make these investments and if we don't support these efforts to
ensure that everybody has access to this, it is only going to
leave people behind.
You know, I think in our day and age right now, we would
never stand for anybody living in a house or being anywhere
without electricity or running water in their house, and I
think we have to feel the same way right now today about
internet connectivity.
So with that, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
I now recognize Mr. Stauber from the great State of
Minnesota for 5 minutes.
Mr. STAUBER. Thank you, Chairman Williams and Ranking
Member Velazquez for holding this hearing today.
You know, in rural Minnesota broadband isn't a luxury. It's
actually a matter of survival. I have heard from businesses
across my district in all the counties and small communities
who are trying to serve their communities by running
restaurants, farms, auto shops, and much more. Yet they can't
reliably upload a payroll file or process a credit card when a
snowstorm knocks out their satellite service.
It is 2025, and this can't be accepted as the status quo
for our rural communities. Connectivity is no longer optional,
and right now federal broadband programs are too duplicative,
too bureaucratic, and too slow to deliver results for main
street.
Ms. Westbrock, you know this better than most. You serve
rural Minnesotans every day through CTC. Could you speak to the
regulatory roadblocks like permitting delays and redundant
reporting that hinder your ability to build and connect our
communities?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Thank you.
It is our primarily roadblock during construction season of
getting the permitting approved. And so, in one really specific
example, as you know, we hope that we can start building in
April, and we hope that we can go to mid-October, but then our
construction season is over.
So, when we have 6-month delays for soil testing, that
causes our project to get pushed back another year. And then we
wait another 6 months for the State to approve it. We are now
pushed back 2 years on that project only because of the delays
in permitting.
Mr. STAUBER. And the 2 years, it becomes more expensive
every year you delay.
Ms. WESTBROCK. Absolutely.
Mr. STAUBER. In your testimony, you also mentioned the
importance of the Universal Service Fund in helping maintain
affordable service for rural areas. That is an issue that I
have worked on with you directly, and I signed onto the amicus
brief defending the USF before the Supreme Court, and I was
glad to see the court ruled in our favor preserving this
essential program.
Can you expand on why the USF is so critical to rural
broadband operations and what you believe Congress should do to
help modernize and sustain it.
Ms. WESTBROCK. Sure. And thank you for signing onto that
brief. That was a very important time for us.
There are several pieces of legislation right now. The Fair
Contributions Act, Lowering Broadband Costs for Consumers Act,
and then the USF working group that are working on updating
programs which would put USF on more stable footing. Failing to
address these concerns will accelerate the declining pool of
resources available for USF.
And for us specifically, we work very, very hard to not be
dependent on it. I mean, we are building out and diversifying
our business all the time, but at the end of the day, our
business is still over 20 percent dependent on USF, and that
number for many co-ops is a low percentage.
But without that, we cut jobs. We cut services. Our
networks don't stay as reliable. So USF does have to have
reform.
Mr. STAUBER. I actually went out and toured one of your
sites there. Incredible people, incredible leadership, and
trying to spice up fiber. I mean, it is just an amazing
process, and I was very happy to be there just outside
Brainerd.
And finally, in your testimony, you provide some specific
examples of how broadband service has helped small businesses
in our community. Can you talk about what broadband service
technology you believe is most beneficial to meet the needs of
small businesses in our rural communities?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Yes, and I would love to give you a specific
example. 7Sigma Systems is a company that is located in
Brainerd, Minnesota. They have 25 employees, but they run a
software company. That software company touches millions of end
users on our fiber network.
And just to take into account the 25 employees they have,
they have no brick and mortar, and so those 25 employees are in
States like Georgia, Indiana, Wisconsin, Texas, Iowa, and they
are all operating--all of those employees have to have reliable
network in order to support that.
And so that business is so exciting because those people
can live where they want to live and have the jobs that they
have for a livelihood there.
But we believe in fiber, Representative Stauber.
Mr. STAUBER. Yes, you know, representing a rural community,
that is a quality of life issue. If you talk to realtors, I
mean, the first thing people ask us: Is it a reliable service?
That is a huge component to the economies that are going to
drive new home buildings, first time home ownership in rural
America.
I remember we held a hearing in Scandia, Minnesota. We
talked to a business owner who said he would have never located
there had he realized there wasn't the reliable service.
So we can't hear that. Small businesses are the engine of
our economy, and you helped make our economy better by laying
that fiber so we can go into greater America and enjoy our
quality of life.
Mr. Chair, that is it and I yield back.
Ms. WESTBROCK. Thank you.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
I now recognize Dr. Morrison from the great State of
Minnesota for 5 minutes.
Ms. MORRISON. Thank you, Chairman Williams and Ranking
Member Velazquez for holding this hearing, and thanks to our
witnesses for being here and taking the time.
A quick shout out, of course, to my fellow Minnesotan, Ms.
Westbrock. I love all the Minnesota representation in the House
today, Mr. Chair. Thank you.
While I was home in Minnesota in August, I had the pleasure
of meeting with many small businesses from around my district.
We all know small business plays a vital role in our economy,
and their entrepreneurial spirit helps them devise innovative
solutions to the unpredictable challenges that are thrown their
way.
One of the critical tools that help our small businesses
innovate and modernize is, of course, broadband internet. So
many aspects of our lives, such as e-commerce, education, and
healthcare now rely on having reliable high-speed internet
service.
As a physician myself, telehealth enabled me to continue to
connect with and care for my patients during the pandemic, and
since then telehealth flexibilities have continued to play a
crucial role in ensuring patients are able to access the care
they need, especially in rural areas.
Telehealth options fill a gap in areas where in-person care
is limited or specialty care is unavailable, but to access
these services, patients and providers have to have reliable
broadband connections.
So with that in mind, Ms. Jackson-Furman, do you have
suggestions on ways that the USF can be improved to ensure that
rural healthcare providers have the broadband capabilities
needed to provide telehealth care?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Well, we have got specific programs
within USF that are designed for specific initiatives, such as
E-Rate and other health services. So I think that if that were
a priority, I think that potentially a specific fund could be
set aside for something like that.
But in the greater realm, if the BEAD funds are expended
the way that they are supposed to be expended to achieve what
they are supposed to achieve, we should have connectivity. It
is an internet for all program, right, and we think that there
may be holes left post BEAD that reconnect and different
funding mechanisms can help fill.
But I think that all of that has to do with deploying the
facilities and then having specific USF programs to help people
stay connected and to continue to maintain those networks going
forward.
Ms. MORRISON. Thank you. I appreciate that answer.
In June, the Trump administration issued a policy notice
making substantive changes to the BEAD program. One of the most
significant changes was deprioritizing the installation of
highly reliable fiber-optic cables and allowing funding to go
to satellite broadband technology providers. This change opened
the way for Starlink, America's largest satellite broadband
provider and a subsidiary of SpaceX to receive funds for BEAD
projects.
Ms. Jackson-Furman, again to you. Can you discuss the
impact of those changes?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Sure.
The biggest impact for providers such as WK&T was losing
the fiber preference and allowing fixed wireless and satellite
specifically to compete for the funds. The short answer is that
it will create a landscape of haves and have-nots for fiber
connectivity, which is faster, more reliable, and scalable. So
some folks will be left with an inferior service, and that is
unfortunate.
So a specific impact to WK&T is we lost the opportunity to
serve serviceable locations that we would have otherwise served
with fiber.
Ms. MORRISON. That is concerning. Thank you. And good to
know.
I, of course, would be remiss if I didn't mention that
Starlink is owned by Elon Musk, and these changes made by the
Trump administration came shortly after Mr. Musk's tenure as a,
quote, special government employee.
In the lead up to the passage of the budget reconciliation
bill, the majority attempted to condition BEAD funding on
States agreeing to not regulate artificial intelligence for 10
years. I am concerned about how this would threaten online
safety, jeopardize data privacy, and spread misinformation.
But I would like to hear from you, Ms. Jackson-Furman, on
how linking program funding to an unrelated condition might
hinder broadband deployment.
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. In my opinion, AI is a separate issue
from BEAD funding, and they shouldn't be linked at all. AI,
obviously, is a tool that we all use in day-to-day life, and it
is exciting and it is new. I think that it does need to have
some boundaries on the sides of it to make sure it is used
appropriately. But, ultimately, I believe BEAD funding and AI
are completely unlinked.
Ms. MORRISON. I agree with you. Thank you, Ms. Jackson-
Furman.
And thank you, Mr. Chair, and our witnesses. I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The lady yields back.
And it is like being at the Minnesota State Fair with all
of these Minnesotans here today.
I now recognize Mr. Alford from the great State of Missouri
for 5 minutes.
Mr. ALFORD. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am not from Minnesota,
but another ``M'' State, Missouri. Good to have you with us.
I have the honor of representing Missouri's Fourth
Congressional District, largely rural, 24 counties in the heart
of Missouri and the heart of America.
Right now 15 federal agencies with more than 100 different
programs have been working to try to make sure that every
American has access to broadband. Despite this, I meet folks
each and every time I am back in the district, and they ask me
one thing: When are we getting broadband?
Farmers cannot use modern technology. Families cannot
access telemedicine. Small businesses are not willing to
relocate to rural areas because they don't have the tools
necessary to conduct small business in 2025. Many of my
constituents lack the rural broadband, about 70,000 families.
That is a lot. And this is despite billions of dollars being
spent on attempts to expand rural broadband, including the most
recent trench of $42 billion from the Biden administration's
Infrastructure and Jobs Act.
It is unacceptable in my opinion that 7 million homes and
businesses primarily in rural areas like Central Missouri still
lack access to rural broadband.
Ms. Westbrock, thank you for being here today. Billions of
taxpayer dollars, as we have said, have already been spent on
broadband expansion, and yet rural communities still do not
have adequate access. Why is that?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Well, I will give you my professional
opinion on that. I believe that the reason that they don't have
access yet is because the way certain programs have been
administered, that the programs have given money to companies
that don't follow through on the work that they say they are
going to do or they take shortcuts. They don't put in the
robust connections that should be put in and then they are
lacking that connectivity still in rural America.
And we see it over and over with large corporations that
say X and they don't do X, and that is very concerning when you
live in small rural communities, and you hear that often.
Mr. ALFORD. Are there any consequences to that lack of
fulfillment for what they are really charged with doing with
the federal government's money?
Ms. WESTBROCK. I am unaware of any.
Mr. ALFORD. Mr. Todd, you are the CEO of Nex-Tech, a
company bringing fiber to rural communities in nearby Kansas.
Given your advocacy for broadband funding reform, what
legislative or regulatory burden do you believe most slows
deployment in areas like my district?
Mr. TODD. Thank you for the question.
And I would say what would slow things down is generally
the permitting process. As you know, there are different levels
of permitting and right-of-way access that must be navigated.
You have got different programs within the federal government
which are not in sync, but you also have State and county and
municipality codes that you have to work with. All of those can
present delays in getting the permitting necessary to build out
a project. That leads to delays and increased cost,
unfortunately.
Mr. ALFORD. As I stated, more than 100 programs have been
set up to try to get rural broadband to everyone. Can you
explain how a streamlined effort could help providers and their
customers in rural communities? I assume some of this would be
overcoming some of the regulations that are stifling the growth
of expansion.
Mr. TODD. I believe consistency would simplify things.
Streamlining and consistency would make a difference. When a
different program follows different rules and how you approach
not only presenting a project but being approved and then
acting on it, then that creates complications. So uniformity
and consistency would be a great help.
Mr. ALFORD. Mr. Werff, we have 1 minute left.
There are thousands of folks just like you in my district
who are forced to adapt and attempt to run their small
businesses without full access to broadband. How has this lack
of access to broadband, how has that affected your business?
Mr. VANDER WERFF. Thank you for the question.
We have been fortunate so far that we have been able to
locate facilities and locate people in areas where we have
access to at least something as far as broadband goes, but an
overarching part of this conversation is not just broadband but
cellular access because oftentimes--for example, our billing
and software and everything for our Ag retail facilities, those
orders are all taken on iPad. So either it is a hot spot or
cellular connectivity, but the software itself is based in
Illinois and operates all on cloud.
So we can't operate without high-speed reliable internet,
and so occasionally that forces us to reconsider where we want
to locate a facility.
Mr. ALFORD. Thank you. Thank you all for your answers and
for being here today.
And I yield back, Chairman.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
And I now recognize Mr. Tran from the great State of
California for 5 minutes.
Mr. TRAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Ms. Westbrock, last year your company CTC announced a
partnership with the Communications Workers of America to
create the first broadband center apprenticeship program for
Minnesota and other States in the region. How beneficial are
programs like these to both workers and providers like yours?
Ms. WESTBROCK. It is extremely important, especially in
rural communities, that we can provide young--new workers
coming into programs with the apprenticeship program.
In this case, we had a tremendous experience in working
with the CWA. We had our first two that graduated from the
apprenticeship program. They both came straight out of high
school into the apprenticeship program and are already working
in a great job with great income.
So, it has been super successful, and my thanks to CWA for
working with us.
Mr. TRAN. That is so good to hear.
How can the federal government better maintain and expand
its support for registered broadband apprenticeship programs
like yours?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Funding. Funding mechanisms are needed.
Today that program is really grassroots, and we are trying to
fund it ourselves with them and us involved, but we just--we
need more help, and we need more awareness of how helpful these
apprenticeship programs are.
Mr. TRAN. I agree with that. Thank you for your testimony.
For both Ms. Jackson-Furman and Ms. Westbrock, for more
than 30 years the Universal Service Fund has been a critical
federal program for working families, ensuring millions of
Americans have access to broadband in the most rural and
underserved areas in California and across the country.
Reliable high-speed internet connection isn't a luxury, and
it is vital to how modern small businesses operate. Thankfully,
SCOTUS upheld the constitutionality of the program, but now
Congress must look toward improving the program.
Ms. Jackson-Furman first. In your respective written
testimony, you highlighted the importance of Universal Service
Fund. Could you first discuss how Congress could modernize and
strengthen the Universal Service Fund and ensure it continues
to meet the evolving connectivity needs of all Americans?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Yes. Thank you.
So major modernization does need to happen in the funding
mechanism piece of that. So the base needs to be broadened for
who contributes to the fund. Right now the majority of the
funding comes from long distance services on voice bills, and
that pool of revenue is ever retracting.
And so the FUSF factor is exceeding 36 percent. So I think
it will go to 39 percent for the fourth quarter of this year.
That is not sustainable.
So expanding the base contribution to edge providers and
all ISP providers would bolster the fund, make the support
predictable for the foreseeable future, and help us all operate
with confidence when we are making 20-year investments.
Mr. TRAN. Amazing.
Ms. Westbrock, anything to add?
Ms. WESTBROCK. I would just add that the modernization of
USF is critical for our rural communities to have that support.
Mr. TRAN. Thank you so much for your testimony and for all
the witnesses for being here.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
I now recognize Mr. Downing from the great State of Montana
for 5 minutes.
Mr. DOWNING. Mr. Chair, thank you very much for holding
this. Thank you, witnesses, for being here.
My home State of Montana is one of the least densely
populated places in the country. We have really, really long
roads, and we lag behind the rest of the country in broadband
access. Only 73 percent of our households have access, which is
below the national average of about 95 percent.
This lack of access sets back rural job creators competing
in our modern economy. Reliable connection to the internet is
crucial for small businesses to market their products, to
recruit talent, and, you know, effectively run their
operations.
So this one is to the whole panel. From your experience
both as broadband providers and as rural businessowners, what
impacts have you seen broadband expansion have on making rural
small businesses more viable for outside investments? I will
open that to the panel.
Ms. Westbrock?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Yes. I would like to specifically talk about
Nature Link, which is a company that is in our service
territory. They are a small resort, and they have the ability
to hold corporate functions there. When they went into that
area, the services that were there weren't what they needed to
attract those large conferences to their resort, and so once we
got the connectivity there, they were able to start booking
those, and now we are bringing in those dollars into our local
economy.
Mr. DOWNING. Thank you.
Anyone else? Mr. Todd?
Mr. TODD. Thank you, sir.
With regard to entrepreneurship, we have seen the ability
for young people or folks that are interested in starting and
growing a business facilitated by fiber broadband capabilities,
and without that, they would be somewhere else. They choose our
area because of the infrastructure that we have, the
connectivity that they can have access to.
So small businesses grow. Entrepreneurs are able to start
businesses, and it just continues to benefit the community as a
whole.
Mr. DOWNING. Right. Thank you.
Mr. Vander Werff?
Mr. VANDER WERFF. Thank you, Congressman.
I think the thing to recognize from my perspective on this
issue as a small business owner, you know, oftentimes when we
think about business growth with internet connectivity, it is
sort of the big sexy things like starting an e-commerce
business or a web-based business.
But in reality, it is your local HVAC contractor. It is the
local lumbar yard simply being able to go on LinkedIn and look
for employees. It is being able to run payroll software. It's
being able to order parts and services off the internet.
It is not necessarily a necessity to have for a business to
be able to create a digital storefront. It is just a necessity
of having a cloud-based business. I mean, you can't even get
QuickBooks as a desktop software anymore. It is all cloud-
based, and if you don't have some kind of 5G or higher
connectivity, it is not going to work.
Mr. DOWNING. Something to add, Ms. Jackson-Furman?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. We had a seed company that was a large
user of our data services, and they attracted outside
investment, and they were bought by a much bigger company, a
worldwide company. So that is opportunity. It brings
opportunity for folks to grow when they have access to the
worldwide stage to our fiber connectivity.
Mr. DOWNING. Right. I appreciate that.
You know, it is important to me that we have access for
entrepreneurs that are in less served areas, which is, you
know, a big part of my State, making sure that we have the
connectivity and can attract the financing because that is,
obviously, a key part to that.
So, you know, I introduced earlier this year the Expanding
Access to Capital for Rural Job Creators Act trying to solve
some of these problems, but a big part is this connectivity as
well.
But in the interest of time, I am going to move on to a
different topic on, you know, the impact of broadband on
farming. You know, farming is a crucial sector in rural
economies across our country, including, you know, in Montana.
I am in the central and eastern part of the State.
Small farmers and ranchers are increasingly reliant on
high-tech methods and machinery in order to remain competitive.
Precision agriculture tools like, you know, GPS, autonomous
equipment, drones, soil sensors, all of these depend on
broadband for accessing data and operating effectively.
So I will start with Mr. Vander Werff. Has unreliable
broadband limited your ability to adopt these tools on your
farm in rural Michigan?
Mr. VANDER WERFF. It has created challenges for us to do
so. You have to remember when we are creating data out in the
field, we are creating terabytes of data at a time, and that
data, even if it is remotely uplinked to a cloud-based server,
as a lot of it is, you then have to be able to access that.
So even if I have great connectivity through cellular on
the equipment, I still have to have a broadband connection at
my office or this data is useless to me.
Mr. DOWNING. Right. We are seeing more and more demand for
this. And, unfortunately, I could go deep into this, but I have
run out of time.
So on that, Mr. Chair, I yield back.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentleman yields back.
I now recognize Ms. Goodlander from the great State of New
Hampshire for 5 minutes.
Ms. GOODLANDER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to
our witnesses for being here today for this important hearing.
We are all back from our districts. I spent 40 days and 40
nights pounding the pavement across New Hampshire, and the
issue of reliable, affordable internet access came up pretty
much everywhere I went.
In conversations with family farmers--and I am grateful
that you are here today to help us dig in on that front--rural
entrepreneurs, small businesses of all kinds, you know, in New
Hampshire, in my district, a lot of the challenge comes from we
see just a situation where we have got weather-dependent
reliability when it comes to the internet.
We had an opportunity through the Bipartisan Infrastructure
Bill, which paved the way for my State to really deliver
broadband across the board. $191 million has been put on the
table for the State of New Hampshire.
Our State, on a bipartisan basis, as we always work, put
together a great 5-year plan. And just last month, changes to
the BEAD program, which is really the lifeline for my State. To
be able to achieve what we all want to see, which is universal
broadband access that is reliable and affordable, the BEAD
program is critical to that.
Ms. Jackson-Furman, I know you have applied for--and the
other witnesses, have you all applied for BEAD grants or worked
with the program?
So I just want to ask--and, Mr. Chairman, I would like to
enter into the record a letter I wrote to Secretary Lutnick
last month about this specifically. Thank you very much. It
hasn't received a response yet.
We have an opportunity here with this $191 million in the
State of New Hampshire. We've got a great plan. It was already
approved. It is waiting for us and waiting for the grantees
across my State who have gone through a lot of trouble to
navigate complicated federal programs. And I am all for cutting
the red tape and waste, fraud, and abuse wherever we can find
it.
But Ms. Jackson-Furman, can you tell us a little bit about
your experience with the BEAD program and what it means for the
goal we all want to achieve?
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. Sure. Thank you.
The BEAD program is--the fiber preference was removed. I
know I said that before, but that was a really large issue for
us, providers like us in rural America, the fiber preference
being removed.
While we think there is a place for all technologies, fixed
wireless and satellite alike, fiber technology is considered
the future-proof technology with the full scaleability and
robust reliability that fixed wireless and satellite do not
offer.
So it makes sense to spend the dollars in a program like
BEAD to provide sure connectivity as opposed to taking a gamble
on what might be, and so I think that creating a system where
not everybody has access to the same technology is unfortunate.
Ms. GOODLANDER. Ms. Westbrock, can you talk a little bit
about your experience with BEAD and what disruptions you have
seen in this freeze on federal funds?
Ms. WESTBROCK. Sure.
So, the BEAD program has been complicated as a provider to
navigate. We have spent many nights working on a BEAD
application. We are recently preliminarily awarded the $20
million, but if that fiber preference wouldn't have changed, I
believe that we would have been awarded much more than that.
We didn't apply for certain areas specifically because we
knew that the match that we had would not be the match that we
would need to have without being able to get a waiver. So we
chose not to apply in certain areas.
Ms. GOODLANDER. We welcome all of your ideas on how we can
make these programs work better.
I have got a bill, a bipartisan bill with Congressman Wied,
the Office of Rural Affairs Enhancement Act. It is an office
within this Small Business Administration. I wanted to--I have
got 30 seconds left--ask our witnesses just if anyone has
thoughts on how the SBA can be a more effective force
multiplier and operator in helping to connect rural small
businesses with what is theirs, these federal programs and
funding streams. I would welcome your ideas since we are, after
all, the Small Business Committee.
Ms. JACKSON-FURMAN. I will jump in here.
So I think that we would ask that individually, as
Congressmen and women, whenever the contribution reform vote
comes up in Congress, we need your help in order to have
contribution reform so that USF remains sustainable in the
foreseeable future.
As far as the Small Business Committee, I don't have
anything to ask right now, but as Members of Congress I do.
Ms. GOODLANDER. Thank you very much.
I yield back, Mr. Chair.
Chairman WILLIAMS. The gentlelady yields back.
And I would like to thank our witnesses for their testimony
and for appearing before us today. You all did a really good
job. Your hometowns and States should be proud of you.
Without objection, Members have 5 legislative days to
submit additional materials and written requests for the
witnesses to the Chair, which will be forwarded to the
witnesses. I ask the witnesses to please respond promptly.
And if there is no further business, without objection, the
Committee is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 11:35 a.m., the committee was adjourned.]
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