State Broadband Report
States are actively pursuing ways to use broadband to promote economic development, build strong communities, improve delivery of government services, and upgrade educational systems. The ingredients for meeting those goals are fast and ubiquitous broadband networks, a population of online users, and an economic structure that helps drive broadband innovation and investment in new broadband uses. Not all states have these ingredients in equal measure. In this report, the TechNet State Broadband Index rates the states on indicators of broadband adoption, network quality, and economic structure as a way of taking stock of where states stand.
States employ a range of approaches to improving the broadband climate. Promising approaches to fostering an environment where broadband can contribute to states’ development include:
• Executive and Legislative Leadership: Governors who show an interest in developing broadband are a spur to building the coalitions and institutions that can enhance broadband infrastructure deployment and adoption in a state. Legislative leadership is also critical to ensuring that regulatory barriers are minimized, that rights of way access is expanded and that other policies needed to promote deployment and adoption are developed.
• State Funding: Closely associated with executive and legislative leadership is funding for infrastructure (often done in a way to leverage private funding or incentivize private investment), and initiatives to promote broadband adoption among citizens. Although tight state budgets make new expenditures difficult to incur, states who find the resources lay the groundwork for future social and economic growth.
• Cooperation: Bringing stakeholders together in the public, private, and non-profit sector is often easier said than done. That is why the leadership of a governor and legislators matters, but other stakeholders have to demonstrate engagement as well. Effective cooperation can lower the cost of deploying infrastructure and boost broadband adoption rates. Conversely, frictions in such efforts may make it harder to compete for funding that may be available from the federal government or make a state less attractive for businesses that need fast broadband to thrive.
• Planning: Many states engage in planning activities to explore gaps in broadband infrastructure in the state, understand broadband adoption in the state, and identify how state agencies and community anchor institutions e.g., schools and libraries) can use broadband to carry out their missions better. Institutionalizing these planning efforts can give broadband advocates a stronger voice in debates about infrastructure in the state, while providing a long-term perspective on how policy choices impact broadband outcomes.
States that rank highly on the broadband index stand better chances of reaping the benefits associated with high quality networks and robust adoption rates. The links between broadband and specific outcomes—rates of economic growth, higher test scores for children, higher rates of civic engagement, or better government performance—are difficult to estimate with precision. Yet, if as the National Broadband Plan says, “Broadband is the great infrastructure challenge of the early 21st century,” states’ efforts to meet that challenges will have payoffs for the entire country. By comparing where states stand, the State Broadband Index offers stakeholders a roadmap for accelerating progress—and laying the foundation for stronger communities and a more innovative economy.
In Hawaii (ranked 48th), Governor Neil Abercrombie has announced that the state will build a gigabit network statewide by 2018.
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TechNet State Broadband Index
Rank State Index Value (100 = Avg)
48 Hawaii 70
TechNet State Broadband Index—Breakout of Inputs
Rank State Adopt Total Network Total Econ Total
48 Hawaii 70 77 63
BROADBAND ADOPTION BY STATE (NTIA SURVEYS)
2007 2009 2010
Hawaii 58% 70% 69%
SHARE OF HOMES PASSED BY FIBER (FIBER TO THE HOME COUNCIL)
Hawaii 1.2%