By Edward Parkinson, CEO, First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet Authority) Broadband has become the lifeblood of our economy. It is also essential to our national security and public safety, a fact that first responders recognized many years ago. The tragedies of September 11 th revealed fundamental problems with the communication systems used by our nation’s first responders. They needed a...

Thank you for inviting me to speak today. It’s great to see so many familiar faces. And thank you Governor Hutchinson for your leadership on this issue. I know there are many governors here today who are fully committed to expanding access to computer science education. As governor of Rhode Island, I also prioritized computer science education of computer science. In 2016, we launched CS4RI to...

Thank you. It’s a pleasure to be with all of you today, and I’m glad to see so many familiar faces. As a former governor, I know that your jobs have been made exponentially harder by the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic also made it painfully clear that reliable, high-speed internet is a necessity for everyday life. Too many families can’t afford the cost of broadband service, and too many families...

To commemorate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves, U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott joined Historically Black College and University (HBCU) presidents and representatives at a roundtable to discuss digital equity on Saturday, January 15, in Baltimore, MD. The roundtable focused on closing the...

Today, Secretary Gina Raimondo and Deputy Secretary Don Graves, along with Diane Farrell, Acting Deputy Under Secretary of the International Trade Administration (ITA), held the Department’s first Equity Town Hall. As a top priority of the Biden-Harris Administration since Day One, Equity encompasses everything we do at the Commerce Department. “America’s diversity is a competitive advantage – but...

As we welcome 2022, we reflect on some of the most popular stories and issues from the past year. Last year, the 40th Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo outlined how the Commerce Department contributes to President Biden's Build Back Better agenda. "Our strategy is designed to achieve an overarching goal: to improve America’s economic competitiveness so that our workers and our companies...

Today, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo announced that the Department will be awarding $4.2 million to Tribal communities in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, and Wisconsin in order for them to build broadband infrastructure and increase connectivity on Tribal lands. The Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $3.2 million grant to the Ute Mountain...

Thank you, Barbara, for that introduction, and thank you to the New York Economic Club for hosting me today. It’s always great to be here in New York, especially during the holiday season when this city is so festive. We’re here together in person; people are out and about in the streets. It’s good to see a return to normalcy. As we end the year and reflect on where we are, it has been a...

As our Nation honors Native American Heritage Month, the Department of Commerce remains committed to building back a better, more equitable economy where no one is left behind. By implementing the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act , Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will help ensure every person in this country, especially those living on Tribal land...

The following is a cross-post from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Vice President Kamala Harris announced today at the conclusion of the White House 2021 Tribal Nations Summit that the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has awarded the first three grants as part of the Tribal Broadband Connectivity...