‘Bidenomics’ multibillion-dollar broadband investment is ‘duplicative’ and ‘wasteful,’ report finds
FIRST ON FOX: President Biden’s multibillion-dollar broadband internet investment meant for rural areas is primarily favoring affluent blue cities and states — even encompassing areas with million-dollar residences and beachfront properties — according to a new report from Sen. Ted Cruz, R.-Texas.
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The report, exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital, found that the earmarked $42.45 billion in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding was allocated “despite repeated requests from lawmakers and communities across the country” to scrutinize how the Biden administration’s telecommunications branch collects data to determine its funding decisions.
Biden, the leading 2024 Democratic presidential candidate, implemented the program in June as part of his “Bidenomics” campaign to promote his economic policies for the 2024 election.
Every state, along with Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, received a base amount of $100 million, while the remaining territories were granted at least $25 million each. Texas and California, the two most densely populated states in the country, lead the funding rankings with $3.3 billion and $1.9 billion, respectively.
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However, the distribution has gone to states with fewer locations lacking service, and the allocation raises eyebrows when considering some peculiar instances of how the funds were distributed.
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In Washington, D.C., out of the 184 locations lacking broadband internet, 58 of them are clustered within the Smithsonian National Zoo, which includes popular spots like the Butterfly Garden, Lion-Tiger Hill and the Otter Pond, the report found.
Another instance of odd distribution was in Delaware, when the state received nearly $108 million from the Biden administration in June to address 2,166 unserved locations in the state.
Among those unserved locations is the Biden Environmental Training Center, a state-operated facility for conferences, training, and retreats located just 11 miles north of Rehoboth Beach.
Washington, D.C., and Delaware, both characterized by small size and high population density, were allotted over $547,000 and $52,000 respectively for each location without broadband access. The national median allocation for areas without connectivity averages $5,600 per location.
“Providing Washington, D.C., which appears to have almost no unserved locations, with such a disproportionately large amount of funding diverts BEAD funds from truly unserved areas of the country,” said Cruz, ranking chair of the Senate commerce committee.
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‘Bidenomics’: $42B internet investment favors wealthy left-wing regions, new report finds
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